New Zealand visitor arrivals near pre-pandemic levels in July

WELLINGTON, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand recorded a rise in international travel in July, with overseas visitor arrivals reaching 236,600, up 14,700 from a year earlier, the statistics department Stats NZ reported Wednesday.

Visitor arrivals from Australia surged by 17,700 to 126,700, the highest ever for a July month, coinciding with school holidays, Stats NZ said.

July's overseas visitor arrivals were 93 percent of pre-pandemic levels in 2019, it said.

Of all overseas visitors in July, 55 percent came from Australia, 10 percent from China, 6 percent from the United States, and 3 percent each from Britain and Japan, statistics show.

New Zealand-resident traveler arrivals reached 321,900 in July, up 8,000 from July 2024, or 95 percent of July 2019 levels, Stats NZ said.

Arrivals from Australia increased by 9,300 in July 2025, while more residents travelled from Japan and the Philippines. Travel from Indonesia hit a record 14,100 for the month, it said.

For the year to July 2025, overseas visitor arrivals totaled 3.39 million, up 169,000 from the July 2024 year, led by strong growth from Australia, Britain, and the U.S., it said, adding resident traveler arrivals rose to 3.05 million in the July 2025 year, up 111,000 annually, with China a record annual destination.

Border crossings in July totaled 1.08 million, or 91 percent of the pre-pandemic July 2019 volumes, statistics showed.■