Camping grounds and holiday parks contacted by the Otago Daily Times all said demand for sites during the summer holiday period was exceeding that of previous years.
Sites were still available for Labour Weekend, which was also a busy time.
Lake Outlet Holiday Park owner Tracey Addison said bookings for this weekend were strong, with a few spaces still available.
Demand for sites during the Christmas and New Year period was always high but people were booking earlier than in previous years.
"We have noticed those bookings are earlier than last year, which is great and hopefully means we’re going to have a really busy summer."
Many tourists were not used to booking ahead and were surprised to find most sites were already booked out, Ms Addison said.
Glendhu Bay Holiday Park manager Vicky Ordish said they did not take bookings for Labour Weekend but demand for sites at Christmas had increased.
Most of the sites at the camping ground were already booked by regular customers but the demand for those sites had increased, Mrs Ordish said.
"We can’t say our bookings have increased because they are pretty much the same every year but the number of people wanting to book a place has definitely gone up this year."
Wanaka Lakeview Holiday Park receptionist Natalie Ward said she was expecting a busy weekend at the holiday park and had also noticed bookings were being made much earlier this year.
"We have a good customer base who return and book in early each year but the spaces that are available seem to be filling up earlier this year."
The park still had a few cabins available for Christmas and New Year but from December 26 everything else was booked, Ms Ward said.
Figures from Statistics New Zealand’s commercial accommodation monitor show there were 794,840 bed nights in Wanaka in the year ended July, up 13.7% on the year before.
