South Island pips Auckland on tourism while Iran War fallout looms

Friday, 12 June 2026

Christchurch Airport processed 47,399 overseas visitor arrivals in April, up 17.8% on the same month last year.

Christchurch and Queenstown are giving New Zealand’s tourism recovery a strong South Island tilt, even as the Middle East conflict threatens to make the next leg harder.

Stats NZ figures show the two main South Island gateways together handled 8777 more overseas visitor arrivals in April than in the same month last year, edging ahead of Auckland’s 8487 increase.

Christchurch Airport did most of the heavy lifting. It processed 47,399 overseas visitor arrivals in April, up 7160, or 17.8%, on last year.

Christchurch and Queenstown handled 8777 more overseas visitor arrivals in April than a year earlier, slightly ahead of Auckland’s 8487 increase.

Queenstown Airport handled 38,177 overseas visitor arrivals, up 1617, or 4.4%.

But the April numbers show a recovery with a few cracks under the surface.

European visitor arrivals fell sharply, a move linked to flight disruption through the Middle East, a key corridor for travel between Europe and New Zealand.

The data showed European arrivals into New Zealand dropped 19.3% in April, while arrivals from Africa and the Middle East fell 28.8%.

Infometrics chief forecaster Nick Brunsdon said the fall in those arrivals was likely to be an early sign of flight disruption.

Brunsdon said the Iran War had not yet had a broad effect on arrivals because most travellers booked months before they arrived.

“Given the typical lag between making bookings and travelling, we are yet to see a wholesale effect from the Iran War on arrivals.”

The effect of higher oil prices and airfares was more likely to show up in the next few months, he said.

“We expect the effect of higher oil prices on airfares and therefore demand is likely to manifest in coming months.”

He said national growth had been driven by China, where arrivals rose 52% in April, taking annual growth from that market to 24%.

As European arrivals weakened, growth was becoming more concentrated in New Zealand’s three biggest visitor markets - Australia, the United States and China.

That appeared to have been helped by the trial visa-free scheme for Chinese visitors travelling to New Zealand through Australia, he said. The trial is due to end in October, but Brunsdon said the early results suggested it was likely to continue.

At current growth rates China could overtake the United States and reclaim its place as New Zealand’s second-largest visitor market in a little over a year, he said.