New Zealand Golf Tourism Record High
Golf Tourism New Zealand’s third golf tourism progress report reveals soaring numbers of golf visitors with one of the highest growth rates worldwide.
According to the report, golf visitor numbers are up by a record 23% alongside an 18% increase in spend by these visitors for the year ending April 2016, with NZ$329 million being pumped into the economy each year from international golf tourism.
Part of the success is the investments made into the country’s new and existing courses resulting in New Zealand offering a range of internationally ranked courses attractive to golfers worldwide.
Peter Walton, Chief Executive of IAGTO (International Association of Golf Tour Operators), said the growth in golf visitors to New Zealand in the past year is an example of what can be achieved within a relatively short space of time when a national tourist board invests in golf tourism promotion and is guided by a sustainable golf tourism promotional strategy.
Walton said: “The results speak for themselves and are testament to Tourism New Zealand’s golf tourism initiative. We are confident that international golf travel to New Zealand will continue to snowball because the destination has clusters of truly spectacular golf courses providing a golf experience that is quite unique to New Zealand and will be much sought after as the word spreads around.
“Globally, golf tourism is in a good place with 2016 being the fifth year of consecutive growth and forward bookings for 2017 looking strong, with golf tour operator bookings up 4.8% year on year worldwide and up 5.3% in Asia and Australasia.”
New Zealand has around 400 courses and offers a wide variety of conditions, from oceanfront sub-tropical courses in the north to alpine settings in the south.
