Visitor numbers in Bay slide 5pc

The All Blacks test match against Argentina on September 6 promises to bring more visitors to the region. Photo / APN

Fewer people splashed out on Hawke's Bay accommodation in June, according to the latest figures.

Statistics New Zealand's Accommodation Survey revealed guest nights were down 5.4 per cent from June 2013 across Hawke's Bay, from 46,150 to 43,644.

The average length of stay was 2.07 days, up from 2.02 days last year.

The survey records the number of guests staying in hotels, motels, backpacker accommodation, and holiday parks in New Zealand each month.

Each guest night is equivalent to one guest spending one night at an establishment.

Hawke's Bay Hospitality Association president Adam Greer said June had been quiet but accommodation providers who offered bargain deals on GrabOne fared slightly better than others.

One provider had reported fewer locals dining, no tourist trade, and corporate and trucking customers "just holding" during June, he said.

A later surge of cold weather could have been a factor in reduced guest nights, although numbers picked up during the July school holidays, he said.

"It's definitely not great but, as always, the people who are being proactive are doing all right."

Looking forward, the All Blacks test match against Argentina on September 6 promised to bring more visitors to the region.

"A lot of the accommodation providers are doing minimum two-night stays, so hopefully we'll get them here on the Friday and then they will stay until the Sunday."

However, he cautioned that weekend coincided with Fathers' Day, so anyone planning brunch or lunch might need to book ahead.

Nationwide, year-on-year guest night trends continued to rise, up 1.1 per cent on June last year.

However, monthly figures fell for all four accommodation types, down 4.4 per cent from May nationwide, 4.9 per cent in the North Island, and 4.6 per cent in the South Island.