Central Otago’s tourism market is experiencing a significant surge, thanks to an influx of visitors, once again, adding New Zealand to their bucket list post Covid.

Tourism Central Otago head of destination Antz Longman said visitor numbers were “starting to come back”, which had provided some normality for tourism and the hospitality sectors.

A wide range of nationalities had added a welcomed boost to Central’s tourism numbers in recent times, particularly those from Australia, the US, UK, Germany and the Netherlands.

“[Numbers are] starting to come back in and we’re getting a bit more, I guess, normality to the kind of numbers and trends we saw back pre that little bug that got around the world.”

He said a range of highly respected global travel organisations had helped remind people that Central Otago was a place to visit.

“Lonely Planet had Central Otago and the Southern Lakes, with our neighbours in Queenstown and Wanaka, as one of the top value destinations in the world to visit. So that’s great in terms of building awareness of our offering, especially our cycle trails on a global scale.

“And then just last month, Booking.com released its annual Traveler Review Awards and Otago was number seven in the top 10 most welcoming regions in the world. And, that’s based off surveys completed by those using their booking platform.”

Tourism Central Otago also recently commissioned a year-end December 2023 Market Perceptions report, which revealed that the district sits well above the regional benchmark and ticks all the boxes as a recommended travel destination.

Tourism Central Otago head of destination Antz Longman. PHOTO: Geoff Marks

That research is specific to Central, excluding the Southern Lakes towns of Queenstown, Wanaka and Arrowtown, which are often considered part of the region.

Another critical insight to how the district is tracking is the Net Promoter Score, a metric used to measure the balance between advocates and detractors.

An NPS greater than +1 means there are more supporters than detractors.

The higher the score, the stronger the support.

“For 2023 Central Otago returned an NPS of +44 per cent, versus the national benchmark of +18 per cent for other regions of New Zealand who partake in the research,” Antz said.

“This confirms that what we have thought anecdotally is true, in that our people and our place are exceptionally appealing and that this really is one of the best places in New Zealand to visit.”

The research also looks at what things travellers associate with Central Otago, with wine, cycling and warm weather coming out on top.

Antz said visitors are also often in search of an authentic, small community vibe with open spaces, something Central also lends itself to.

He said the district’s many cycle trails enable visitors to do just that.

“So, we’re definitely very, very fortunate to have the range of great rides that we have in Centro Otago.”

Those trails meant visitors could get on a bike, connect with locals and move between various communities.

To hear more from Antz, listen to this week’s The Outlet podcast.

Read more: Otago, one of the world’s most welcoming regions