NZ tourism gets much-needed boost in December
The beleaguered New Zealand travel industryhad a lift in December when the number of short-term overseas visitors arrivingin the country hit a record for any month, NZ Herald reported.
It was also the first month since July thatthe number of arrivals was higher than in the corresponding month of theprevious year, according to data published by Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) thisweek. Short-term overseas visitor arrivals for December totalled 322,200 - 2%higher than in December 2007.
The impacts of the global economic crisis arethought to have helped New Zealand, with more short-haul visitors, fromAustralian in particular, choosing New Zealand as a holiday destination ratherthan more expensive long-haul options. Trans-Tasman tourist numbers rose 6% inDecember to 132,900 – their highest-ever monthly total. However, in line withthe preference for less expensive holidays, average length of stay shrunkslightly from 23 to 22 days.
For the year to December, visitor arrivals were down7200, or less than 1 per cent, from a year earlier at 2.46 million.
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