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New Zealand's museum industry has shaken off its ageing dinosaur image and is undergoing a growth spurt.
Latest figures from the Ministry of Tourism reveal the number of museums in New Zealand grew by more than a third in the five years from 2001 to 2006, with 58
new museums springing up around the country to bring the total to 228.
Over half of the museums are located in the four major regions, with 35 in Auckland alone, followed closely behind by 32 in Wellington, 31 in Canterbury and 28 in Otago.
The growth also saw the numbers of people employed by museums grow by 37 per cent, although the majority - 200 out of 228 - have less than 20 employees and 86 museums have less than five people working in them.
Ministry of Tourism senior research analyst Martin Svehla described the growth as substantial, especially as it had come on the back of earlier growth.
In the previous four years, from 1997 to 2000, the numbers of museum businesses also grew by 12 per cent.
Svehla said he believed growing popularity was behind the growth, although visitor numbers appear to have remained static over the time.
"I think museums in general have become more popular again. They have become a lot more interactive and are not just static displays."
A sector profile released by the ministry this week shows 1.7 million tourists visited museums in 2006, 51 per cent of whom were international visitors.
Visitors from Australia, the United Kingdom and the US made up the largest share of foreigners visiting museums reflecting their position as New Zealand's three largest markets.
But German visitors had the highest propensity to visit a museum, with 54 per cent of all German tourists going one.
International museum visitors were more likely to be either younger, in the 15-24 category, or in the older, over 55, age group, while slightly more females visited museums than males.
The profile also reveals international museum visitors are likely to stay in New Zealand for 28 days compared with the average of 20 days and spend more - an average of $3880 per trip compared with general tourists, who spend $2850 a trip.
The research only includes museums which are GST registered and either have annual sales or expenses of $30,000 or employ over three staff members.