January overseas visitor numbers up for New Zealand

About 15,000 more overseas visitors travelled to New Zealand in January this year than in the same month of 2025.

Overall numbers have edged up to 97% of pre-pandemic levels.

Visitor numbers from Australia, the UK, United States and Germany were up, but fewer people arrived from China and South Korea.

“The fall in overseas visitor arrivals from China ... reflected the timing of the Chinese New Year,” Stats NZ said today.

The most recent Lunar New Year started on February 17, compared with January 29 in 2025.

Overall, foreign visitor arrivals in January were 385,400, an increase of 15,200 from a year earlier.

Stats NZ said of all visitors, 39% were from Australia, up from 36% a year earlier.

The US was the next biggest market, followed by the UK.

Some 7% of visitors were from China, down from 11% a year before.

There were 1.46 million border crossings in the month, comprising 745,900 arrivals and 717,200 departures.

Total border crossings were 2% higher than in January 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic.

For the year ending January 31, 3.52 million overseas visitors arrived, up 128,000 on the prior year.

Infometrics principal consultant Rob Heyes said the New Zealand dollar in January strengthened against the pound, US dollar and Chinese yuan.

But he said long-haul trips for visitors were unlikely to be strongly influenced by short-term exchange rate movements.

Meanwhile, the NZ dollar lost ground in January to the Australian dollar, making New Zealand a more affordable option for Australian tourists.

ASB economist Wesley Tanuvasa said geopolitical volatility could temper tourism growth.

“The Australian cohort accounts for nearly 90% of the annual increase in tourism,” he said today.

“Notable too was the improvement in US tourism arrivals, who spend more than Australians.”

Tanuvasa said February data would likely show some of the January decline in Chinese tourist numbers being clawed back.

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