A tough lesson to learn for Queenstown

Its mayor says the tourist town has talked for years about its need not to rely on tourism so much.

Now, yet another tourist operator is closing.

More than 300 jobs could go at Ngai Tahu Tourism - which runs Queenstown's Shotover Jet, Franz Josef Glacier Guides and the Dark Sky Project in Tekapo

Queenstown Mayor Jim Boult says says they've known they needed to shake their reliance on tourism.

He says this is a short sharp reminder it has to be done.

On the upside, Boult says more than 30 percent of their visitors last year were kiwis- and there's hope that domestic travel can start up again in Level two.