Manawatū-Whanganui
Tourism in the Manawatu-Whanganui Region: who visits, what they spend, and how busy accommodation is. Ranked 8 of 16 regions by visitor spend.
Key facts: Manawatū-Whanganui tourism
- Visitors spent $687M in the Manawatu-Whanganui Region in the 12 months to , 0.7% less than the year before (MBIE MRTE).
- That ranks Manawatū-Whanganui 8th of New Zealand’s 16 regions for visitor spend (MBIE MRTE).
- International visitors accounted for 15.7% of that spend ($108M), and domestic visitors $580M (MBIE MRTE).
- United States of America is the largest international market by spend, at $39M over the latest 12 months (MBIE MRTE).
- The region recorded 14.8M visitor days in the 12 months to , 13% of them by international visitors, 3.1% less than the year before (MBIE TV&F).
- Commercial accommodation in Manawatū-Whanganui recorded 1.1M guest nights in 2025 (MBIE ADP).
Who visits Manawatū-Whanganui?
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 87% of all visitor days in Manawatū-Whanganui, making it a primarily domestic destination. Over the past 12 months: 12.9M domestic visitor days vs 1.9M international.
What is Manawatū-Whanganui 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 13% of visitor days but generate 16% of tourism spend — spending 1.2× more per day than domestic visitors ($56 vs $45 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 Manawatū-Whanganui?
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.
Aug is Manawatū-Whanganui's peak spending month — $68M in 2026.
Peak daytime visitor count in Manawatū-Whanganui reached 60K on 7 Feb 2026.
Where do visitors come from?
Tourism spend by origin market for Manawatū-Whanganui, 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 Manawatū-Whanganui's largest international market, accounting for 37% of international tourism spend — contributing $39M in the latest 12 months.
New Zealand regions
Manawatu-Wanganui residents generate the most domestic tourism spend in Manawatū-Whanganui — 26% of all domestic visitor spend, totalling $151M over the past 12 months.
What does tourism spend in Manawatū-Whanganui?
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 Manawatū-Whanganui, accounting for 38% of total visitor expenditure ($263M) over the latest 12 months.
Accommodation in Manawatū-Whanganui
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.
Manawatū-Whanganui recorded 1.1M guest nights in 2025. International guests accounted for 29% of nights stayed — 321K nights, alongside 792K domestic guest nights.
Visitor experience in Manawatū-Whanganui
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 Manawatū-Whanganui were promoters; 43% said the trip exceeded expectations; the most participated-in activity was National park (252%).
How does Manawatū-Whanganui compare?
Ranked view of all 16 NZ regions. Select a metric to see where Manawatū-Whanganui sits nationally.
Manawatū-Whanganui ranks #8 of 16 NZ regions for Total Spend.
Monthly data
Raw monthly figures combining MRTE tourism spend and TVF visitor day data for Manawatū-Whanganui.