New Zealanders overwhelmingly support international tourism although a fifth worry there are too many overseas visitors.
The twice-yearly Mood of the Nation survey, found 96 per cent of New Zealanders agreed or strongly agreed that international tourism is good for the country but the proportion who think the country attracts too many tourists based on actual numbers has risen from 13 per cent in December 2015 to 21 per cent in March this year.
Thirty-five per cent of New Zealanders say tourists put too much pressure on New Zealand. The proportion of those worried about the pressure of tourism is highest in Otago - which includes Queenstown and the southern lakes where visitor numbers have soared.
Just on 62 per cent of those in Otago surveyed in the Kantar TNS study say their region is ill-equipped to deal with the pressure from tourism.
The survey was done for Tourism New Zealand and Tourism Industry Aotearoa.
The main benefits of international tourism are considered to be business opportunities and employment opportunities, while the biggest concern is infrastructure, with 44 per cent agreeing that tourism is putting pressure on it.
Those who were particularly negative about tourism were likely to be more concerned about the environmental impact and difficulty New Zealanders have in competing with international visitors for accommodation.
While 21 per cent were worried about there being too many tourists, 25 per cent believed there were too few international visitors.
Among their verbatim responses were:
• "Tourism is a growth industry and should be exploited to the max."
• "We can always use more tourism. It just needs to be spread around better so they don't all go to Auckland and Queenstown."
• "More visitors will increase jobs and spending and boost the economy for the rest of us. Better resources, roads etc without having to increase taxes."
• "Because there is plenty of New Zealand to see and we could cope with more than there is presently."
• "We have so much to offer compared to other far busier tourist destinations. I believe the distance puts people off."
Negative responses among the 21 per cent of the 500 surveyed included:
• "The popular parts of the country are struggling to deal with the demands tourism places on local infrastructure. Rampant tourism growth is not sustainable."
• "Just because of our accommodation and some of the attractions aren't able to cope with the amount of tourists they get."
• "Because I live in Wanaka, and I'm tired of how busy our only supermarket is all of the time."
• "Because our country is over-filling with foreigners, we have a poverty problem and homelessness is high and employment is low - there is no housing."
• "I think many Kiwis have been put off and everything is too expensive for the average family."
Tourism New Zealand chief executive Stephen England-Hall said the Mood of the Nation research is designed to keep in touch with New Zealanders' perception of the value of tourism, its benefits and challenges.
He said in a survey released late last year there had been a significant increase in concern from the public but this had plateaued this survey round.
When told of forecast growth in annual visitor numbers, 37 per cent felt there was too much growth, while 54 per cent said it was just right and 9 per cent not enough.
Kiwis have been pretty good at rocking up and expecting to get accommodation.
"Tourism New Zealand, Tourism Industry Aotearoa and other agencies are working hard to address issues that are of concern to New Zealanders. Our focus on attracting visitors during the shoulder season and new attempts to get them to visit more regions, as well as our work on educating visiting drivers address core concerns," said England-Hall, who has just taken up the top job at Tourism NZ.
The latest survey saw a significant drop in perception that visitors cause or increase the risk of road accidents or result in damage to the natural environment.
TIA chief executive Chris Roberts said support from host communities was vital for the tourism industry to increase its economic contribution to New Zealand.
Tourism Minister Paula Bennett told the Herald she was concerned about public resistance to visitors.
"I increasingly worry about that - people come to New Zealand for our unique experience - our culture, our natural beauty and they leave talking about the people. We're known as some of the friendliest people in the world because that's who we are and we benefit from it," she said.
"That being at risk at all is of concern for me and that's why I think that central government has a role in infrastructure."
Hospitality New Zealand manager of accommodation, partnerships and communication, Rachael Shadbolt, said Kiwis would have to get used to booking well in advance for a place to stay at peak towns during peak periods.
"Kiwis have been pretty good at rocking up and expecting to get accommodation," she said.
They would have to treat it as they did booking flights - planning well ahead.
The pressure on hotels and motels had led to the boom in bach booking agencies and Airbnb, which was alleviating some pressure as the accommodation sector struggled to overcome a room deficit.
