Big 3 help to offset Asian fall

By SIMON HENDERY tourism writer

Arrivals from Asia are still well down on last year, but the latest monthly visitor statistics show a "heartening" trend in the right direction, says Tourism New Zealand.

Overseas visitor arrivals fell 3.2 per cent during the June quarter as the Sars virus kept Asian travellers at home.

But while arrivals from Asia in the April-June period were down 34.5 per cent on the same quarter last year, New Zealand's tourism industry was propped up by more arrivals from other parts of the world.

Visitors numbers were up from the country's three biggest markets Australia, Britain and the United States, which together account for 54 per cent of arrivals.

Tourism New Zealand chief executive George Hickton said arrival statistics for last month showed the impact of Sars was lessening.

In May, arrivals from Asia were down 47 per cent on the same month last year.

For June, the figure was a comparatively encouraging 25 per cent drop, which Hickton said was heartening and showed Asian travellers were slowly becoming more confident.

Asian markets supplied 25 per cent of the two million overseas visitors in the past year, and the Asia region supplies five of New Zealand's 10 biggest tourism markets.

While arrivals from the region have slumped by more than a third in the past quarter, for the year to the end of June arrivals from Asia increased 3.1 per cent on the previous year.

"Sars created a huge challenge for the tourism industry," Hickton said.

"Now that it is effectively under control we expect a steady increase for the rest of the year, leading into our peak summer season."

Tourism NZ said last month that it expected a "strong recovery" in arrivals from September.