Media release from Destination Queenstown
12 February 2013

Queenstown hits record guest nights in December

Statistics New Zealand’s latest research shows Queenstown’s December 2012 guest nights hit an all time high.

According to the Commercial Accommodation Monitor (CAM), total visitor nights for the month of December were up 9.6 percent to 264,049 when compared with December 2011.

December 2011 was the previous record holder for December visitor nights at 240,880.

International guest nights were up 9.4 percent to 177,572, accounting for 67.2 percent of all guest nights in the Queenstown RTO area, while domestic guest nights were up 10.1 percent to 86,477 for the same period.

Motels/apartments and hotels and were the key sectors to benefit, with 21.1 and 16.7 percent respective increases in visitor nights.

A year-on-year comparison ending December 2012 shows overall guest nights were up 5.8 percent to 2,543,499 with a 2.7 percent increase in international guest nights and an 11.8 percent increase in domestic guest nights.

Destination Queenstown CEO Graham Budd was delighted with the result.

“As we all know, our visitor mix is creating new dynamics that we all need to adapt to.

“Holiday park numbers have declined in December while hotel and motel guest nights have driven the growth.

“Achieving a record full year result in 2012 is satisfying. Our challenge is to continue to build on that and gain growth across all sectors of the visitor economy in Queenstown.”

ENDS

© Scoop Media

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