New Zealand-residents took fewer overseas trips, but for longer durations, in the April 2023 year compared with before the pandemic, according to data released by Stats NZ today.
There were 1.99 million New Zealand-resident arrivals in the April 2023 year, which is 65 percent of the 3.06 million who arrived back in the April 2019 year.
New Zealand-resident travellers spent an average of 24 days abroad in the April 2023 year compared with an average of 19 days in the April 2019 year.
“Of New Zealand residents travelling overseas, the proportion away for 3 weeks or more has increased from 1 in 4 in 2019 to 1 in 3 in 2023,” population indicators manager Tehseen Islam said.
| Length of absence | 2019 | 2023 |
| Less than 7 days | 27.7 | 22.0 |
| 7-13 days | 32.7 | 31.2 |
| 14-20 days | 14.4 | 14.0 |
| 21-49 days | 18.9 | 22.2 |
| 50-180 days | 5.8 | 9.3 |
| 181-365 days | 0.6 | 1.3 |
“An increase in the proportion of New Zealand residents taking longer trips overseas in the April 2023 year may reflect pent-up demand after two years of COVID-19-related travel restrictions,” Islam said.
“There was a higher proportion visiting friends and relatives in 2023 and relatively fewer for business, compared with 2019.”
Longer trips were a higher proportion to most main destinations over the past year, and trips of three weeks or more dominated visits to India, the United Kingdom, the Philippines, and China.
| Main country visited | 2019 | 2023 |
| Australia | 7.8 | 13.3 |
| Fiji | 5.2 | 8.1 |
| United States | 25.4 | 36.3 |
| India | 74.6 | 88.0 |
| Cook Islands | 4.4 | 5.0 |
| United Kingdom | 72.6 | 78.5 |
| Philippines | 61.1 | 78.3 |
| Samoa | 13.3 | 28.0 |
| Indonesia | 12.0 | 27.4 |
| China | 58.0 | 74.5 |
| Rest of the world | 43.7 | 53.0 |
New Zealand-resident travellers include both New Zealand and non-New Zealand citizens living in New Zealand who are returning from a trip overseas of less than 12 months.
