Queenstown is widely considered to be the world's No 1 adventure tourism centre, but other contenders are also eyeing up the title.
With emerging countries in South America showing more organisation and sophistication in their marketing strategies, North American visitors may choose to stay closer to home.
Skydive company NZone The Ultimate Jump marketing manager Derek Melnick said greater environmental consciousness and rising fuel prices could combine to keep more people from choosing long-haul flights to Queenstown and New Zealand.
But that is just one of the challenges Queenstown faces to keep its thousands of guests pouring in.
The resort has a reputation as the world's ultimate adventure tourism destination - and the whole community is affected when tragedy strikes.
The second death on the Kawarau River this year occurred last week and, although Kawarau Jet voluntarily suspended operations on Friday, adventurous tourists still flocked to adrenaline-charged activities.
With a full complement of swingers testing their nerve against a 109m drop on Friday, Shotover Canyon Swing general manager Matt Hollyer told the Queenstown Times he did not know what effect the incident would have but said business would go on because people were always looking for ways to push personal boundaries.
"I guess adventure people are pretty resilient to the challenges they're putting themselves through," he said.
He said adventure tourism had inherent risk and he was appreciative of regulations which minimised it.
"You can whinge about regulations but this incident is a reminder of why they are there," he said.
But with other countries, such as South America, becoming more organised can Queenstown retain its pre-eminent position?
As "the jewel in the tourism crown" virtually every type of adventure activity known to man is available within a one-hour drive - or flight - of Queenstown.
Totally Tourism managing director Mark Quickfall said that while South America was where the resort was 10 years ago, it was catching up fast.
He said there was increasing competition around the world and Queenstown and New Zealand "need to get the message out there" and not be complacent.
A large part of Queenstown's attraction is the backdrop to the activities - skydiving near the Remarkables or bungy jumping in the Kawarau Gorge offers a visual feast alongside the adrenaline rush.
But there are plenty of constraints when working in outstanding natural landscapes.
Operators based within them or on reserve land have to meet stringent standards and battle for resource consents for the privilege.
But Mr Hollyer, whose Canyon Swing operation uses Doc land, said that was fair enough and that Queenstown operators had to realise they were not the only ones.
He was part of the New Zealand delegation which travelled to the Adventure Travel World Summit in Sao Paulo, Brazil, earlier in the month.
Despite expectations, he discovered there were numerous regulations and restrictions on South American adventure operators trying to work in parks and reserves.
"They seem to have a free-for-all in some areas where anything goes but as soon as something is designated a reserve or national park they can't go anywhere near it," he said.
New Zealand could be difficult - "it might take three years to get consent" - but not locked off in the same way.
Queenstown still had plenty of "competitive advantages", Mr Hollyer said.
The short distance between a wide range of activities would always be a draw-card for the area.
"You can stand on Franz Joseph [glacier] in the morning and be doing a Canyon Swing in the afternoon," he said.
Mr Quickfall also said having everything within easy reach was perhaps Queenstown's main selling point.
South America "might have everything that we have" but it was all "vast distances away", he said.
"You could drive for days between different places."
