The significance of transport in tourism cannot be overstated. Tourism, by its very definition, involves the movement of people from their places of permanent residence to new locations. Transport should therefore be considered a necessary requirement of tourism. In particular, passenger transportation is vital as it provides the critical link between the market source and the destination, as well as the link various attractions within the destination region.
Importance of free independent travellers
A general trend in New Zealand tourism in the last three years has been the increasing numbers of Free Independent Travellers (F.I.Ts). Data sourced from the New Zealand Domestic Travel Survey (2001) shows the predominance of private or company cars/vans by domestic visitors, with over 80 per cent of domestic visitors using this as their main form of transport. The Tourism Recreation Research and Education Centre at Lincoln University has reported that Christchurch is likely to experience increased visitor traffic as the F.I.Ts market grows and campervan/rental cars become the preferred transport option for this visitor segment.
Table 6. Transport types used by international visitors in New Zealand
| Transport type |
Visitor trips using transport types |
% of total |
| Aeroplane |
606,231 |
20.0 |
| Car/van |
1,107,039 |
36.5 |
| Campervan/motorhome |
98,628 |
3.3 |
| Scheduled coach service |
207,204 |
6.8 |
| Coach tour |
340,643 |
11.3 |
| Taxi/limousine/car tour |
152,064 |
5.0 |
| Train |
104,846 |
3.5 |
| Commercial ferry/boat |
380,830 |
12.6 |
| Private yacht/boat |
5,196 |
0.2 |
| Bicycle |
7,091 |
0.2 |
| Motorbike |
2,439 |
0.1 |
| Walking/tramping |
9,123 |
0.3 |
| Helicopter |
2,380 |
0.1 |
| Other |
3,387 |
0.1 |
| Total |
3,027,101 |
100.0 |
Source: International Visitor Survey (year ended December 2005).
Table 7: Transport types used by domestic visitors in New Zealand
| Transport type |
Visitor trips using transport types |
% of total |
| Aeroplane |
3,202,089 |
6.6 |
| Car/van |
41,501,877 |
85.3 |
| Campervan/motorhome |
203,422 |
0.4 |
| Scheduled coach service |
250,501 |
0.5 |
| Coach tour |
319,311 |
0.7 |
| Taxi/limousine/car tour |
412,283 |
0.8 |
| Train |
396,892 |
0.8 |
| Commercial ferry/boat |
1,108,083 |
2.3 |
| Private yacht/boat |
145,968 |
0.3 |
| Bicycle |
14,068 |
0.1 |
| Motorbike |
231,811 |
0.5 |
| Walking/tramping |
63,832 |
0.2 |
| Helicopter |
20,290 |
0.1 |
| Other |
775,279 |
1.4 |
| Total |
48,645,706 |
100.0 |
Source: New Zealand Domestic Travel Survey (Year Ended March 2005).
References
Sleeman, R. and Simmons, D.G. (2003). Christchurch and Canterbury Visitor Profile and Forecasts. Tourism Recreation Research and Education Centre (TRREC), Lincoln University, Report No. 30.
Learning activities
- Construct a graph from Table 6 and Table 7, choosing the best type of graph to illustrate the data.
- Make generalisations about the data from Table 6 and Table 7. What does it suggest about the types of tourists?
- Compare tourist transport modes in Christchurch with Rotorua and Queenstown. Outline the major differences you would probably find and suggest reasons.