Newly released travel data has revealed where New Zealanders most want to travel this winter - and some of the results may surprise you.
Queenstown is the most popular location overall followed by the Gold Coast, according to accommodation search data released by Booking.com, while Australia is the country people in Aotearoa are most interested in flying to.
China is the third most popular choice among Kiwi families as per the website's airfare search data, with a massive increase of 165 percent on last year.
Within Aotearoa it's common for Queenstown to top such lists, but Hamilton, Auckland and Kaikōura have each made significant jumps in popularity as winter destinations compared to 2023's data.
To produce the data, Booking.com mapped search sessions conducted in New Zealand in April with check-in dates between June and August, as well as flight searches for trips including at least one child from January through to March for departure dates between June 1 - September 1.
As a competitor with the likes of Expedia and Kayak, Booking.com is a reservation service for accommodation, flights, car hire and select attractions.
If you're planning a holiday during the chilly season, more of the data is displayed below to help you either avoid or join the crowds.
New Zealand total domestic and international accommodation searches:
- Queenstown
- Gold Coast
- Auckland
- Rarotonga
- London
- Seminyak
- Christchurch
- Wellington
- Tokyo
- Sydney.
New Zealand domestic accommodation searches:
- Queenstown
- Auckland - 30 percent increase
- Christchurch
- Wellington
- Rotorua
- Taupō
- Wānaka
- Hanmer Springs
- Dunedin
- Hamilton - 20 percent increase
- Lake Tekapo
- Tauranga
- Ohakune
- Nelson
- Napier
- New Plymouth
- Mount Maunganui
- Palmerston North
- Paihia
- Kaikōura - 25 percent increase.
New Zealand international accommodation searches:
- Gold Coast
- Rarotonga
- London
- Seminyak - 40 percent increase
- Tokyo
- Sydney
- Melbourne
- Nadi - 30 percent increase
- Singapore
- Brisbane.
New Zealand flight searches - winter destination countries for families:
- Australia
- New Zealand
- China - 165 percent increase
- Fiji
- Indonesia
- Cook Islands
- Philippines
- USA
- UK
- Germany - 75 percent increase.
