Expedia director for New Zealand Haley Purdon said she was “surprised, but not surprised” about Waikato making the trends.

“Waikato usually doesn’t get global accolades, so I’m surprised.

“But I’m not surprised in the sense that there is so much to do and explore… and if you think about the proximity to Auckland Airport it makes sense.”

Purdon said the win was a big deal for the tourism industry and local operators.

“It comes with a huge amount of attention… [and] could open up international potential for operators – the leverage of this is massive.”

She said it was too early for a forecast of visitor numbers, however, there had been some “significant growth” this year already so more of that could be expected in 2025.

Hamilton & Waikato Tourism chief executive Nicola Greenwell said her team had worked hard over the years to attract visitors to Waikato.

“We are so proud to be the only New Zealand destination identified on Expedia’s global list – now that’s mighty!

“We know when people come here, they are pleasantly surprised at just how much there is to see and do.”

Greenwell said based on feedback from tourists, the Waikato would “constantly” exceed expectations.

“We often hear of people planning to pass through, or stay a short time on their way elsewhere, and then express their annoyance they did not allow more time… [because] there is more here to do than they expected.”

The news of featuring in the global travel trends comes after Hamilton & Waikato Tourism revealed they were no longer be able to promote the region internationally due to funding cuts from local councils.

“While we have had reduced funding, results such as these provide great opportunities to showcase our region,” Greenwell said.

“We will be working towards maximising the opportunity, within our current and reduced resourcing, to attract visitors, and work with our operators to ensure the visitor experience continues to surprise and delight.”

Tourism minister Matt Doocey said it was great to see New Zealand and the Waikato recognised in global travel trends and celebrated by tourism organisations like Expedia.

“The data backs up what we’re seeing in the ‘Unpack ‘25′ report, with the latest Tourism Electronic Card Transactions data showing an 18.5% increase in spending by international visitors in the Waikato in the year ending July 2024 – the fifth highest of all regions.

“I hope this recognition will convince even more people to visit Waikato and explore other parts of New Zealand.”

Looking at the years ahead, Purdon said there was a lot of potential for the Waikato.

“The next goal is going from a detour destination to a solid destination and increasing people’s length of stay in the region. At the moment, most people are staying roughly two nights, but the Waikato got what it takes for more.”

What the Unpack’25 reveals about Waikato

Waikato features in the top 10 detour destinations for 2025 as a detour from Auckland.

Based on accommodation booking data for Waikato, the main countries doing inbound travel into the region are from the US and Australia with the majority of visitors being couples or families.

The most popular places within the region are Hamilton, Cambridge, Raglan and Waitomo.

On their website, Expedia calls the Waikato “New Zealand’s lesser-known natural beauty” saying the region boasted a landscape that ranges from “rolling green hills to black-sand beaches and almost everything else in between”.

Several local attractions received shoutouts, including Hobbiton Movie Set, Kawhia’s hot water beach, Raglan, Waitomo Caves, Hamilton Gardens, Wairere Falls, Zealong Tea Estate and Ōtorohanga Kiwi House.

The top 10 trending Detour Destinations 2025

Unpack’25: What are the other trends?

For their report, Expedia Group analysed insights from 25,000 travellers across 19 countries who have travelled for leisure or plan to in the next three years.

Apart from the detour destinations, the other main trends are joy of missing out travel, goods getaways, jet setting, one-click trips and the phenomena list.

The joy of missing out (jomo) travel trend is a deliberate contrast to the fear of missing out (fomo).

Jomo travel means doing less on holiday to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life as well as staying at cosy cabins or peaceful beach houses to boost relaxation and reconnection.

Goods getaways see travellers take trips in search of craveable and share-worthy specialty goods, like a viral chocolate bar from Dubai, butter from France or skincare products from Korea.

Based on global activities data on Expedia between January 1 and August 1, 2024, coffee tours in Costa Rica, tea tastings in China and matcha experiences in Japan are some of the most popular Goods Getaway experiences.

Of the travellers questioned, 39% of travellers said they visit grocery stores or supermarkets when they are on holiday and 44% shop for local goods they can’t get at home.

The jet-setting trend sees people turning to the screen for holiday inspiration: Two-thirds of travellers say movies and TV shows have influenced their travel choices, a 16% increase from last year.

The top entertainment-inspired destinations for 2025 are Dubai (Real Housewives of Dubai), Montana and Wyoming (Yellowstone) and New York (And Just Like That).

For Kiwis, the most popular destination is Hawaiʻi (42%) because of the upcoming Moana 2 and Jurassic World 4 movies, followed by Japan, because of Shogun (39%), Paris, because of Emily in Paris (37%) and Queensland, because of Bluey (34%).

The phenomena list includes natural wonders that visitors are willing to travel great distances for to see them real life, with 85% saying they are interested in travelling to experience natural phenomena in the coming year.

The top phenomenon Kiwi travellers want to see are the Northern Lights (69%), followed by volcanoes, geysers and hot springs (25%), sea turtle hatchings (24%) and bioluminescence (21%).

With shopping on Instagram and TikTok becoming the new normal, travel shopping on social media, or one-click trips, is also an emerging trend with 40% or Kiwis saying they wanted to book a trip they saw on their social feeds.

An all-Inclusive era seems to be emerging as well with today’s all-inclusives are attracting Gen Zers who are looking for stress-free stays and a good deal.

And lastly, hotel restaurants seem to experience a renaissance with travelers seeking standout hotel dining experiences.

Positive reviews about hotel restaurants, chefs and bars increased by 40%, based on hotel review data on Hotels.com between January 1, 2024 and July 4, 2024 compared to the same period in 2023.

Also, nearly a third of travelers say room service from a famous hotel restaurant would make them more likely to book, while 31% say restaurant tables reserved exclusively for hotel guests would be their top reason.

Danielle Zollickhofer is a multimedia journalist and assistant news director at the Waikato Herald. She joined NZME in 2021 and is based in Hamilton.