Tourism numbers at highest in five & half years
Thursday, 22 January 2026
The number of tourists to visit New Zealand over the year to November was the highest since March 2020, but there’s still plenty of room for growth, economists say.
Stats NZ latest overseas visitors data has been released, and it shows there were 3.48 million arrivals in the year ending November ‒ an increase of 214,000 on the previous year.
There were 347,600 overseas visitors in November, and that was 26,400 more than in the same month the year before. It equated to 93% of the 372,100 arrivals in November 2019.
ASB senior economist Mark Smith said the inbound tourism sector looked to be humming with annual inflows at post-March 2020 highs, although still 10.9% below pre-Covid peaks.
Read more
The November visitor numbers were up 0.8% once seasonally adjusted, and it was the fifth consecutive monthly increase, he said.
“Slightly more than 75% of the gain in visitor numbers over the last year has come via Australia, with the 1.5 million Australian visitors less than 3% below record peaks.”
Visitor numbers from the America’s, Asia, Europe, and China had all ticked up, although Chinese visitor numbers were still below pre-Covid peaks, he said.
“But a weaker NZ dollar should support spending by overseas visitors.”
For Infometrics economist Nick Brunsdon, the figures showed tourism arrivals continued to keep growing slowly.
Arrivals over the year to November were 6.6% higher than the year to November 2024, the highest annual growth since February 2025, he said.
“Should this pace be maintained, a return to pre-pandemic levels could be less than two years away.”
He agreed that Australia continued to drive the tourism recovery, accounting for over a third of total visitor growth in November.
“A weaker New Zealand dollar has improved affordability for tourists coming to New Zealand, which could explain the strength in Australian arrivals.”
More surprising was a 37% jump in arrivals from China in November, accounting for just under a third of total November growth, he said.
“Chinese visitor arrivals totalled 63% of pre-pandemic levels in the year to November 2025, leaving significant room for recovery.”
Boosting international tourism is a key part of the Government’s focus on economic growth, and there have been specific campaigns into China and policy changes aimed to increase Chinese visitor numbers.
In December a new bi-weekly flight connecting China, New Zealand and South America on a direct route for the first time was launched.
At the time, Tourism Minister Louise Upston said there was increasing momentum from the drive to build Chinese visitor numbers up, and that as China’s economy recovered it would encourage more visitors.
Airline connectivity was a critical piece of the puzzle, she said.
Now, Auckland Airport has announced it is working with airline partners to provide additional China-New Zealand capacity as Lunar New Year travel ramps up.
There would be an 18% increase in seats from Auckland to China over January and February, and a 42% increase in Air China flights to Beijing between January 24 and March 2.
China Southern Airlines, which expanded its services over summer, also planned to increase its winter services back to pre-pandemic winter flight frequency, the airport said.
Scott Tasker, Auckland Airport’s chief customer officer, said airlines adding capacity for the Lunar New Year and committing additional services into future travel seasons reflected strengthening demand, and supported the flow of visitors.
The Government’s recent changes to visa settings had also supported travel demand between China and New Zealand, he said.