KEY POINTS:
Visitor numbers to New Zealand fell last month as Kiwis returning from the Rugby World Cup took up seats on planes, says Tourism New Zealand.
The number of arrivals from five of the top six markets dropped in October. The UK was down 8.3 per cent, US down 2.6 per cent and Japan and Korea dropped 11.9 per cent and 30.5 per cent respectively.
Chief executive George Hickton said an influx of returning New Zealanders had taken seats which otherwise would have been used by overseas visitors.
"The returning New Zealanders not only filled seats from the UK but also from other markets where the flights hub such as Hong Kong and the US," Hickton said.
A lack of airline seats continued to affect the number of Korean visitors, he added.
Overall, total arrivals for October were down 3.6 per cent at 179,947 people, with the annual growth rate of 3.1 per cent down from 3.8 per cent in September.
China was the only top six market to buck the trend with visitor numbers up 14.8 per cent in October at 9568 people. Cathay Pacific will next month increase the number of flights to New Zealand.
Trevor Hall, chief executive of Tourism Holdings, said he was concerned about the performance of Asian markets.
"I would say that there should be some alarm bells being rung around the Korean numbers and the Japanese numbers," Hall said.
He wants to see legislation to limit the use of old vehicles and coaches.
"We can't keep saying currency, we can't keep saying air capacity ... and ignore the overwhelming issue which is that we give some of these source markets ... appalling quality when they arrive in the country."
Although the number of Chinese visitors was rising, that market was at risk of imploding, Hall said.
"We have to get some sort of legislation quickly in place that protects our visitors, protects our environment and protects our positioning against 100 per cent Pure New Zealand."
* An ANZ economic review said the seasonally adjusted net migration inflow of 260 people in October was below the average of about 520 for the past six months. Slowing net migration would continue to reduce pressure on the housing market and consumer spending but would add to labour shortages.
OVERSEAS VISITORS
October 2007 compared to October 2006
Country: Australia
Number: 71,691
Change: down 0.5 per cent
Country: UK
Number: 18,400
Change: down 8.3 per cent
Country: USA
Number: 16,307
Change: down 2.6 per cent
Country: China
Number: 9568
Change: up 14.8 per cent
Country: Japan
Number: 7912
Change: down 11.9 per cent
Country: Korea
Number: 7084
Change: down 30.5 per cent
Monthly total
Number: 179,947
Change: down 3.6 per cent
