Foreign tourist levy for Tongariro

Visitors flock to the Central North Island every year to do the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. Photo: Dan Hutchinson

Foreign visitors will be charged a fee of $20-$40 to walk the Tongariro Crossing and three other popular New Zealand places.

By Dan Hutchinson

The move is expected to raise up to $62 million a year across the four sites, which also include Cathedral Cove / Te Whanganui-a-Hei, Milford Sound, and Aoraki Mount Cook – where foreigners often make up 80 per cent of all visitors.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Conservation Minister Tama Potaka announced the new levy at the National Party Conference in Christchurch on the weekend.

Potaka says tourists make a massive contribution to the economy, but overseas visitors were often surprised they can visit some of the most beautiful places in the world for free.

“It’s only fair that at these special locations, foreign visitors make an additional contribution.

“For the conservation estate that will mean up to $62 million per year in revenue, which will be directly re-invested into those same areas, so we can keep investing in the sites that underpin so much of our tourism sector.”

Luxon says there will be no charge for New Zealanders to access the conservation estate.

The government also announced it will simplify the concession process so that businesses can get them more easily.

Luxon says many New Zealanders already run outstanding businesses on the conservation estate – from guided walks and ski fields, to filming documentaries, grazing sheep and cattle, or hosting concerts and building cell phone towers.

“But to do any of that, you need a concession – and the concessions regime is totally broken, often taking years to obtain or renew and leaving businesses in a cycle of bureaucratic limbo.

“Outdated rules mean we’ve got examples of modern E-bike users being turned away from potential touring opportunities because they have to be considered as proper vehicles. And tourism on the Routeburn is being held up because the trail crosses artificial boundaries, with different rules and different limits.”

The Department of Conservation manages huge tracts of New Zealand, from pristine National Parks and Great Walks to areas of grassland used for grazing.

“We’re going to fix the Conservation Act to unleash a fresh wave of concessions – like tourism, agriculture, and infrastructure, in locations where that makes sense,” Luxon says.

Love Taupō General Manager Patrick Dault believes the extra funding from the tourist levy will deliver positive results for regional tourism.

 “Any investment in improving and developing new infrastructure on the Tongariro Alpine Crossing should be good news for both visitors and local communities as it will ultimately offer an enhanced experience.” 

He says a large proportion of international visitors visit the region to explore the Unesco World Heritage Park and the Tongariro Alpine Crossing.

“This aligns perfectly with Te Ihirangi — the Taupō Regional Destination Management Plan, a common vision for a more regenerative approach to tourism. It puts people and place, communities and the environment first, ensuring tourism adds true value to the destination.”

Up to 105,000 visitors used the Tongariro Alpine Crossing in the 2023/24 season - October 1 2023 to April 8 2024, with up to 2000 people visiting on the busiest days.