Backpackers

New Zealand’s backpacker industry is making a steady recovery from the pandemic with some operators managing to hit pre-Covid levels but significant challenges remain.

Cardrona and Treble Cone have teamed up with Wānaka Backpackers Bothy to provide mountain staff accommodation for the 2022 winter ski season.

Despite the WHV scheme being back on the table, it will still be a rough year ahead for the hostel and youth sector, warns NZHA chair Brett Duncan.

West Coast hostel Bazil’s Backpackers and Surf School suffers major damage after a fire broke out overnight.

Blenheim-based Diamond Hostel Limited has gone into liquidation.

Hostels are shutting their doors or being put up for sale as the market struggles without international visitors.

One of the hardest-hit parts of tourism is holding on for a quick rebound when international travel resumes.

Under the memorandum, both organisations committed to jointly grow the value of international youth arrivals to New Zealand.

Napier backpackers Archie’s Bunker has secured funding from the Napier City Council to turn part of its building into an ‘escape room’ in a bid to attract visitors.

YHA New Zealand is committing to retain its national network of hostels despite suffering significant financial pain following border closures and Covid-19 lockdown, says chief executive Mark Wells.

New Zealand needs to build up a good mix of visitors in the recovery so the sector is less dependent on any single segment, says Tourism New Zealand chief executive Stephen England-Hall.

Ryan Sanders’ Haka Tourism Group has added an eighth property to its accommodation portfolio with the opening of Haka Lodge Ponsonby.

Summer accommodation will be made available at the former YHA Opoutere, which has been handed over to the Wharekawa Adventure Education Trust by YHA New Zealand.

The country is seeing a similar slowdown as NZ but is taking a different approach, particularly with the youth market.

The operator is aiming to have a nationwide network of 10 hotels and 10 lodges by 2025.

Lake Tekapo’s new $9m YHA has reported 85% occupancy in its first two weeks of trade.

The evolution of the backpacker market and where it might go next is the backbone for discussion at this year’s annual Backpacker Youth & Adventure Tourism Association conference.

Haka Tourism Group has succeeded in its multi-million dollar bid to take ownership of its Auckland lodge.

Cristine Angus’s software development company, getsmart, has signed a global partnership agreement to provide tailored customer insight solutions for the International Youth Hostels Federation.

TNZ has refocused its backpacker strategy on the direct UK and German markets.

The backpacker and wider tourism industry is in “a huge state of flux” and it was vital operators tackled complex issues together, an industry audience heard this morning.

Today’s backpackers are a discerning bunch on the lookout for authentic, inspirational experiences.

Campaigners are desperately trying to rally support to prevent the closure of the iconic Opoutere Youth Hostel near Whangamata.

Robin Gayraud and Laura Symonds, publishers of the BackpackerGuide.NZ, travelled New Zealand in a campervan to take on 365 activities in 365 days.

Future proofing New Zealand as a tourism destination was the focus of the eighth annual Backpacker Youth & Adventure Tourism Association (BYATA) Conference held in Wellington at Te Papa recently.

With over 150 hostels throughout the country and backpackers currently making up 11% of all holiday visitors into NZ and growing – the hostel market is going from strength to strength.