Colliers New Zealand’s latest Hotel Market Snapshot shows a mixed bag in terms of RevPAR and ADR numbers across the country, with Queenstown and Rotorua performing most notably over the year ending September 2018. Queenstown achieved 82 percent occupancy at an average daily rate of $243, with RevPAR growing 13.4 percent. Rotorua managed 80 percent occupancy, with an average daily rate of $135 - an increase of 5.1 percent - resulting in a 7.8 percent increase in RevPAR.
“The New Zealand tourism sector continues to enjoy record-breaking inbound visitation numbers, with a 3.6 percent increase recorded for the year ended August 2018 to reach 3.8 million,” said Dean Humphries, national director of hotels, Colliers International New Zealand.
Auckland saw occupancy decrease by 3.7 percent, a 1.8 percent increase in ADR, and a 1.9 percent decrease in RevPAR. Similarly, Wellington saw occupancy decrease by 1.5 percent, a small 0.8 decrease in ADR and a 2.7 percent decrease in RevPAR.
“The historically strong RevPAR growth in Auckland has taken a breather in 2018, off the back of an exceptionally strong 2017 year underpinned by the Lions Tour and the World Master Games. Growth in the other key centres also appears to have generally plateaued.
Addressing concerns of a hotel oversupply in Auckland, Humphries also said that the majority of these projects won’t open until after 2021, and with the constraints of the construction sector, it’s likely that some of the projects will also be delayed.
“Looking ahead, with sustainable levels of new supply entering the NZ market in the short/medium term and the opening of NZICC together with high profile events including the America’s Cup and APEC in 2021; the New Zealand hotel sector remains well positioned to take advantage of a range of strong demand drivers moving forward.”
