New Zealand’s Fiordland and Queenstown dominate TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice awards
Australia may have the Gold Coast and the Outback, but an annual list believes our neighbours across the ditch have much better destinations.
The outdoor offerings and pristine pistes of New Zealand have seen it dominate adventurous categories in Tripadvisor’s annual Travellers’ Choice list – including over Australia.
Aotearoa has swept the awards with adventure capital Queenstown being the top pick for the Pacific.
The annual list compiled by reviews and ratings left on the TripAdvisor website has shown that 2021 was the year of short getaways and outdoor destinations. Two things that New Zealand excels at.
A trip to Auckland was the third most popular destination in the Pacific, behind jetskiing in Bora Bora and scenic balloon tours by Lake Wakatipu in the number 1 spot. Queenstown also made appearances in the top ski destinations for 2022, at number 5 behind Whistler in Canada.
These locations were well ahead of Australian favourites such as the Gold Coast in 4th, and Sydney in 6th. NSW was eclipsed by Hobart, which benefited from travellers looking for new outdoorsy locations and a brief direct flight from across the Tasman.
Rounding out the top 10 was Rotorua, with a trip to Te Puia.
Overall, however, Australia had six ‘best destinations’ in the top 10 over New Zealand’s three.
Continuing the trend of locations with plenty of space, the Spanish islands of Majorca and Ibiza were the first and sixth fastest rising locations in the world. Possibly a reflection of international travellers ‘dipping their toes’ back into overseas travel with a trip with multigenerational appeal.
Costa Rica’s geothermal Arenal Volcano National Park was the top rated destination by outdoor enthusiasts. Despite last years’ travel restrictions on African nations, Safari holidays saw a rise in popularity, with the Serengeti, Maasai Mara and Kruger making the top five, behind India’s Jim Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand.
New Zealand’s national parks were well represented, with Fiordland making 6th and Westland Tai Poutini coming in at 9th. The glacier country was hit by a huge downturn in international visitors, however it appears that those visiting last year left rave reviews with TripAdvisor.
Based on the reviews left between November 2020 and October 2021, for the nearly 8 million businesses on TripAdvisor, the Travellers Choice awards look at travel trends worldwide.
“As the world returns to travel, trips will look different than before. New destinations, new experiences, and new priorities will take centre stage,” said Sarah Mathews group head of partnerships for TripAdvisor.
“Nearly three-quarters (70 per cent) of travellers globally say that it’s important they ‘see new places’ when thinking about their future travel plans.”
Top 10 Popular Destinations in the South Pacific
1. Queenstown – New Zealand
2. Bora Bora – French Polynesia
3. Auckland – New Zealand
4. Gold Coast – Australia
5. Hobart – Australia
6. Sydney – Australia
7. Port Douglas – Australia
8. Cairns – Australia
9. Melbourne – Australia
10. Rotorua – New Zealand
Top 25 Destinations for Outdoor Enthusiasts
1. Arenal Volcano National Park – Costa Rica
2. Jim Corbett National Park – India
3. Serengeti National Park – Tanzania
4. Maasai Mara National Reserve – Kenya
5. Kruger National Park – South Africa
6. Fiordland National Park – New Zealand
7. Denali National Park and Preserve – United States
8. Kilimanjaro National Park – Tanzania
9. Westland Tai Poutini National Park – New Zealand
10. New Forest National Park Hampshire – United Kingdom
11. Snowdonia National Park – United Kingdom
12. Banff National Park – Canada
13. Cilento and Vallo di Diano National Park – Italy
14. Jasper National Park – Canada
15. Grand Canyon National Park – United States
16. Tarangire National Park – Tanzania
17. Ngorongoro Conservation Area – Tanzania
18. Freycinet – Australia
19. Vatnajokull National Park – Iceland
20. Grand Teton National Park – United States
21. Bryce Canyon National Park – United States
22. Plitvice Lakes National Park – Croatia
23. Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park – Brazil
More Coverage
24. Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park – Australia
25. Zion National Park – United States
This article originally appeared on the NZ Herald and was reproduced with permission
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