Guest nights spent in commercial short term accommodation rose 2 percent in March from a year earlier to 3.3 million, Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) says.
Otago had the largest regional increase, up 7 percent or 27,000 from March 2009, followed by a 7 percent or 19,000 rise in the Bay of Plenty, and a 2 percent or 12,000 rise in Canterbury.
The main falls were in Hawke's Bay/Gisborne, down 6000 or 4 percent, and in Wellington which dropped 1 percent or 2000.
International visitors accounted for 1.6m of the guest nights in March, up 42,000 or 3 percent from a year earlier.
The region with the biggest rise in international visitor nights was Otago, with a gain of 25,000 or 10 percent, followed by Bay of Plenty which rose 11,000 or 9 percent, and West Coast with a lift of 7000 or 8 percent.
The biggest international falls were in Taranaki/Manawatu-Wanganui, with a drop of 7000 or 18 percent, Hawke's Bay/Gisborne down 5000 or 12 percent, and Wellington down 5000 or 5 percent.
Domestic guest nights gained 32,000 or 2 percent to 1.7m, with Taranaki/Manawatu-Wanganui up 11,000 or 9 percent and Bay of Plenty up 9000 or 6 percent.
Guest nights spent in hotels were up 49,000 or 5 percent in March from a year earlier, with holiday parks up 17,000 or 3 percent and motels up 13,000 or 1 percent, while guest nights in backpackers accommodation fell 5000 or 1 percent.
Hotel guest nights have risen for four months in a row, compared to the same month a year earlier, SNZ said.