Hawke’s Bay records New Zealand’s biggest increase in visitor spend
Hawke’s Bay has recorded a 10.1 per cent growth in overall visitor spend for the month of August, an increase that is greater than every other region in New Zealand.
More than $45 million was injected into the visitor economy during the month of August, up from $41.2 million during August last year. This comes despite a decrease in spend from international visitors as well as the return of Covid-19 in Auckland, and subsequent rise in alert levels, on August 11.
While international visitor spend in region is justifiably down, by 29.9 per cent, domestic visitor spend is up by 18.7 per cent, a figure that is the sixth highest in New Zealand and the highest for any region in the North Island. The two figures combine to give Hawke’s Bay the largest regional growth in visitor spend in the country for the month of August.
New Zealanders spent more than $40 million in Hawke’s Bay during August with hospitality, retail and cultural and recreational activities being the biggest winners. These sectors recorded domestic visitor spend increases of 34 per cent, 32 per cent and 29 per cent respectively.
The accommodation sector also received a boost during the month of August with an increase of 4.5 per cent in domestic visitor spend when compared to the same period last year.
Hawke’s Bay Tourism Chief Executive Hamish Saxton says he is gratified with the result but also acknowledges hard times could still be ahead.
“We are thrilled to not just maintain, but to also grow our share of the domestic visitor market. With our borders currently closed to international tourists, it is critical that we work hard to encourage New Zealanders to travel to Hawke’s Bay. I am also pleased to see that we have increased our share of visitor spend that comes from the Wellington region. Given our strategic focus on this market, this is great news and we are delighted to see such positive outcomes,” he says.
“However, despite this most recent result, our region’s visitor spend is still down when you compare year-on-year for the 12-months to August 2020. The initial lockdown during March, April and May had a severe impact and, as we move into summer, we may feel the loss of international tourists even more. Those businesses who rely on cruise or international tourists will be the worst hit.”
The one-off grant from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment under the Strategic Tourism Asset Protection Programme will allow Hawke’s Bay Tourism to focus on growing the region’s share of domestic visitors, says Saxton.
“We came out of the gates strong post-lockdown and the additional $700,000 of STAPP funding allows us to continue this work. Without this we could have struggled to maintain share of voice as all regions are now trying to replace their lost income from international visitors with domestic spend.
“Given the whole of New Zealand is currently completely reliant on domestic tourism, until a potential trans-Tasman bubble can be formed, the marketing activity we do outside of the region is crucial in delivering a critical mass of visitors to Hawke’s Bay,” says Saxton.
Hawke’s Bay Tourism has a membership of more than 200 members and an annual turnover of approximately $2.2 million, of which $1.5 million is an investment from Hawke’s Bay Regional Council.
