KEY POINTS:
Injured and lost tourists were responsible for more than a third of all bush rescues carried out this summer, prompting calls for more outdoor safety education for visitors.
Land Search and Rescue board director Phil Melchior said 39 of the 111 rescues carried out between December and the
end of February involved tourists who got into trouble in the wilderness.
A large majority of those rescues took place in the South Island, especially on the mountains. Mr Melchior said the figures showed that while visitor numbers continued to grow, so did the need for more education about the potential dangers of the wilderness.
"We're selling New Zealand with glossy brochures of our fabulous scenery and visitors are encouraged to get amongst it.
"The problem is that tourists are sometimes ill prepared, don't understand the system, and get into trouble," he said.
"In New Zealand basic outdoor safety messages are drummed into us from a young age. We can't assume the same knowledge from tourists. If we're selling New Zealand on the great outdoors we have a responsibility to make sure people know that danger lurks beneath the beauty."
Mr Melchior said making tourists pay for their own rescue wasn't the answer.
"It's about making sure they don't need rescuing in the first place."
While Mr Melchior said there needed to be more education available for people as they came off the plane, Land Search and Rescue was doing it's bit by developing seven basic outdoor safety tips for tourists.
The organisation hopes those tips will be taken up by the tourism industry and passed to visitors.
Tourism New Zealand spokeswoman Cas Carter said the key reason people came to New Zealand was to experience the outdoors and it was always a challenge getting safety advice to them.
The seven tips were a great idea which could now be added to the material already available for tourists.
Ms Carter said Tourism NZ had already worked with Lonely Planet to produce a publication called Play Safe in New Zealand.
* SURVIVAL TIPS
Sign in/sign out. Leave a detailed trip plan with DoC or a friend including a "panic" date. The more details searchers have about your intentions, the quicker you'll be rescued if something goes wrong.
Don't underestimate bad New Zealand weather. Check the forecasts before going into the outdoors for the period you'll be gone.
Take advice from people who know the area you're planning to tramp or climb.
Rivers can be killers. If it's running too strong to walk through, wait until level drops. Be conservative.
Going with others is better than going alone.
Consider using a personal locator beacon, especially if you're travelling alone.
If lost - seek shelter and stay where you are. Use a torch/camera flash to attract attention at night. Try and position something coloured and visible from the air to help a helicopter search during the day.
