December 27th, 2024
In a promising sign for New Zealand's tourism sector, Stats NZ has released international travel data for February 2024, showing a substantial increase in the number of overseas visitors compared to the previous year. A total of 362,800 overseas visitors arrived in New Zealand in February 2024, marking a 94,100 increase from February 2023. The most notable upticks in arrivals were from China, the United States, Australia, and Korea.
This resurgence brings the February 2024 overseas visitor numbers to 87 percent of the pre-pandemic levels recorded in February 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on global travel.
The big picture: Diverse sources of visitor arrivals
The February 2024 data reveals a diverse mix of visitor origins, with Australians making up 31 percent of arrivals, followed by the United States at 16 percent, China at 11 percent, and the United Kingdom at 8 percent. These figures indicate a slight shift in the proportion of visitors from these countries compared to February 2019.
Zoom in: New Zealand-resident travellers
New Zealand-resident traveller arrivals also saw a notable increase, with 204,500 arrivals in February 2024, up 44,500 from February 2023. This represents a recovery to 107 percent of the pre-COVID-19 levels seen in February 2019. The largest changes in New Zealand-resident traveller arrivals came from Australia, China, and Japan, with a slight decrease in arrivals from India.
Annual arrivals: A year of growth
Looking at the year ending February 2024, overseas visitor arrivals totalled 3.11 million, a significant increase of 1.15 million from the previous year. Australian visitors led the way with an increase of 234,000 arrivals, followed by significant increases from China, the United States, and India. New Zealand-resident traveller arrivals followed a similar upward trend, with a total increase of 1.11 million from the previous year.
Border crossings and digital advancements
February 2024 saw 1.12 million border crossings, consisting of 580,600 arrivals and 534,500 departures, nearing the pre-pandemic total of 1.19 million in February 2019. This period also marked the adoption of the New Zealand Traveller Declaration (NZTD), a digital arrival card complementing the traditional paper arrival card, facilitating smoother entry processes for travellers.
A promising recovery
The significant recovery in international travel to and from New Zealand in February 2024 highlights the resilience and gradual revival of the tourism sector. With visitor numbers nearing pre-pandemic levels and the implementation of digital enhancements to streamline travel processes, New Zealand is well-positioned to welcome an increasing number of international visitors and residents travelling abroad.