The tourism outlook for 2023

The tourism outlook for 2023
Queenstown's proposed 'bed tax' is likely to be shelved at least until after the national election. (Image: ZQN)
Brent Melville
All things considered, things are looking up for the New Zealand tourism industry. To be fair, that’s off a low base, after the sector’s oxygen supply was essentially cut off as a response to the global pandemic. That saw four million annual visitors locked out of the country, an immediate drop in accommodation levels of 55% and the value of personal travel during 2020 drop from close to $4 billion to about $660 million. James Doolan, strategic director of Hotel Council Aotearoa (HCA) reckons, all up, there were 943 d...

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