Luxury snow tourism attracts Asian visitors

As snow falls across the country, travellers from warmer climes are heading to New Zealand to experience the country’s uncrowded slopes and legendary off-piste terrain. 

Luxury tour operator, The Road Trip, has seen a jump in snow tourism from Asia, with customers opting for private chauffeured skiing tours as the best way to see and experience our snowy mountains. 

Travellers, notably from Indonesia and Singapore, are heading to the South Island in droves to see the best of New Zealand’s breathtaking winter scenery and hit the slopes, says tour operator Chris Cameron of The Road Trip.  

Worldwide search data for ‘skiing New Zealand’ shows Cardrona and Coronet Peak are the most popular locations, with Wanaka and Mount Hutt also attracting strong interest.  

With the majority of their customers overseas, Chris needed to find a way to reach his target markets. Using Google to advertise tours to specific countries, he narrowed his promotions to specific  geographic markets.  Three years of this approach has seen a 260% increase in his turnover. The Road Trip is now a million dollar business that employs ten staff.  

Chris says the South Island tour is the most popular package but they also see repeat custom from overseas tourists returning to see what the North Island has to offer. 

Chris and his brother are currently looking to expand their offerings in Australia with tours available in every state. “Online advertising will be essential as we expand into a third destination – we’re starting from zero over there so we need to reach our audience directly and fast,” says Chris. 

“New Zealand can boast some of the world’s best spots for winter tourism. It’s is a winter wonderland for visitors this time of year, especially for many of our customers who are seeing snow for the very first time,” says Chris.