National survey results: Kiwis not seeing enough of NZ

An independent survey* of more than 10,000 New Zealanders, conducted on behalf of the RV Super Centre (New Zealand’s largest seller of motorhomes), has revealed some encouraging statistics about New Zealanders’ holiday habits ahead of the summer break, including that almost 70% of Kiwis want to see more of the country!
 
However, despite the vast majority (80%) of Kiwis saying they were “extremely likely” to recommend New Zealand as a place to visit, New Zealanders were more likely to have taken a ten-day trip overseas in the last year (24%) than domestically (18%), despite 83% saying they don’t travel as much as they’d like to. This could be due to a perception by more than half the population (57%) that it’s relatively more expensive to travel in New Zealand compared to other countries.
 
“It was pleasing to learn that almost all of those surveyed (99%) agreed that it is important for Kiwis to see more of New Zealand, because it helps them to appreciate the country they live in and want to look after it, as well as supporting small towns and other tourist destinations outside of the big cities.”
 
Photo courtesy of The PR Shop
 
Aucklanders were least likely to have chosen domestic travel over international (14% travelling domestically vs 31% travelling internationally); while people from Nelson were most likely to have opted for a trip within New Zealand (36%). In fact, more Aucklanders had been to Sydney than Queenstown and more Southlanders had been to Melbourne and the Gold Coast than to popular North Island destinations such as Bay of Islands or Coromandel.

When asked the best way to see New Zealand, half of respondents stated that it would be best to travel in a motorhome or campervan, followed closely by travel by car and with only 2% saying it would be best to fly from place to place.
 
Perhaps because nature takes the cake, with 80% of people identifying “the natural surroundings” as the best thing about travelling in New Zealand. “Travelling in a motorhome allows Kiwis to take in the scenery while on the road – sometimes the journey itself is the most beautiful part, in a country like New Zealand, with the landscape changing from hour to hour,” says Brady.
 
“Kiwis are known for being a nation of travellers, and being in a motorhome means they can take their time visiting all the beautiful locations New Zealand has to offer, with the added benefit of being able to pull over and have a cuppa or a make a bite to eat anywhere they like and get a bit off the beaten track. It’s a fun and explorative way to travel!”
 
This belief shone when respondents voted three scenically stunning South Island locations as being the most worth seeing in the country – Milford Sound at 23%, followed by Queenstown at 19% and Abel Tasman National Park at 14% of the vote. Four of the major cities – Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin and Invercargill – each received a meagre 1% of the vote.
 
However, Rotorua was the most popular domestic destination, with a whopping 88% of respondents having visited.
 

Photo courtesy of The PR Shop

Intriguingly, almost half of respondents (48%) would choose to own a motorhome over a bach, boat, caravan or tent. As age increases, the desire to own a motorhome increases and the desire to own a bach decreases. This could be the result of a belief that baches are too expensive to buy and too much work to maintain, while motorhomes provide the ability to go to a new place every day and see more of the country. Motorhomes are becoming more attractive to younger travellers in recent years as the price of land in NZ increases.  
 
Correspondingly, people over the age of 65 are also more likely to say they’ve seen a lot of New Zealand (44%) and are less bothered by the cost of travel than younger Kiwis – perhaps because many respondents agree that having a motorhome or caravan is a more affordable holiday option (36%), and would help encourage more domestic travel (23%).
 
Customers can find out more about RV Super Centre motorhome, campervan and caravan sales from the online store by visiting www.rvsupercentre.co.nz; telephone 0800 52 00 55 or email info@rvsupercentre.co.nz or facebook.com/rvsupercentre


*The survey was conducted by an independent party, with 10,703 respondents across the country, over the age of 18.
**Tourism Satellite Account: 2015, Statistics New Zealand.