Welcome to the Destination Kaikōura Data Dashboard, providing real-time data & analytics helping stakeholders & local businesses understand the trends and dynamics of tourism in our beautiful region.
February 2026 Insights:
Strong international growth drives visitor spending and tourism filled jobs despite domestic pullback
A strong international recovery kept Kaikōura's total visitor activity near last year's levels despite a notable domestic pullback. Total visitor days dipped marginally (▼-1% YoY), with domestic visitor days falling (▼-9% YoY) offset by an international jump (▲+23% YoY). Visitor nights tracked close to visitor days for the total market (▼-1% YoY), suggesting the overnight mix held steady. Visitor spending grew modestly (▲+4% YoY), outpacing visitation and pointing to higher average spend per visitor, mostly related to a higher proportion of international visitors in the mix. Tourism filled jobs rose (▲+3% YoY) while earnings held essentially flat (↔ 0% YoY).
International visitor growth surges while domestic visitor days and spending continue to soften
The domestic and international segments told opposite stories across the visitor journey. Domestic visitor days fell (▼-9% YoY) and domestic visitor nights declined at a similar rate (▼-9% YoY), indicating the domestic overnight share held stable. Domestic visitor spending also softened (▼-7% YoY), broadly in line with the volume contraction, suggesting average spend per domestic visitor was unchanged. Domestic guest nights fell further (▼-13% YoY), implying a small shift away from commercial accommodation among domestic overnighters towards alternative stay options such as short-term rentals and staying with friends and relatives. International visitor days jumped (▲+23% YoY) and international visitor nights grew even faster (▲+29% YoY), suggesting a slight shift away from day trip visitation to more overnight stays. International guest nights rose (▲+13% YoY), lagging visitor nights and pointing to a preference for non-commercial accommodation among some of the additional international overnighters. International visitor spending grew (▲+15% YoY), below the visitor day uplift, indicating average international spend per visitor moderated slightly.
Kaikōura places 4th in the South Island for international visitor day growth
International visitors carried Kaikōura in February while the domestic side weakened materially. Total visitor days dipped (▼-1% YoY), placing Kaikōura 12th of 16 South Island RTOs, a result that masked a sharp segment divergence: domestic visitor days fell (▼-9% YoY, 15th in the South Island) while international visitor days jumped (▲+23% YoY, 4th). The Waitangi long weekend was the busiest part of the month for domestic visitors, though the domestic contraction indicates the lift did not offset weaker weeks either side. On a rolling 12 month basis, total visitation remained firmly positive (▲+4% YoY), with international growth tracking at ▲+22% YoY over the past year, confirming the monthly result extends a sustained recovery rather than a one off spike.
Europe market shows shift in vistiation timing. Domestic drive markets contract while more distatn markets pick up
Domestic visitation weakened at the top but held among more distant source markets. Canterbury (26% share) remained the largest domestic source but contracted sharply (▼-28% YoY), losing 7 percentage points of share. The quarter ending picture for the summer season for Canterbury was softer (▼-14% QE YoY), indicating the February dip was partly a timing shift in addition to a structural pullback from Kaikōura's core drive market. Marlborough (10% share) dropped from second to fourth position after a sustained contraction (▼-31% YoY, QE ▼-35% YoY), a structural decline rather than timing. In contrast, Wellington (▲+14% YoY) and Waikato (▲+17% YoY) both grew, suggesting more distant, planned travel markets partially offset the neighbouring region weakness. International growth was broad based, with every market growing except Europe. Europe retained the top position with 34% share but was essentially flat (▼-1% YoY), well below its prior month (▲+67% YoY) and quarter ending (▲+45% QE YoY) readings for the summer season, a clear timing shift indicating European visitors arrived earlier this season rather than declining. USA & Canada (25% share) grew strongly (▲+31% YoY). Rest of Asia (12% share) jumped (▲+49% YoY), reversing a sharp prior month contraction (▼-41%) and likely reflecting Chinese New Year timing effects. Australia (10% share) grew ▲+44% YoY.
Positive long term trend suggests recent domestic spending dip is just a temporary outlier
Domestic visitor spending softened (▼-7% YoY), well below the national benchmark (▲+8% YoY) and placing Kaikōura 15th of 16 South Island RTOs. The rolling 12 month trend remained positive (▲+8% YoY), suggesting the February dip may reflect timing rather than structural weakness, consistent with the Canterbury domestic timing shift visible in the visitation data. The prior month was positive (▲+9% YoY), reinforcing the likelihood that the February result was an outlier.
International visitor spending and visitor days surge as sustained growth trajectory continues
International visitor spending grew solidly (▲+15% YoY), slightly trailing the national benchmark (▲+18% YoY) and placing Kaikōura 10th of 16 South Island RTOs. The rolling 12 month picture was comparable (▲+16% YoY), confirming this sits within a sustained trajectory. International spend growth (▲+15% YoY) lagged international visitor day growth (▲+23% YoY), suggesting average spend per international visitor moderated slightly, possibly reflecting a shift in the visitor mix toward markets with lower per capita spending.
Visitor arrivals climb but stay length contracts, possibly a sign of shifts in visitor mix towards more internationals
More visitors arrived but stayed for shorter periods, leaving total guest nights essentially flat. Total guest nights dipped marginally (▼-1% YoY), with arrivals growing (▲+4% YoY) but average length of stay shortening (▼-5% YoY to 1.6 nights). Domestic guest nights fell (▼-13% YoY) while international guest nights grew (▲+13% YoY), a pattern consistent with the broader visitation divergence. Occupancy sat at 83% (▼-2%pt. YoY), with supply holding broadly steady (▲+1% YoY available capacity). The rolling 12 month trend for total guest nights remained positive (▲+4% YoY), consistent with the national benchmark.
The domestic/international divergence in guest nigths was most striking forsmall Motels & Apartments
Holiday Parks & Campgrounds, accounting for 48% of Kaikōura's guest nights, drove the domestic weakness with guest nights falling ▼-15% YoY domestically while international guest nights grew ▲+16% YoY. This domestic/international divergence was most striking at Motels & Apartments (6-20) (17% share), where domestic guest nights contracted ▼-30% YoY while international guest nights jumped ▲+24% YoY, suggesting the two visitor segments are increasingly choosing different accommodation types. Motels & Apartments (>20) (11% share) held broadly stable overall (▼-3% YoY) at the highest occupancy in the region (92%, ▲+3%pt. YoY). Lodges & Boutique properties (4% share) were the only type to grow total guest nights (▲+17% YoY), with domestic guest nights expanding strongly, albeit from a smaller base.
Tourism workforce expands with rising filled jobs
Kaikōura's tourism workforce expanded modestly in jobs but not in pay, with filled jobs rising ▲+3% YoY while earnings held flat (↔ 0% YoY). The jobs result sat above the national benchmark (▲+1% YoY) while earnings trailed (national ▲+4% YoY). Food and Beverage Services (32% of jobs) drove the headline expansion with filled jobs growing ▲+8% YoY and earnings rising ▲+5% YoY. Accommodation (34% of jobs), the largest industry, held jobs steady while earnings slipped ▼-2% YoY. Travel and Tour Services (21% of jobs) held jobs steady but saw earnings soften ▼-4% YoY. Activity Services (6% share) expanded jobs ▲+25% YoY and earnings ▲+11% YoY, albeit from a smaller base. The divergence between aggregate jobs growth and flat earnings suggests the new positions, concentrated in F&B, were weighted toward lower paid roles.