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Kiwis seek their holidays offshore

Press Release – Hotels.com

AUCKLAND 7 March, 2017 : The worlds love affair with the Land of the Long White Cloud again peaked in 2016, with our trans-Tasman rivals and international travellers visiting Godzone in droves, despite the fact they had to pay more to stay …Kiwis seek their holidays offshore

Booming New Zealand hotel market does nothing to deter record number of overseas travellers, while Kiwis seek their holidays offshore

• New Zealand hotel prices among the top 20 destinations rose by 2% for international travellers in 2016, according to the latest Hotel Price Index from Hotels.com

• Savvy Kiwis secured bargains across the globe in 2016

AUCKLAND 7 March, 2017: The world’s love affair with the Land of the Long White Cloud again peaked in 2016, with our trans-Tasman rivals and international travellers visiting Godzone in droves, despite the fact they had to pay more to stay here. According to the latest Hotel Price Index™ (HPI™) data from Hotels.com™, the average price paid* per night for a hotel room by international holiday-makers at the top 20 New Zealand destinations increased by 2% to $176 per night in 2016.

The rise comes off the back of another record-breaking year for tourism in New Zealand[1] in 2016, with international visitors nearing numbers close to 3.5 million. Higher hotel rates certainly didn’t deter our westerly neighbours in 2016 as more than one million[2] Aussies crossed the pond to visit New Zealand last year alone.

According to the Hotels.com data, the most popular destination for international travellers was Auckland, where visitors nabbed a room for an average price of $197 per night in 2016, up 9% on the previous year. Adventure activity hub Queenstown came in at second place ($273), with a year-on-year price rise of 13%, followed by Christchurch and Wellington in third and fourth most popular, with prices at an average of $161 and $175 per night, respectively.

Steep ascents up the mountains

International travellers threw down some serious cash per night in Queenstown, with rooms putting holiday-makers back a cool 13% more on average per night, up from $241 in 2015, and marking the steepest increase of the top 20 destinations in 2016. Amongst the turquoise waters and mountainous drama of Lake Tekapo, international visitors paid $234 on average per night, while the third and fourth most expensive Enzed cities in the top 20 destinations was Auckland ($197) and Franz Joseph Glacier ($195).

Picton reported the steepest decline in price of the top 20 destinations, dropping 10% to $140 per night in 2016. Christchurch also declined in the price paid per night by visiting guests – likely due to ongoing earthquake and rebuild issues – down 5%, to $161 on average per night. Hamilton was the most affordable New Zealand destination among the top 20 analysed for international travellers where a hotel room cost on average $136 per night in 2016.

Hotels.com brand marketing manager, Australia and New Zealand, David Spasovic said: “It’s clear that both Aussie and international travellers can’t get enough of Kiwiland, and even a rising hotel market and appreciating New Zealand dollar over 2016 did nothing to deter this.

“The year ahead looks strong with increased air routes opening up New Zealand to more corners of the globe[3], and its role as co-host for major sporting events like the Rugby League World Cup and LPGA golf tour,” he said.

Kiwis fly high in 2016

Savvy Kiwis sought out exotic adventures in 2016, snapping up more holidays abroad than ever[4], amidst the changing economic and political climate.

It was tea and scones for all post-June, with London remaining the favourite European destination for Kiwis. This was no doubt helped by the fact that New Zealand travellers paid 15% less to stay there in 2016, likely due to the British pound plummeting to its lowest level in more than 30 years and the New Zealand dollar buying close to 53p – the best exchange rate in three years[5].

Meanwhile, call it Chris Hemsworth’s Tourism Australia sales pitch, or Trumps’ pulling power, but Kiwis couldn’t get enough of Australia and the United States for holidays, with them taking out the first and second-most popular countries for Kiwi travellers in 2016 respectively, despite a majority of the destination cities rising in price. Of the 13 least affordable cities reported in the Hotels.com data, 11 were located in the United States, with Santa Monica making Kiwis feel the pinch at $486 on average per night, followed by Lahaina ($439), Boston ($368) and New York ($364).

