New Zealand Hotel Council Queenstown regional chairwoman Penny Clark said the heavy snow conditions in Europe and subsequently delayed flights might affect international visitor numbers and also lower domestic occupancy in Queenstown hotels, as ''Kiwi families are stuck waiting for the weather''.
''I think there may be a lot of Kiwis coming home who would have travelled domestically over the holiday period. It might have an impact on figures as Kiwis travelling with families fall under domestic coding,'' Ms Clark said.
In London, Heathrow Airport was closed on Sunday and thousands of travellers were stranded overnight as the area was affected by some of the heaviest snowfalls in decades.
Further cancellations and delays are likely as more snow, sleet and fog is forecast.
''The problem is most flights are fully booked, so it's not like there are a couple of empty seats available for people to jump on ... you get your holidays from work and you try to stick to that,'' she said.
NZHC statistics for November 2010 reported an average 5.1% increase in occupancy nationally compared with the corresponding time last year and the highest November occupancy rate (81.2%) since 2007.
Ms Clark said November was described by Queenstown hoteliers as ''erratic,'' and occupancy figures varied from one hotel to the next.
''I certainly think it is a reflection of some hotels in Queenstown, but in some hotels it's not the case ... We are all still feeling positive for the future and December is looking good,'' she said.
In Queenstown, a slight decline in the Australian market had not been surprising, as a drop was to be expected following a winter season which strongly relied on Australian visitors.
Major national crises also might have had an effect on national visitors.
''The market may be down and I think if you look at everything which happened over the last four months it makes sense ... we had the earthquake in Christchurch, and lambs dying in Southland, those things and a couple of other things would have had an effect,'' she said.
NZHC independent chairwoman Jennie Langley said national occupancy rates had been rising for the past five months, compared with last year, which was a positive sign after two years of difficult conditions.
''Not all regions are enjoying sustained growth but it is encouraging as we head into the summer season.''
