Do Something New Zealand
A campaign has launched today encouraging Kiwis to travel to support our hard-hit tourism industry.
The Tourism New Zealand domestic campaign aims to capture some of the $9 billion Kiwis spend on overseas travel.
Hotel bookings are coming in around the country with Queenstown looking to be the most popular destination. Rotorua, Napier and Marlborough are also high on the travel itinerary.
While domestic bookings are encouraging with hotels offering innovative packages to entice travellers, the sector remains flat with many hoteliers expecting single digit occupancy for June and July, and occupancy to year end currently sitting at around 25%.
We need sustainable tourism at critical mass to get out of survival mode.
Trans-Tasman bubble edges closer to reality
Opening up our borders with Australia could happen in alert level 2 and possibility in time for the July School Holidays.
NZHOA has been strongly advocating for a trans-Tasman bubble to help the hotel sector with the arrangement boosting tourism and the wider economy in both countries.
Here’s how the trans-Tasman bubble would work.
All hotels to benefit from monthly hotel benchmarking
NZHOA has been working with research company Fresh Info on a new monthly benchmarking programme that’s now open to all hotels.
The new programme, Hotel Data New Zealand (HDNZ), replaces TIA’s monthly hotel data survey and is free for all hotels to participate in.
With HDNZ now open to the entire market, the data will be more robust and will expand the options for peer grouping. Fresh Info will also provide enhanced reporting and improved navigation over the coming months.
Hotels already participating in TIA’s monthly hotel data survey will automatically be transferred to HDNZ.
Hotels wanting to be part of HDNZ should email info@hoteldata.nz
Fresh Info is also launching a new accommodation survey called the Accommodation Data Programme (ADP) to replace the Commercial Accommodation Monitor. The ADP is funded by MBIE and covers hotels, motels, backpackers and holiday parks.
To avoid duplication, hotels that are registered with HDNZ do not have to register with the ADP.
The ADP will provide basic capacity and occupancy stats across the four major accommodation types from July onwards.
NZHOA continues drive for financial relief
We are continuing discussions with Treasury around urgent financial relief not forthcoming in the Budget 2020 announcement.
This includes loans for redundancy financing, provisional taxation relief and a central government grant for council rates.
Covid-19 Impact & Pathway to Recovery
New Zealand has a unique opportunity to become a market leader in the ’Road to Recovery’ for the global tourism sector given we are one of the first countries to effectively control Covid-19.
A new Colliers International report on the NZ hotel market outlines key impacts of the pandemic and provides an outlook on what the Covid-19 recovery process may look like for our sector.
Business support for Hoteliers
The government’s $400 Tourism Recovery Package includes free independent business and financial support for hotel owners and operators.
MBIE is offering a business advisory service on how to transition for the domestic market, prepare for trans-Tasman tourism, and move in and out of hibernation.
The programme managed by Tourism New Zealand and Qualmark is designed to help tourism operators navigate a sustainable way forward through Covid-19 and focus on business continuity.
You can register for business support here.
Strategic Tourism Assets Protection Programme
A programme to protect core strategic assets essential to our tourism offering has also been launched as part of the recovery package.
The Strategic Tourism Assets Protection Programme criteria includes showing that without a strategic asset, visitation to the region would be significantly diminished.
Register to find out more about the MBIE programme here.
Join NZHOA so we can continue to be a strong industry voice representing the real issues our sector faces as we work together to get through Covid-19 and out the other side.
Amy Robens
Executive Director
New Zealand Hotel Owners Association
021 399 544
amy@nzhoa.com