New Zealand embraces Chinese tourists in Golden Week holiday

WELLINGTON — Dong Bing flew to Auckland from Beijing on the first day of China's National Day holiday with her husband and 5-year-old son. The long-awaited overseas vacation has been highly anticipated by the family during the "Golden Week", which offers a nice respite for them.

"New Zealand has a lot of unique natural scenery and many different places from China. We would like to have a special experience with our son," said Dong, who planned a 13-day family trip in both of New Zealand's North and South Islands.

The National Day holiday, dubbed Golden Week by the Chinese, normally runs for seven days — Oct 1-7. Overseas tourism industries have increasingly benefited from China's holiday economy consumption boom.

Chinese tourists are now spending more on specialty food, attractions and experiences, such as glacier hiking, skydiving and other extreme activities, said Uncle Rong, head of Travel Together Ltd, a tour operator in New Zealand's South Island.

Gregg Wafelbakker, General Manager Asia for Tourism New Zealand, said arrivals to New Zealand for the Golden Week have been strong, possibly higher than in 2023, as October is spring in New Zealand, which is an excellent time to visit.

According to Tourism New Zealand, 60 percent of Chinese tourist arrivals are during off-peak seasons with spring the most popular.

Local tourism businesses value visitors during the Golden Week as it falls outside of New Zealand's summer peak, Wafelbakker said, adding that tourism businesses welcomed Chinese visitors by having Chinese-speaking guides and offering payment options Chinese travelers are familiar with.

The introduction of Alipay and WeChat Pay is one of the key measures to facilitate the stay of tech-savvy Chinese visitors.

New Zealand's traditional spectacular landscapes and unique culture offer diverse opportunities for travelers to experience, Wafelbakker said, adding that being in the southern hemisphere and therefore having opposite seasons to China gives a fresh feeling to Chinese travelers.

New Zealand's international tourism is continuing to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a normalizing of tourism flows of international visitors returning in droves along with strong spending increases in hospitality services and visitor experiences, said Tourism Minister Matt Doocey.

Tourism has stepped up to become New Zealand's second-biggest export earner, as it has generated 3.7 percent of the country's gross domestic product, statistics showed.

Although the number of guests has not reached the pre-pandemic level, there is a higher proportion of younger, self-guided, independent travelers this year, and the airplanes to New Zealand from Shanghai and Guangzhou are full, said Nick Jiang, head of the Hi Travel tourist company.

Young Chinese tourists tend to come in small groups such as only two to six people, Jiang said, adding that many of his clients chose hiking, skiing, or mountaineering during their New Zealand holidays.

In the first quarter of 2024, Chinese tourists contributed NZ$490 million ($300 million) to New Zealand's economy, a close second to Australian tourists. A total of 226,401 visitors from China arrived in New Zealand between May 2023 and May 2024, staying on average for 10 days, statistics showed.

There are 61 million people in China seriously considering a holiday in New Zealand, 62 percent of whom have New Zealand as their top choice, according to a survey from Tourism New Zealand.

Xinhua