Newsletter : March 2017
Written by Steph Kendall
Welcome to the New Zealand Tourism Guide www.tourism.net.nz March 2017 issue. If you have news or comments, please email us news@tourism.net.nz.
In this March newsletter:
- Visitors Putting New Zealand Under Stress
- New Zealand Takes on the Largest Travel EXPO in the World
- Holiday Park Sector Joins Predator Free Effort
- Light Hearted Video Tackles Serious Topic
- New Zealand Number One for 'Sociability and Being Beautiful'
- Tools for Business: Get Your Bookings From Travellers ASAP
- Tourism Site of the Month: Haast Heli
Visitors Putting New Zealand Under Stress
The 100% Pure New Zealand campaign has proved enormously successful with New Zealand tourism booming like never before. Visitor numbers rose by 11 percent in 2016 to a record 3.5 million. However, concerns have been expressed that in reality New Zealand's tourism industry and regional councils are not coping with a shortage of everything from carparks, campgrounds, beds, bins and notoriously, toilets.
Tourism has delivered an extra $800 million in GST alone over the last two years, but councils estimate they'll need $1.38 billion to cope with the boom. The Government pledged an extra $5.5 million for tourism infrastructure in the regions, recently, however it seems more is needed. Newshub reports there are calls for a bed tax, a $5 border levy to help fund tourism infrastructure and possibly entry fees for our National Parks.
Tourism Minister Paula Bennett, said that levies may well drive tourists away. "We are already an expensive country," she said. "I think a bit more does need to be done, so I'm negotiating with the Minister of Finance..."
New Zealand Takes on the Largest Travel EXPO in the World
A group of New Zealand tourist businesses have targeted key European markets at the biggest travel expo in the world in Berlin exhibiting to around 1000 travel buyers and 120,000 visitors. A group of around 15 businesses including Rotorua's Te Puia, Jucy Rentals Hobbiton and Air New Zealand joined airlines, tourist operations and state tourist bodies from 184 other countries to show off their latest products.
The New Zealand businesses paid up to $5000 to display in one of 26 halls. Global tourism expanded an estimated 4 per cent last year with 1.23 billion people taking holidays. New Zealand tourism is one of the leaders of that boom. Visitor numbers exceeded 3.5m the year to January, up 11 per cent on the previous 12 months.
Tourism leaders and companies want to attract more Britons and Europeans who stay longer and spend more.
Tourism New Zealand said it was great for New Zealand to have its own stand there, "Europe, specifically the UK and Germany, has always been one of six top markets and there continues to be a focus. It's great to see the growth in arrivals coming out of Europe and what's great about that is that ... they travel right around the country, they're the longest stayers, too."
About 92,000 visitors from Germany and 215,000 from Britain came to New Zealand last year.
Holiday Park Sector Joins Predator Free Effort
Hundreds of holiday parks in some of New Zealand's most beautiful locations may be free of rats, stoats and possums after the organisation that represents them signed up to Predator Free New Zealand.
Holiday Parks New Zealand (HAPNZ) and its 300 member holiday parks are forming a partnership with the Predator Free New Zealand Trust to help rid New Zealand of predators by 2050. Chief Executive Fergus Brown says a predator free New Zealand is a fantastic, aspirational vision for our country that the holiday park sector is proud to champion.
Predator Free New Zealand Trust Chairman Sir Rob Fenwick says the long-term campaign will pay a massive dividend to the tourism industry. "I'm delighted and not surprised that holiday park owners see real value in this and I expect other tourism operators to join."
Holiday parks will be working in a variety of areas to contribute to Predator Free 2050, including:
- trapping in and around parks
- supporting predator control activities in local communities
- encouraging a commitment to and an understanding of a predator free New Zealand from both guests and local communities.
Light Hearted Video Tackles Serious Topic
Lake Wanaka Tourism (LWT) has launcehed a series of light-hearted educational videos, which aim to deliver some important messages to travellers visiting the region. The first instalment, 'Responsible Camping', provides practical advice to visitors who may be considering freedom camping.
