Survey shows most New Zealanders keen to start travelling again

For the last four weeks, Angus & Associates, a New Zealand provider of market research and business planning services for the tourism and recreation industries, has been running a series of questions in its Visitor Insights Programme which are designed to understand New Zealander’s travel intentions in the post-COVID environment.

Focussing on the next trip people would like to take, the questions explore where New Zealanders want to travel and why, how they will travel and where they will stay, and the types of activities or experiences they would like to have.

Research Director, Carolyn Parker advises “rather than using blunt measures of travel intention which can be difficult to interpret without context, we chose to take a more qualitative approach. This has enabled us to understand not only what Kiwis are thinking, but why, and the types of messaging to which people will respond”.

Based on a population-representative sample of n=404 New Zealanders so far (the research is ongoing and is also running in Australia), the research shows that nine out of ten adult New Zealanders would like to take a trip in New Zealand in the coming months.

For a third of the market, the next trip is all about catching up with friends and family. For one in five, it’s about taking in the beauty of New Zealand’s natural environment and, for 15%, it’s about going somewhere they’ve never been or doing something they’ve never done before (or not for a very long time).

Tourism New Zealand’s new campaign (Do Something New, New Zealand) taps this desire for new (or renewed) experiences within New Zealand. But, for regions wanting to develop their domestic tourism market, there are also opportunities in campaigns built on shared experiences with friends and family, on experiences of places that offer peace and relaxation, on the nostalgic return to a favourite place, and on hobbies and special interests (ranging from surfing, to skiing, to cycling and photography).

Angus & Associates is already working with a number of partners to help them better understand post-COVID opportunities and implications for their regions. Information is also available for other organisations looking to understand New Zealanders’ travel sentiment at national/regional levels and in key demographic segments.

To contact Angus & Associates go to www.angusassociates.co.nz/