The latest Tourism Industry Aotearoa Domestic [TIA] Visitor Satisfaction survey across the pond in the “land of the long white cloud” says Kiwis are loving their own country, with the pandemic having changed Kiwis’ domestic travel habits and they are now loving holidaying at home.
TIA’s latest survey carried out by Angus & Associates, has found that in the second half of 2020, half of the New Zealanders who travelled domestically for leisure enjoyed a holiday or short break, despite Alert Level restrictions during some of that period, with this up from 42% in July-December 2019 and other reasons for leisure travel were to visit family and friends, or to attend an event.
More New Zealanders visited Queenstown, Bay of Plenty and Central Otago compared to the same period in 2019, although a smaller proportion visited Northland and Wellington and were more satisfied with our domestic travel, with 63% rating their trip a 9 or 10 out of 10 (up from 58%).
The TIA/Angus & Associates survey questioned 2,196 New Zealanders on their perceptions of regional travel. It complements other domestic market research carried out by Tourism New Zealand, with TIA Chief Executive Chris Roberts saying, “It’s great that New Zealanders are heeding the call to get out and enjoy their own backyard,” adding, “Not only are they helping to support thousands of jobs and businesses around the country, but they are discovering why we have long been one of the world’s most desirable destinations,” and “Our tourism product and our tourism operators are world-class.”
In 2020, three in four New Zealanders took at least one overnight domestic leisure trip, with almost half of these trips were for a holiday or short break and the average trip was for three nights, but almost a fifth of New Zealanders travelled for seven nights or more.
Because of the national lockdown that occurred during March and April 2020, the proportion of autumn trips dropped to 17% (from 31% in 2019) but New Zealanders got moving again in the second half of the year.
Almost half of New Zealanders had their expectations exceeded on their most recent trip and those who travelled to Canterbury, The Coromandel or Northland showed the highest levels of satisfaction with their trip and older travellers and those on longer trips tended to be the most satisfied.
Mr Roberts added, “With so much to see and do in every region, it’s not surprising that those who have more time to explore are the most satisfied with their experiences,”
With border restrictions remaining in place for the foreseeable future, New Zealand’s tourism operators are said to be focused on continuing to deliver
memorable experiences for kiwis.
To read the latest Domestic Visitor Satisfaction research, go to: https://tia.org.nz/resources-and-tools/insight/domestic-satisfaction-report/
A report by John Alwyn-Jones
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