Bay of Plenty
Tourism in the Bay of Plenty Region: who visits, what they spend, and how busy accommodation is. Ranked 6 of 16 regions by visitor spend.
Key facts: Bay of Plenty tourism
- Visitors spent $1.2B in the Bay of Plenty Region in the 12 months to , 1.8% less than the year before (MBIE MRTE).
- That ranks Bay of Plenty 6th of New Zealand’s 16 regions for visitor spend (MBIE MRTE).
- International visitors accounted for 35.9% of that spend ($437M), and domestic visitors $778M (MBIE MRTE).
- United States of America is the largest international market by spend, at $170M over the latest 12 months (MBIE MRTE).
- The region recorded 16.5M visitor days in the 12 months to , 26% of them by international visitors, 4.5% less than the year before (MBIE TV&F).
- Commercial accommodation in Bay of Plenty recorded 3.7M guest nights in 2025 (MBIE ADP).
Who visits Bay of Plenty?
Monthly visitor days over the past two years, split by international and domestic visitors. This shows both the scale and composition of tourism to the region.
Domestic visitors account for 75% of all visitor days in Bay of Plenty, making it a primarily domestic destination. Over the past 12 months: 12.4M domestic visitor days vs 4.3M international.
What is Bay of Plenty worth?
Tourism spend from MRTE electronic card transaction data — the most granular regional expenditure measure available. The chart shows how international and domestic contributions have trended over the past two years.
International visitors represent 26% of visitor days but generate 36% of tourism spend — spending 1.6× more per day than domestic visitors ($101 vs $63 per visitor day).
Year-on-year change
Month-by-month spend change vs the same month in the prior year. Bars below zero indicate a year-on-year decline for that segment.
When do visitors come to Bay of Plenty?
Monthly tourism spend by calendar year shows seasonal patterns and whether peak months are shifting. Peak daytime visitor counts show visitor pressure by day of year.
Jan is Bay of Plenty's peak spending month — $131M in 2026.
Peak daytime visitor count in Bay of Plenty reached 126K on 1 Jan 2026.
Where do visitors come from?
Tourism spend by origin market for Bay of Plenty, based on the latest 12-month MRTE data. Shows which international countries and New Zealand regions drive the most visitor activity.
International markets
United States of America is Bay of Plenty's largest international market, accounting for 39% of international tourism spend — contributing $170M in the latest 12 months.
New Zealand regions
Auckland residents generate the most domestic tourism spend in Bay of Plenty — 29% of all domestic visitor spend, totalling $223M over the past 12 months.
What does tourism spend in Bay of Plenty?
Tourism expenditure by industry category over the latest 12-month period — showing which sectors of the regional economy benefit most from visitor activity.
Food & Beverage is the largest category of tourism spend in Bay of Plenty, accounting for 31% of total visitor expenditure ($374M) over the latest 12 months.
Accommodation in Bay of Plenty
Guest nights from the Accommodation Data Programme (ADP) — providing context on how visitors stay in the region. Data shown is for the latest complete calendar year.
Bay of Plenty recorded 3.7M guest nights in 2025. International guests accounted for 27% of nights stayed — 1.0M nights, alongside 2.7M domestic guest nights.
Visitor experience in Bay of Plenty
Satisfaction scores from the International Visitor Survey (IVS) and Domestic Visitor Survey (DVS), filtered to respondents who visited this region. Activities show what visitors participated in.
92% of international visitors to Bay of Plenty were promoters; 49% said the trip exceeded expectations; the most participated-in activity was National park (191%).
How does Bay of Plenty compare?
Ranked view of all 16 NZ regions. Select a metric to see where Bay of Plenty sits nationally.
Bay of Plenty ranks #6 of 16 NZ regions for Total Spend.
Monthly data
Raw monthly figures combining MRTE tourism spend and TVF visitor day data for Bay of Plenty.