New Zealand tourism numbers are forecast to grow 6.8% next year, largely driven by the 2011 tournament, new air services and strong growth driven by the Australian market. The South is one of the regions set to benefit.
Almost 75,000 supporters - plus 10,200 visitors with official event affiliation, such as teams, media and tournament sponsors - are tipped by the New Zealand Government to arrive for the world cup.
More than 39,000 of those are expected by the end of the tournament's pool phase, during which Dunedin hosts matches between Scotland and Georgia; England and Romania; and Ireland and Italy.
Invercargill will host pool matches between Scotland and Romania; and Argentina and Romania.
"Indications are that 2011-12 will be a turning point for the New Zealand tourism industry, led by the Rugby World Cup in September-October 2011," Tourism Dunedin's annual report notes.
Tourism Dunedin chief executive Hamish Saxton said, after two subdued years, 2011 was shaping up as a "big year" for the tourism industry.
Dunedin was set to feature prominently during the pool stages of the Rugby World Cup tournament because of the interest expected to be generated by the Forsyth Barr Stadium, the largest indoor arena in New Zealand, he said.
"Although we don't have any All Black games, we need to treat those pool games as if they are."
Nationally, visitor numbers for the world cup are expected to be from Australia, 21,300; England, 13,000; New Zealand, 12,000 expatriates; South Africa,10,730; France, 6840; Ireland, 5280; Wales, 3720; Scotland, 2670; and Japan, 2410.
Most host areas are likely to reach capacity for short periods before and after hosting matches in their region.
The Tourism Dunedin report does concede future growth for the city's tourism sector could be limited by a lack of hotels.
"As we emerge into a more positive climate, the growth is still limited by capacity."
The city had fared "reasonably well" during recession-hit 2009, with a 2% decline in total visitor nights on the previous year.
For the first six months of this year, total visitor nights (463,808) decreased 0.4% compared with the first six months of 2009 (465,582).
While the downturn in the economy had affected domestic visitor nights in Dunedin, international visitor nights were exceeding forecasts.
Mr Saxton said the cruise-ship industry would continue to have a "positive impact" on tourism numbers, with numbers for the 2011-12 season expected to be double those of 2009-10.
