Weekend boost for Rotorua

Lucy Hannah, 7, and Elisabeth Hannah making the most of Rotorua's mountain bike trails over the long weekend. Photo / Ben Fraser

The long weekend has seen visitors from all around New Zealand flock to Rotorua to make the most of the sunshine and variety of activities on offer.

Rotorua Visitor Centre and i-Site manager Graham Brownrigg said it had been a really busy Labour Weekend.

"We were short of accommodation on Saturday night with everything booked out and on Sunday there were heaps of people milling around.

"We won't get the total numbers of visitors for another few weeks but I would guess we were on par or even busier than last year's Labour Weekend. When I spoke to my staff they said there had been hordes of people through the visitor centre doors over the long weekend."

Mr Brownrigg said there were a lot of bookings and while it was hard to gauge how many people had come to Rotorua, it was clear the Famously Rotorua marketing campaign was still paying dividends for the city.

Rotorua Association of Motels president and owner of Cedarwood Lakeside Holiday Retreat Fiona Suurenbroek said they had a full house all three days.

"We have been very busy all weekend and the weather, after Saturday, has been wonderful. I would say it has been 80 per cent domestic visitors and 20 per cent international visitors which is pretty normal for this kind of weekend."

She said the rush was on par with previous Labour Weekends which was "one of the busiest weekends of the year".

"Labour Weekend is the last proper holiday before Christmas so I would hazard a guess that many people use it as a chance to get away and Rotorua is always a popular destination."

Sport of Kings Motel manager Tristen Williams agreed it had been a busy weekend, describing the rush as "crazy".

"Guest numbers always pick up over Labour Weekend because it is the first long weekend after winter and this year has been no different - it has been a full house."

She said there was still a mix of international and national visitors with most people coming to the city for outdoor activities.

"Many of the guests we have spoken to have said they were mostly here to do cycling, both road and mountain biking.

"Rotorua is great because there are always things to do in the weekend which keep people coming to our city."

Local eateries have also had their share of the plumped up visitor numbers with Atticus Finch co-owner Kay Thompson saying they had been flat out every day and it was "much busier than last year".