The local accommodation and tourism sector will benefit from the Government's investment into major events and tourism incentives.
Hospitality New Zealand has welcomed the announcement by Minister of Tourism and Hospitality, Hon Louise Upston, that the Government will be investing NZD 70 million into tourism and events attractions.
Nick Keene, Hospitality NZ’s Interim Chief Executive, said the funding will return direct benefit to the hospitality sector.
“Large-scale events play a crucial role in supporting New Zealand’s economy, particularly for industries like ours that rely on visitor spending.”
“Major attractions drive demand across the host city, from hotel bookings to restaurants, bars and cafés. The flow-on benefits touch almost every part of the hospitality sector, and often encourage people to travel to New Zealand and travel beyond the event location.”
Hospitality New Zealand also welcome the Regional Tourism Boost campaign and funding for tourism infrastructure upgrades. Driving regional visitation ensures tourism’s benefits can be felt across the country.
“While today’s announcement is an excellent acknowledgement of the role major attractions can play in economic growth, they often have a long lead time. Acknowledging that he funding is intended for events starting next year, sustained investment is key to ensuring long-term attraction of major events is prioritised,” said Keene.
“Hospitality NZ looks forward to supporting the Government’s major events strategy and contributing where we can to seeing a strong pipeline of events realised.”
This package included a NZD 40 million Events Attraction Package to secure large-scale international events from 2026, a NZD 10 million Events Boost Fund to support existing plans and attract international opportunities, a NZD 10 million Regional Tourism Boost Campaign to incentivise international visitors, and up to NZD 10 million for tourism infrastructure upgrades, including cycle trails.
“We know big events deliver. For example, over three years, 14 Auckland shows (including Coldplay and Pearl Jam) generated NZD 33.7m for the local economy with 490,000 attendees. We want to see more action like that and we are stepping up with incentives to promoters to make it happen,” added Upston.
“Today’s announcement is also significant for local communities and local government. Communities up and down New Zealand benefit hugely from concerts and sporting tournaments, and it’s important that local government is also involved in supporting activity in their regions with resources, in cash or in kind.”
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