Wellington is missing out on tens of millions of tourist dollars each year, according to new statistics.
The latest statistics show visitors are spending a lot more in regions like Waikato, Otago, and Canterbury.
The regional council says adventure tourism always attracts more people, but that's not Wellington's selling point.
"We have no desire to be Queenstown where you can hurl yourself off anything and do whatever for a lot of money,"
The latest figures show in the last year tourists spent a billion dollars more in Otago and Canterbury than they did in Wellington and six billion dollars more in Auckland.
Wellington's mayor is confident ratepayers will be happy to pay to build more attractions.
"77 per cent of respondents so far on our budget say we're doing the right things to want to continue to invest," Mayor Justin Lester told 1 NEWS.
With the number of tourists expected to jump by a third over the next six years, the pressure's on to get more of them to the capital.
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