New Zealand national guest nights rose at a "modest" pace in July, aided by the tail end of the Lions rugby tour.
Total guest nights climbed 1.4 per cent to 2.67 million in July this year compared with July last year, which had jumped 6.9 per cent to set anew record for the month, Statistics New Zealand said. Domestic guest nights gained 1.2 per cent to 1.65 million while international guest nights rose 1.7 per cent to 1.02 million, the agency said.
July's growth rate is slower than June's 6.7 per cent pace, which was bolstered by an influx of tourists for the British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand, which began June 3. The month of July caught the tail end of the Lions rugby tour with matches in Wellington and Auckland following eight matches in June.
"The effect of the Lions tour on international guest nights hasn't been as visible in July as it was in June," accommodation statistics manager Melissa McKenzie said. "As July last year was especially busy we didn't see as large an increase as we otherwise could have."
Nine of the country's 12 regional areas reported more guest nights. The Bay of Plenty region led the increase, with guest nights up 5.4 per cent to 270,000, followed by Canterbury which gained 2.8 per cent to 354,000, and Taranaki, Manawatu, Wanganui, which increased 5.3 per cent to 153,000.
Hotel guest nights increased 1.6 percent 1.1 million, with motel nights up 2.4 per cent to 910,000 and holiday park stays up 2.6 per cent to 336,000. Backpacker stays bucked the trend, down 2.9 per cent to 330,000.
The hotel occupancy rate lifted 1.7 per cent to 64.1 per cent, while the motel rate increased 1.6 per cent to 52.8 per cent, and the holiday park rate edged up 0.1 per cent to 11 per cent. Meanwhile the backpacker rate slipped 0.3 per cent to 35.4 per cent.
