The number of Chinese arriving in Auckland in November rose about 34 per cent.
Visitors from China led a jump in Asian arrivals through Auckland International Airport in November, confirming government figures that show New Zealand is becoming a more popular destination as airlines add capacity.
International passengers rose 6.3 per cent in November from a year earlier to 707,047, the airport company said.
Visitors from China jumped about 34 per cent to 34,001, Indian visitors climbed about 29 per cent to 4930 and those from South Korea rose 19 per cent to 5057. Japanese visitors rose about 15 per cent to 7330.
Returning Kiwis, the biggest source of international arrivals at Auckland Airport, rose 5.5 per cent to 148,584 and Australians rose 2.3 per cent to 66,573. US arrivals rose 2.1 per cent to 18,810 and those from Britain were unchanged at 15,029.
Government figures this week showed visitor numbers rose 9 per cent to a record 3.09 million in the 12 months ended November 30, with Chinese visitors jumping by 87,400 to 344,900.
Among new services, Air China and Air New Zealand this month had the inaugural flight of their alliance service between Beijing and Auckland. China Eastern Airlines began a seasonal Shanghai-to-Auckland service in December last year.