View the short video by clicking this link, https://www.lakewanaka.co.nz/accommodation/where-can-i-camp
LWT worked with the local Department of Conservation office (DOC) and the creative team of 'All Us In Winterland' to create the 60-second video. It encourages travellers to check and use permitted camp sites and the facilities provided, remove waste, refrain from using lakes and rivers for bathing, and observe the rules around fire bans.
General Manager for Lake Wanaka Tourism James Helmore said that, while the video covers a serious topic, it was important to communicate the messages in a fun, engaging way. "The Wanaka region is the perfect place to explore by campervan, motorhome or to pitch a tent. We want to continue to encourage visitors to come and enjoy our magnificent natural playground while playing their part in contributing to our region's well-being. These videos are our way of ensuring we're engaging with our audiences to deliver practical information such as basic rules and regulations, but adding some personality."
New Zealand Number One for 'Sociability and Being Beautiful'
New Zealand is ranked number one for 'sociability and being beautiful' in an index published by The Telegraph (UK), which examines what different countries around the world are number one in.
The Legatum Prosperity Index, which, as part of its annual stock take of global prosperity gives a "social capital" score to the world's nations, ranking them out of 100 in categories such as strength of personal relationships, civic participation and social network support. The index claims Australasia is the most sociable corner of the globe with New Zealand topping the table, followed by Australia according to The Telegraph's article.
New Zealand was also been named the world's best country in The Telegraph's annual Travel Awards survey (voted for by more than 70,000 readers) - for four years on the trot.
Tools for Business: Get Your Bookings From Travellers ASAP
New Zealand Tourism Guide www.tourism.net.nz attracts two main types of web visitor, those who are planning their holiday (with time on their hands) and those who search for prices, details or available rooms/tours/options and want to book immediately.
The booking function on New Zealand Tourism Guide is provided by BookIt. Their online booking system provides you with the ability to pick up bookings from those travellers (domestic or international) who wish to book something right now (as they find what they want).
The beauty of our system is that we are able to load accommodation, tours, attractions and transport operators. Some of the many features we can add include:
- Adding a "Make a Booking" button on your listing
- Including your business as part of the "Rates and Bookings" function within your region and category
- Including your business as part of the "Rates and Bookings" function within your region and category
- Cross marketing of your business
- Including your business in "holiday packages"
This booking feature is only available for those tourism operators who have a Gold Listing or a Gold Listing combined with a Web page.
If you are unsure if you are an NZTG Gold Member email us at New Zealand Tourism Guide. Set up is free – for more information view, https://www.tourism.net.nz/business-centre/bookit
Top Tourism Site of the Month
This month's Top Tourism Site Award goes to Haast Heli.
Haast Heli specialises in scenic flights over the stunning Haast World Heritage area. One of the most impactful elements of their website is the high quality photography in the home page banners. Slightly jarring is the legibility of the text that appears over the images, but nonetheless the images showcase the product very well. The home page is easy to navigate and reasonably clean looking, although the uneven alignment of text slightly spoils the look of the page.
Shorter page length and more photographs may make the sub-pages more readable and give the reader more of a sense of the people behind the business. The website does its job well, but slightly presents as if further development of content including text editing, images, additional pages and reviews is forthcoming.
Nominate a Site
If you think a New Zealand travel or tourism website deserves a 'Top Tourism Site Award', let us know about it. (View further information about the award criteria).
About the Top Tourism Site Award
The New Zealand Tourism Guide confers a Top Tourism Site Award to websites that:
- Enhance New Zealand as a travel destination
- Publish useful and informative content
- Are laid out in a professional and aesthetically-pleasing manner
- Are designed effectively for the World Wide Web
- May demonstrate easy functionality, interactivity, originality, outstanding graphic quality and marketing reach.
We welcome any feedback — send your comments to: news@tourism.net.nz
Kind regards,
The Team
Ph 0800 14 65 49
www.tourism.net.nz
New Zealand Tourism Guide
Head Office: Ground Floor, 518 Colombo Street, Christchurch