VISITOR ECONOMY STRATEGY

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1 ECONOMY STRATEGY

2 WESTERN 6 6% GDP 3.5M NIGHTS 3.5m The Western Bay of Plenty subregion incorporates the Western Bay of Plenty District and Tauranga City. The Western Bay of Plenty District covers 212,000 hectares of coastal, rural, and urban areas between Bowentown/Waihi Beach to Otamarakau and surrounds Tauranga City. The main urban centres outside Tauranga City include Waihi Beach, Katikati, Omokoroa, Te Puna and Maketu. Tauranga City sits in the middle of the subregion, surrounded by the Western Bay of Plenty District. The 2013 Census showed 114,789 people lived in Tauranga City, but Statistics NZ now estimate the population is 128,000, making it the fifth largest city in New Zealand % GROWTH P.A. 4.8% 78% ARE S 39 ECONOMY Visitor spend in the Western Bay of Plenty subregion was $802M in the 2016 calendar year, up from $733m in Domestic visitors accounting for 78% of the spend, although this varies seasonally, with international visitor spend as high as 29 % during the high season, and dropping to 15% in the low season. However, the region has had a major upsurge in international visitation with over 12% growth. The Western Bay of Plenty experienced growth in Monthly Regional Tourism Estimate spend of 39% between 2009 and 2016, a compound growth rate of 4.8%, the second highest in the wider region after Rotorua. The subregion s market share has remained stable at around 35%. Visitor spend provides direct employment for 7,920 people. Retail trade is the largest employer, followed by the other tourism related sectors. The accommodation sector makes up a smaller proportion. ECONOMY STRATEGY

3 TAUPO 28 28% GDP >3M NIGHTS >3m 2/3 18% GROWTH P.A. 2.4% 18 2/3 ARE S Great Lake Taupō is the southernmost subregion in the wider Bay of Plenty region. It has long been a highly desirable domestic tourism destination and has an international reputation based around the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, adventure activities, its trout fishing, and luxury lodge accommodation. The visitor experiences largely relate to Lake Taupō (a 616km2 lake in the middle of the district), the Waikato River that flows from the lake, and the Tongariro River which flows from Tongariro National Park. Approximately half of Tongariro National Park sits within the Taupō District. Taupō is the main township, and alongside Turangi are the main visitor destinations. However, there are many other smaller lakeside settlements around Lake Taupō and the hydro lakes on the Waikato River, which are important domestic tourism destinations. ECONOMY Domestic visitors comprise around 66% of the total visitor nights to the district and are mainly from Auckland, Wellington and the surrounding areas. International visitors are predominantly from Australia, UK, Europe and the USA, although Chinese visitor numbers are growing. Total direct visitor spend in the region is estimated at $600m which, when combined with indirect expenditure, comprises around 28% of regional GDP.

4 ROTORUA 28 28% GDP 3.5M NIGHTS 3.5m 50 62% GROWTH P.A. 7.1% 62 50% ARE S Rotorua sits in the centre of the Bay of Plenty Region, an hour from Taupo, 90 minutes from Whakatane and 80 minutes from Tauranga. The region is situated around Lake Rotorua, which is nearly 300m above sea level and is the centre of an ancient caldera that stretches 20km at its widest point. Rotorua is famous for its geothermal activity, with seven geothermal fields with hot pools and spectacular steam eruptions which attract over 3 million visitors per year. Volcanic activity has also shaped the wider landscape with significant features including Mt Tarawera, Rainbow Mountain, Mt Ngongotaha and Mokoia Island. The region includes 18 lakes, three major rivers and 100,000 hectares of native and exotic forests. There are 120 wetlands and hundreds of kilometres of walking, cycling and mountain bike tracks. Rotorua is a well-established visitor destination, attracting visitors for more than 150 years to experience its unique geothermal and cultural offerings. The region covers the Rotorua district area surrounding Lake Rotorua and the other lakes within the region. The region continues to attract significant numbers of international visitors for cultural and geothermal experiences. Among domestic visitors, the region has become known as a hub for mountain biking and other adventure activities. ECONOMY The Rotorua subregion receives around 3.7 million visitor nights per annum $773m was spent by visitors in the local economy to the year ending January Visitor spend is split almost equally between international and domestic visitors. Between 2009 and 2017 annual visitor spend grew by 87%. The compound annual growth rate was 7.2%. The growth in visitor numbers and spend is occurring largely through international visitors (from $196 million to $370 million between 2009 and 2016), with the share of visitor spend from international visitors rising from 41% to 48% over the same period. Domestic visitor numbers are also growing, albeit at a slower pace, at approximately 4-5% per annum. Overall, the Rotorua subregion has the strongest growth rate in the wider region at 7.1%. This high growth rate partially reflects the very strong rebound in international visitor stay in Rotorua and the very strong growth in the China visitor market over the same period.

