The tourism industry is one of the world’s largest service industries and a major player in the New Zealand economy. Despite the growing economy that tourism generates globally and brings into the country, there is a shortage of skilled personnel. The industry has difficulty attracting and retaining qualified staff. This research will explore an overview of tourism recruitment and effective procedures to attract and retain skilled seasonal workers in the organisation. The research also explored the use of skilled seasonal workers in the tourism industry in New Zealand. In recent years there is a common misconception that the tourism industry has under-skilled staff and a lack of vision regarding career pathways. From that standpoint, the industry often offers poor financial compensation. This research will explore an overview of tourism recruitment and effective procedures to attract and retain skilled seasonal workers in the organisation. The study is based on qualitative and quantitative analysis of six previous and current seasonal workers who have provided qualitative feedback on the questionnaire which was emailed and handed out to the participants. The positives and negatives and the reasons that these employees wanted to return or not are investigated Results show that 60% of the participants will NOT return and at the same time indicate that wages and manager leadership skills are the reason. This research also highlights the importance of implementing retention strategies in the industry.