Tourism Holdings urges Government to drop barriers and offer more support

The Government needs to better support tourism companies or risk falling behind, says one CEO. Photo / Unsplash

A tourism company CEO says New Zealand risks falling behind if the Government doesn't step up and better support the industry the way other countries have.

In their annual results, released today, campervan and guided experiences operator Tourism Holdings has urged the Government to "remove any barriers to success" and provide more support for the industry.

While New Zealand has welcomed far more international tourists this year compared with 2020 or 2021, Tourism Holdings chief executive Grant Webster said the true health of the industry could only be seen when you compare against pre-Covid years.

"Are we in a positive mindset relative to having two years of losses? Absolutely. Are we seeing numbers coming back and some booking weeks that are better than pre-Covid? Yes, we are," he said.

But this didn't mean it was back to business as usual.

"Relative to borders being closed, yes, people are coming back thick and fast," he said but added it became "a very different story" when compared against pre-Covid times.

"If we look at our motorhome fleet in NZ, we are well short of pre-Covid levels and we will be for some time yet."

Webster said more support would be crucial, not just to help individual businesses but New Zealand as a whole to compete against other countries' efforts to woo back tourists.

New Zealand support pales in global comparison

Tourism Holdings is the largest recreational vehicle provider in Australia, second largest in North America and owns 49 per cent of Just GoMotor homes in the UK.

Compared to those markets, Webster said New Zealand's tourism industry has not received the same level of support from the Government.

"What we see on a relative basis [internationally] is ... more support of the tourism industry than what we sense and see in New Zealand," he said, citing the A$60 million tourism plan Australia announced in March this year.

"We want to see the New Zealand Government invest more in Tourism New Zealand, remove any barriers to success and certainly not do anything that discourages visitors to the country in what is an important time for determining the future success of the industry."

As for what those barriers were, Webster said it came down to things like immigration settings and a lack of clarity from government officials and ministers about the importance of competing internationally.

He said this could be as simple as welcoming all travellers.

"Regardless of whether comments have been misinterpreted, we don't need to be out there, giving an impression that we're picking and choosing," Webster said.

The future isn't free from challenges

A competitive and inclusive approach to tourism was especially important, Webster added because Covid-19 isn't the only challenge facing the tourism industry.

As borders open and restrictions drop, people have finally had the chance to take that Europe trip or visit that family member and they have taken it.

"People want to travel, and they want to regain that which they have lost," Webster said.

But once this initial wave ends, the next 12 to 18 months are uncertain.

"At the moment all the consumer confidence indicators say discretionary spend is reducing, and interest rates are going up. So, tourism is sort of fighting against that at the moment and winning, but will it continue to win that battle? I don't know."