Motels saw the biggest growth in occupancy during May.
Motels saw the biggest growth in occupancy during May.
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The number of guest nights spent in short term commercial accommodation increased 6 per cent in May, from the same month a year earlier, to 1.9 million.
Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) data released today showed that the region with the largest increase was Bay of Plenty, where guestnights in May were up 18,000, or 10 per cent, compared to May 2006.
Next was Waikato where the increase was 14,000, or 9 per cent, then Nelson/Marlborough/Tasman up 13,000, or 15 per cent, and Auckland also up 13,000, or 3 per cent.
In contrast, guest nights in Taranaki/Manawatu-Wanganui were almost unchanged, SNZ said.
Motels, with an increase in guest nights of 45,000, or 7 per cent, had the largest absolute increase among the five accommodation types in the survey.
Caravan parks/camping grounds had the next largest increase in May, compared to the same month a year earlier, with a rise of 27,000, or 12 per cent.
Excluding caravan parks/camping grounds, the May occupancy rate was 42 per cent, compared to 41 per cent in May 2006, with accommodation capacity up 2 per cent, SNZ said.
Auckland had the highest occupancy rate at 52 per cent, excluding caravan parks/camping grounds, followed by Wellington on 51 per cent.
The rise in guest nights comes against a backdrop of a 4 per cent rise (5500 people) in short term overseas visitor arrivals in this country in May compared to the same month a year earlier.
Despite the rise in visitor numbers, the number of days the visitors stayed was down, although by less than 1 per cent.
SNZ said the trend in total guest nights had been increasing since January 2006, after a flat period that started in November 2004.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, the total guest nights in May were up 1.8 per cent from April.
