Queenstown is the country’s most sought-after winter destination, followed by city breaks in Auckland and Christchurch, according to Airbnb.
Tim Barke will take the reins at the 6,500 hectare property near Taupō, which includes an exclusive hunting and fishing lodge.
International passenger numbers at Queenstown Airport totalled 70,118 in March 2024, up 26.9% on the same month in pre-Covid 2019.
NZSki has appointed Steve Hall as its Remarkables ski area manager.
Destination Queenstown, Queenstown Business Chamber of Commerce, and Queenstown Lakes District Council have welcomed a delegation from sister city Aspen Colorado to the resort this week.
Two regional tourism organisation initiatives designed to encourage visitor participation in environmental projects have raised $75,000 in their first year.
Queenstown Lakes District Council has opened applications for the 2024-25 Events Fund.
Warbirds over Wānaka is estimated to have given the local economy a $40m boost, according to the local business chamber.
Tourism has been a bright spot for the economy with Otago among the biggest beneficiaries although domestic demand remains subdued.
Arrowtown is once again celebrating Matariki with the return of its third annual festival.
The sixth annual Tourism Policy School starts at Heritage Queenstown today and concludes tomorrow.
Queenstown Lakes District Council has opened public consultation on its Draft Creativity and Culture Strategy.
The guest and speaker lineup has been announced for the sixth annual Tourism Policy School to be held in Queenstown.
The Wānaka A&P Show welcomed more than 44,000 people to its 87th event over the weekend.
Warbirds Over Wanaka organisers say they are seeing increased demand for this year’s event over Easter.
The impacts on sustainability and infrastructure are among Queenstown Lakes residents’ top concerns when it comes to tourism, according to a new survey.
Christchurch International Airport Limited says it will hold the 800 hectares of land it has purchased for around $50m as a strategic asset while it reassesses its Tarras airport project.
The operator of the ‘six star’ luxury The Carlin Boutique Hotel in Queenstown has gone into receivership.
The airport says sustained demand for travel to the resort, particularly from Australia, had resulted in “a strong financial performance”.
Passenger numbers at Queenstown Airport have again exceeded pre-Covid by almost 5.8% in January.
Leigh Stock is retaking the helm at Lake Wānaka’s premium Edgewater resort.
Queenstown Resort College has welcomed the creation of a new technology development agency for the region and has expanded its offer to meet the skills demand.
The 35-year-old was acting as a guide on board a Northern Escape Heli-Ski helicopter when it crashed in British Columbia.
An event focused on the technology that tourism and hospitality operators can use to build better businesses is coming to Queenstown in May.
The Aotearoa Bike Challenge is returning to Queenstown Lakes this February.
The hostel group’s co-owner says occupancy has bounced back to pre-Covid levels but increasing expenses and the cost of capital is constraining ambitions.
International passenger movements at Queenstown Airport continued to exceed pre-Covid with 83,444 seen in December 2023, according to the airport’s latest figures.
The sixth annual Otago Tourism Policy School will take place at the Heritage Hotel in Queenstown this March.
The result set a new bar for a major NZ hotel market and helped drive ADR across the country on New Year’s Eve to a national record.
Ngāi Tahu Tourism has banned its bid to acquire the Queenstown tourism jet boating business KJet.
Royalburn Station owned by celebrity cook Nadia Lim and Carlos Bagrie will open to the public for three limited-capacity tours this summer.
Cardrona Alpine Resort says it will become the biggest commercial ski area in New Zealand when Soho Basin is added to its offer in winter 2025.
The driving force behind Queenstown’s $30m+ ‘six star’ The Carlin passed away suddenly, aged 69.
The MD tells the Ticker about the luxury operator’s latest experience, regional challenges, investing in staff, and one benefit from the pandemic.
A new food and wine destination is opening this week near Queenstown – the first phase of a circa $200m development at a historic 160-year-old farm.
Total passenger movements at Queenstown Airport dipped to 185,056 in October 2023, down 1% from the same month last year
Southern Lakes Sanctuary and Forest & Bird have started a crowdfunding effort to raise at least $10,000 to exterminate rats from the Makarora area at Mt Aspiring National Park.
The small group hiking and adventure tour operator, led by chief executive Wendy van Lieshout, also won the Excellence in People & Capability accolade at the awards on Saturday night.
Queenstown Lakes District Council is seeking feedback on how Wānaka’s reserve spaces could be improved.
QAC says it has cut emissions by almost two-thirds compared to 2019 but it does not yet measure the impacts of airlines flying to the airport.
NZSki is replacing its Shadow Basin chairlift at The Remarkables in time for the 2024 ski season.
The operator acquires land next to its existing Scenic Suites hotel for a new development.
Otago and Auckland in particular are benefitting from the recovery in international travel.
The Commerce Commission has cleared Real NZ’s business Real Journeys to acquire the Spirit of Queenstown vessel and its associated assets from Southern Discoveries.
Christchurch Airport says there will be significant unmet demand for flights into Central Otago airports like Queenstown Airport.
Queenstown Airport is fully open and flights operating as normal following a backlog of flights caused by the terminal’s shutdown on Friday.
The operator says it will be the first to provide electric transport to the country’s adventure industry.
Queenstown is open for business following extreme weather and despite the resort’s ongoing drinking water issue.
Foresty slash was swept into upper Queenstown during the biggest downpour in 24 years, which prompted the declaration of a state of emergency.
Cancellations and the expense of water workarounds are among the challenges for the resort’s operators.