Creativity is at the Heart of a Thriving District

Destination Queenstown & Lake Wānaka Tourism’s Segment Insight Guides

New visitor insights from Destination Queenstown & Lake Wānaka Tourism’s Segment Insight Guides (Nov 2025) show international participation in arts, culture and heritage now ranks just behind hiking and on par with skiing! Revealing that creative experiences are central to how visitors connect with this place.

Locally, the QLDC Quality of Life Survey (2024) shows 59% of residents attended a cultural event in the past year, while Infometrics NZ reports 5.6% of the district’s workforce is employed in the creative industries - the second-highest in Aotearoa New Zealand. Together, these figures show creativity is not only thriving, but contributing meaningfully to both community wellbeing and economic resilience across the district.

The data also points to opportunity: visitors who engage with creativity, culture and heritage stay longer, spend more, and return more often. With greater support, increased visibility, continued coordination and investment - not just in dollars, but in spaces, technology, education and access, this sector is positioned to become one of the district’s most valuable and regenerative contributors.

Beyond the numbers lies the real story: creativity connects people to place. From Glenorchy’s newly recognised Dark Sky Sanctuary to the development of School House Studios, new galleries, the open-studio trails, cultural events, creative spaces and heritage projects, cultural energy is shaping a district that values expression, belonging and collaboration.

As the Te Muka Toi Te Muka Tākata strategy continues to unfold, creativity, is becoming increasingly recognised as the unbreakable thread linking people, place and possibility weaving culture and heritage through everyday life and shaping a future that’s both grounded and inspiring.