This year has been one of contrasts for Auckland city centre’s dining sector.
While a tough economy and impacts of a decade of disruption have lingered, dining remains a very important sector which continues to perform well overall. Year in and year out, dining is one of our key attractions and the quality of the offering continues to shine in industry awards.
As the city centre prepares for a milestone year in 2026, with the opening of both the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC) and the City Rail Link (CRL), announcement of the Michelin Guide coming to New Zealand has brought an added boost of optimism.
Major events continue to be an important way to drive visitation. In January, a weekend of sold-out Luke Combs concerts and the SailGP event brought a surge of activity across the city centre. Domestic visitor spending jumped by 93 percent compared with the previous weekend, cafés and restaurants recorded a 37 percent increase in spend, and foot traffic rose by 18 percent. Hotel occupancy peaked at 90 percent, while the concerts alone generated NZD 8.19 million in tourism spend.
Major events provide many experiences you can only find in the city centre, and data throughout the year suggests people are hungry for them. The Aotearoa Art Fair reported its largest turnout in the event’s 20-year history, and the Auckland Writers Festival matched its 2024 record, with 85,000 attendees.
The announcement of a NZD 70 million one-off injection into New Zealand’s tourism and events fund was welcome, although a long-term, sustainable funding solution remains critical to ensure certainty for the sector. There’s already a number of events scheduled over the summer, from Lorde to Laneway Festival, SailGP to the ASB Classic. We look forward to seeing an expanded major events calendar in 2026 from the additional funding.
The fifteenth iteration of Heart of the City’s Restaurant Month programme in August reinforced the power of unique dining experiences. With event capacity doubled from Restaurant Month 2024, ticket sales surpassed last year’s entire programme in just two weeks. Momentum continued throughout the campaign, with 86 percent of all tickets sold.
Over fifteen curated events - from masa-making workshops to a speakeasy soirée - boosted winter trade during a traditionally quiet period.
Businesses that took part in Restaurant Month 2025 recognised its value, with 83 percent of those surveyed telling us the programme was “successful for their business.” One restaurant said “This year’s Restaurant Month was so far the most successful one…1400+ booked and dozens of walk-ins.”
Te Manaaki, the giant Christmas tree launched in 2025 will be back in lower Queen Street throughout December. Last year, 73 percent of Aucklanders surveyed said that events like Te Manaaki attract them to visit the city, and more than two thirds planned to do other activities during their visit, including dining out (20 percent).
2025 underscored two essentials for success: collaboration and getting the basics right in how the city is experienced by customers and visitors.
Important strides were made within the realm of safety, thanks to joint efforts, including increased police presence and the return of a city centre police station.
There is also collaborative work underway to address other residual impacts from the covid period and this work will make a difference in ensuring a welcoming environment to support tourism growth and major events.
Despite 2025’s challenges, optimism is growing and there is excitement for what lies ahead in 2026.
It will be a joy to see the NZICC open after its long gestation. Its unique offering is set to drive visitation growth when it opens in February, with 104 events confirmed for 2026 to date, along with 80,000 delegates and 194,000 visitor days. And while many are expected to travel beyond the city centre location, all attendees will experience New Zealand’s arts, culture and hospitality in a memorable way.
Combined with the opening of the CRL, other investments coming to completion, and with international tourist numbers projected to rise, this will mark a major turning point for the city centre.
