Pandemic reignites New Zealand’s domestic love affair

New Zealanders are falling in love with their country again, according to new data which has revealed a significant boost in domestic travel to regional locations amid a resurgence of the humble New Zealand road trip.

With international travel opportunities severed since borders closed in March 2020 as a result of Covid-19, New Zealanders have spent the prior 24 months embarking upon a rediscovery of their own backyard, with holiday parks front and centre as the preferred form of accommodation usurping even hotels.

In the past 12 months, 53% of New Zealanders have visited a new place in New Zealand which they have not previously been to, according to KANTAR’s April 2022 Domestic Travel View Report (DTVR).

The majority of these backyard discoveries are occurring closer to home than ever before, with 71% of holiday makers preferring to travel by car to get to their destination (Domestic Growth Insight Tool, DGiT), sparking an epic revival of the traditional domestic getaway – the road trip.

As a result, holiday parks have welcomed a healthy influx of visitors, surpassing hotels in market share of the traditional commercial accommodation market. The most recent summer season saw holiday parks reach their highest market share in recent years, accounting for almost half of all summer guest nights (46%).

“New Zealanders are falling in love with their country again,” said David Aflallo, General Manager of Tasman Holiday Parks New Zealand.

“New research shoes New Zealanders are now more interested than ever in exploring their own backyard, which is why have invested significant capital in upgrading our holiday park assets across our 5 sites nationally.

“Holidaymakers have stumbled upon the joy and authenticity of jumping in their car and seeing where the road takes them. It opens doors to those quintessentially breath-taking New Zealand destinations that have flown under the radar, until now.

“We are big believers in the enduring strength of the drive market and are proud to be delivering a high-end range of facilities to a new generation of holiday park-goers who are falling in love with everything our country has to offer.

The surge towards staycations has provided an essential crutch to the country’s tourism market which took a heavy hit in the absence of international visitation.  

In fact, data from HAPNZ shows the local getaway trend has significantly bolstered the tourism market back up to almost 90% of its pre-covid numbers, with the domestic market rallying to keep the industry afloat in the absence of international guests.

In 2019, NZ was host to 8.5 million guest nights, 35% of which came from international visitors and 65% from domestic. As of Feb 2022, figures indicate the previous 12 months has seen the country host 7.4 million guest nights – from a 100% domestic market.

“To see the strength of the domestic market and the heights it has reached in recent years is a major testament to depth and quality of our local tourism assets,” said Mr Aflallo.

“When the international market eventually does return to New Zealand, it will be a sophisticated tourism product they are returning to, with a real diversity of accommodation offerings.”

Holiday parks in regional areas close to the coastline or natural amenity continue to dominate the tourism market, with parks located in the Bay of Plenty, Coromandel, Eastland, and Timaru, Central Otago and Clutha accounting for over 50% of the commercial guest nights within their respective region.

“We have three parks located within the Bay of Plenty region, each of which have welcomed substantial visitor growth in recent years,” said Mr Aflallo.

Tasman Holiday Parks currently employs 100+ people nationally across its five holiday parks.