Security concerns impact hotel rates in Europe

The Turkish city of Istanbul, which was rocked by terror attacks and an attempted military coup in 2016, topped the list of European destinations that saw the steepest decline in hotel prices (-27%), where a room set travellers back just $106 per night. New Zealanders also had more money in their back pockets in Zurich, where the average price paid for a room fell by 18% to $287 per night.

Surprisingly, despite hotel occupancy rates in Paris slumping in the wake of terrorism attacks[6], the city’s average price for Kiwis reduced by only 2% to $209 per night.

Cheap as chups in Southeast Asia

Kiwis continued to squeeze more juice out of their holiday dollars in Southeast Asia, with the region recording 15 of the lowest 20 averages paid per hotel night. The Hotels.com HPI revealed Chiang Mai and Phnom Penh as the absolute winners in the bargain department among the top 100 popular destinations analysed at a cheap as chips $64 per night each.

Siem Reap ($69), Pattaya ($74), Cebu ($75) and Hoi An ($76) were the other top Southeast Asian favourites that offered Kiwis the best bang-for-your-buck hotel breaks.

Meanwhile, travellers looking to trek off the well-trodden beach path could find bargains galore in East Central Europe, with the beauties of Budapest and Prague offering a budget-friendly $129 and $139 on average per night in 2016.

Mr Spasovic said: “Kiwis exercised their admirable “she’ll-be-right” attitude with travel in 2016 – stacking up a record 281,100 trips overseas[7] – with their thirst for offshore experiences uninhibited by the bumpy political landscape. With the widest range of hotel choices, competitive deals and user-friendly technology, it’s the ideal place to find a bargain,” he said.

A snapshot of hotel prices in 2016:

Top 20 New Zealand destinations for international travellers and average hotel prices paid per night by international travellers in 2016:


RANK

(based on number of nights sold)
DESTINATION AVERAGE PRICE PAID IN 2016 (NZD) % CHANGE ON 2015
1 Auckland $197 9%
2 Queenstown $273 13%
3 Christchurch $161 -5%
4 Wellington $175 3%
5 Rotorua $158 5%
6 Taupo $166 -4%
7 Te Anau $179 2%
8 Dunedin $165 3%
9 Wanaka $190 2%
10 Franz Josef Glacier $195 3%
11 Nelson $151 -1%
12 Paihia $178 3%
13 Hamilton $136 -1%
14 Napier $158 -2%
15 Lake Tekapo $234 8%
16 Fox Glacier $185 0%
17 Greymouth $151 3%
18 Kaikoura $162 -1%
19 Picton $140 -10%
20 Tauranga $172 -3%


International destinations among the top 100 analysed where New Zealand travellers paid the most for a hotel room in 2016:


DESTINATION AVERAGE PRICE PAID IN 2016 (NZD) % CHANGE ON 2015
Santa Monica, United States $486 1%
Lahaina, United States $439 -4%
Boston, United States $368 -11%
New York, United States $364 6%
Honolulu, United States $352 9%
San Francisco, United States $323 -1%
Hollywood, United States $323 1%
Chicago, United States $290 0%
Zurich, Switzerland $287 -18%
Whitsunday Islands, Australia $284 11%


International destinations among the top 100 analysed where New Zealand travellers paid the least for a hotel room in 2016:


DESTINATION AVERAGE PRICE PAID IN 2016 (NZD) % CHANGE ON 2015
Chiang Mai, Thailand $64 -4%
Phnom Penh, Cambodia $64 -8%
Siem Reap, Cambodia $79 -13%
Pattaya, Thailand $84 -12%
Cebu, Philippines $75 -9%
Hoi An, Vietnam $76 -18%
Hanoi, Vietnam $81 4%
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia $101 -7%
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam $101 12%
Bangkok, Thailand $102 1%


– ENDS –

*Average prices paid per night inclusive of taxes and fees.
ends

Content Sourced from scoop.co.nz
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