New Zealand has seen more than 2.7 million international arrivals for the first time ever.
Holiday arrivals for the year ending December 2013 were up 9.8%, driving annual visitor growth up 6.0% for the year.
The 381,900 arrivals in December was the highest monthly total ever, up 4.9% on December 2012.
"Throughout the year our traditional long staying markets, and biggest visitor market Australia, have performed particularly strongly, driving this growth in holiday arrivals." says Kevin Bowler, chief executive Tourism New Zealand.
Arrivals from the US are up 21.3%, Canada up 7.7%, Germany up 9.4%, and Australia up 8.1%, for the 2013 calendar year.
Total arrivals from China were up 16.2% for the year, however, monthly arrivals continued to show the impact of the China Travel Law.
"What is becoming clear is how the new China Travel Law is supporting our strategy to accelerate the trend towards higher quality itineraries with better experiences, to increase the value of the Chinese market to New Zealand," said Bowler.
The China Travel Law includes measures to address issues – mostly in the domestic industry – such as tourist safety, unfair competition and forced shopping trips, in which agencies offer cheap tours but recoup their costs from commissions in partner shops.
A report by state-run media Xinhua claims tour operators in China have hiked their prices as a result.
"We are already seeing an increase in (Chinese) visitors travelling more widely – with expenditure in the South Island increasing 72% from October to December compared to the same period in 2012," Bowler added.
