Louise Upston announces $4m increase to marketing campaigns targeting overseas tourists

The government is ramping up its charm offensive to Australian, American, and Chinese tourists, with a $4 million increase to marketing campaigns.

The one-off increase would expand existing campaigns in those countries (such as the initially-mocked Everyone Must Go! campaign), rather than fund new campaigns.

Tourism minister Louise Upston said Stats NZ data showed international visitors were up about 8 percent on this time last year, which was "strong progress" towards the target of returning to pre-pandemic international visitor numbers by 2026.

The latest data showed visitor numbers were now around 94 percent of that target.

Upston also pointed to data from the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Empoyment which showed overseas visitor spend increased by $2.5 billion to $13.7b from March 2024 to March 2026.

"This shows our investment through Tourism New Zealand is paying off for Kiwis," she said.

An additional $1m would go towards a Conference Assistance Programme, to attract more business events to New Zealand.

"Business events are a high-value part of our visitor mix, bringing people who spend more, travel outside peak seasons, and help build skills and connections across our economy," Upston said.

The assistance programme is a contestable fund available to any association, organisation, or university that wants to host an international conference in New Zealand with a minimum of 200 international delegates.

The funding would come from the International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy, a $100 charge that visitors to New Zealand pay when applying for a visa or NZeTA.