5 EASTERN <5 500K NIGHTS 80 <5% GDP 500K 80% ARE S The Eastern Bay of Plenty subregion incorporates the Whakatāne District, the Opotiki District and the Kawerau District. The region covers an area of 7,528km2 and has a total population of 51,000. Whakatāne District is the largest with an area of 4,400km2 and a population of 35,000. Opotiki has an area of 3104km2 and a population of 9,000. Kawerau covers 22km2 and has a population of 6,800. The landscape of the district is diverse, with unspoiled coastline featuring white sand beaches and surf along the coast, the Raukumara mountain range and Te Urewera in the interior, and rugged hills and rockier beaches to the east. There are a number of offshore islands in this subregion, the largest being Moutohora/Whale Island which dominates the view out to sea from Whakatāne. As well, the iconic marine volcano Whakaari / White Island is an important feature of the region. About 50% of the population identify as Maori, and culture and heritage form a very strong feature of the subregion with many historic sites and authentic visitor experiences on offer. 25% GROWTH P.A. 3.2% 25 ECONOMY Visitor spend in the Eastern Bay or Plenty subregion reached $155m in calendar year 2016, up from $142m in Domestic visitors accounted for 77% of this spending, down slightly from 78% in The region captures 7% of all visitor spend in the wider Bay of Plenty region. The annual spend in the subregion has grown 25% since 2009, a compound annual growth rate of 3.2%, however, compared to other destinations in the wider Bay of Plenty region this represents a declining market share. Spending patterns in the subregion are highly seasonal with prominent peaks in December and January, during the longer period of elevated demand between October and April. May and August are the two months with the lowest spend. ECONOMY STRATEGY

6 The wider Bay of Plenty region has significant potential as a premier visitor destination. It currently attracts significant numbers of domestic and international visitors. Total visitor spend within the region makes up 9% of national tourism spend, with the opportunity to increase this percentage by strategic investment in the region, combined with effective marketing of the destination. Greater involvement of the tourism industry is required with the agencies responsible for planning and funding core infrastructure. Long-term planning is involved, and the early inclusion of tourism requirements will assist in supporting tourism economy growth. The wider region will require significant additional product development if it is to remain a destination of choice for both domestic and international visitors. The industry is expected to respond to future demand by developing new attractions and activities across the wider region. Key tourism projects have been identified at the sub-regional level which have the potential to act as catalysts for the further growth of the tourism economy A more coordinated and cohesive marketing approach is warranted which factors in the options of touring routes as well as hub and spoke models of visitor behaviours. To achieve these changes, new approaches to marketing the destination and promoting the diversity of experiences on offer will be required. The Bay of Plenty growth ambition will only be realised if there is a significant improvement in the quality and quantity of key infrastructure to support existing visitation and enable further growth. This will be achieved by increased investment by both the public and private sector. BACKGROUND The 2015 Toi Moana Bay of Plenty Regional Growth Study identified the need for central and local government, iwi, industry and the community to work together to identify the regional priority actions for tourism, with the goal of growing the visitor economy to $2.5b by Subsequent growth in the visitor economy has resulted in expenditure in the wider Bay of Plenty already reaching $2.34b in This growth reflects improved visitor spending, as well as rapid increases in visitor expenditure at tourism hot spots in the region. Continued growth in the visitor economy will see a need for investment in infrastructure to enable growth to be achieved. The wider Bay of Plenty region covers a large triangle of the eastern and central North Island. It stretches from Waihi Beach in the north, down to the peak of Mt Ruapehu, and east to Opotiki. The region spans from mountain to sea, with everything in between. The resident population of the region is 268,000, with Tauranga and Rotorua the two main cities. Tauranga has experienced significant population growth in recent years and is now New Zealand s fifth largest city. There has been some population increase in Taupo and other centres, but the long- term population forecast for the rest of the region is static and smaller centres are forecast to decline. In addition, major population growth is a contributor to increased business travel and provides additional demand for tourism services. ECONOMY Visitor spend in the wider Bay of Plenty region was $2.304b in the 2016 calendar year, up from $2.131b in This represents around 9% of the total national tourism spend and is comparable to the tourism spend in the Wellington region, 1.5 times the visitor spend in Queenstown or around one-third of the total tourism spend in Auckland. Domestic visitors accounted for 66% of the visitor spend in the region. This spend represents around 10% of the total domestic sector tourism spend in New Zealand. The region has significant domestic visitation. It has a peak season during December and January and good visitation over the other summer months of February and March, especially to beach locations such as Waihi Beach, Mt Maunganui and Ohope. Visitation then falls over the winter with peaks during school holiday periods. International visitors generally follow the same seasonal pattern. ECONOMY STRATEGY