Wanaka continues to lead in tourism spending growth, according to figures released by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment yesterday. The latest monthly regional tourism estimates show Wanaka brought in $54million from tourism last month, a 30% increase on December 2015.The town also leads in year-on-year spending increases, with tourism spending up 18.8% in 2016. Waitaki pipped the national average of 8.3% growth with an 8.5% increase in year-on-year tourism spending last year. It was the worst performing region in New Zealand last year, with a 3.7% increase on 2015 tourism spending. The earthquake discouraged tourists from visiting the region last month, with tourism spending down 28% compared with December 2015.

Source: Otago Daily Times January 26, 2017 17:08 UTC