'We do need to do things differently'
So far, most Australian visitors have come to reunite with loved ones they haven't seen for a year.
It will be a while before the full economic benefit of Australians returning is felt, but the industry is optimistic.
"The bookings are very strong," said Ms Cave. "We're definitely seeing that they're going to come and experience our activities."
But along with the excitement is an awareness that the industry has so far grown at significant environmental cost.
New Zealand has sold itself to visitors on its natural wonders - glaciers, lakes and mountains.
But before the shutdown, experts were warning that so many people congregating in remote areas - often thousands at a time - had been actually risking this pristine environment.
There are now calls to use the tourism "hiatus" - forced on the industry by the pandemic - as a chance to curb its impact.
Proposals presented to the government include limiting visitor numbers at tourism sites and a departure tax to help counterbalance climate impact.
"I think with climate change, people are realising that they have to change what they do. We do need to do things differently and that it will be costly," said Simon Upton, New Zealand's Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, who made the recommendations.
"Asking travellers to contribute a small amount as they leave our shores is the most constructive thing we could do," he said.
But it's a difficult proposition for an industry that has already suffered so much.
"It does feel a little bit like the dog is already down and we're having somebody step on our throat", said Shaun Kelly, the general manager of Absoloot Hostel in Queenstown - where bookings have been down 80%.
"Everybody needs to look at themselves environmentally because this is the product that we purvey.
"But in regards to the carbon impact of tourism when you do compare it to the other major industries in the country, which are categorically larger carbon producers, is tourism really the appropriate thing to be looking at right now?" he asked.
But Mr Upton says there's never a right moment to make a change.
"There's a short-term crisis to be managed, but long term, we need an industry which is more sustainable, more respectful of the environment, and doing what it can to limit the damage," he said.