Business Bulletin : September 2019

Compiled by Steph Kendall

In this bulletin:

• Māori Language Week
• World's Greatest Places
• 11th New Zealand Great Walk
• The Tiaki Promise Gets a Boost
• New MoU's First Campaign Launched
• Business Centre - Be.Accessible
• Tourism Site of the Month: Moose Lodge Estate

Māori Language Week

This month includes Māori Language Week. Celebrated since 1975, it's a government-sponsored initiative that has become a major event on Aotearoa's calendar and a national celebration involving thousands of schools, workplaces, community groups and individuals.

This year's celebration features a parrot called Cocka Tumeke learning to perform a pūkana (bulging of the eyes) as taught by Te Wiki o te Reo Māori ambassador Pere Wihongi.

View the Cocka Tumeke Video.

The quirky approach to Māori Language Week or Te Wiki o te Reo Māori is designed to show prospective learners that it's all about having a go.

World's Greatest Places

New Zealand has taken three spots in TIME Magazine's second annual World's Greatest Places list: Queenstown's Camp Glenorchy, Wellington's Zealandia Ecosanctuary and Hiakai restaurant are listed amongst the world's best. They are all placed in a different category but all with a focus on sustainability and providing a welcoming, warm experience for all their guests.

To compile its second annual list of the World's Greatest Places, TIME solicited nominations across a variety of categories-including museums, parks, restaurants, and hotels-from our editors and correspondents around the world as well as industry experts. Then they evaluated each one based on key factors, including quality, originality, sustainability, innovation and influence.

The result: 100 new and newly noteworthy destinations to experience right now, https://time.com/collection/worlds-greatest-places-2019/

11th New Zealand Great Walk

Tuatapere Hump Ridge Track in spectacular Fiordland National Park is on the way to becoming the 11th New Zealand Great Walk. Southland's 61km Tuatapere Hump Ridge Track will become New Zealand's next Great Walk, and the 11th in the series of multi-day walks through New Zealand's wilderness landscapes.

The Hump Ridge trail travels across some of New Zealand's most remote landscapes in Fiordland National Park, a vast wilderness of forests, mountains and deep fiords which extends across the rugged south-eastern corner of the South Island.

Hikers can already walk the 61km track but a New Zealand Government $5 million investment over the next three years will see the existing track upgraded to achieve Great Walk status. The three-night experience is expected to open in time for the 2022 walking season.

The Tiaki Promise Gets a Boost

Tourism New Zealand received $300k from the Government's $8 million responsible camping funding announced recently to create and deliver the campaign to encourage responsible camping.

This year, the campaign aims to promote the range of holiday parks, campgrounds and campsites on offer and make sure that if people choose to camp on public land, they know how to do this responsibly. The funding will be used to broaden the campaign and ensure messaging is consistent across the country and the materials align with the national Tiaki – Care for New Zealand initiative.

The Tiaki Promise is a commitment to care for New Zealand and by following the Tiaki Promise, you are making a commitment to New Zealand. To act as a guardian, protecting and preserving our home.

Tiaki New Zealand Assets

For Tourism Operations with Tourism New Zealand details, Tiaki assets are available for us.

New MoU's First Campaign Launched

Last month saw Tourism New Zealand, Air New Zealand and its alliance partner United Airlines launch a major campaign to attract visitors from the USA to New Zealand and encourage them to explore more of regional New Zealand.

This campaign is the first under a new three-year memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Air New Zealand and Tourism New Zealand, designed to ensure New Zealand continues to stand out as a destination on the crowded world stag and including intent to invest up to $30 million each for joint activity in Australia, China, North and South America, Japan, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Europe, Korea, India and South East Asia.

Air New Zealand and its alliance partners brought 34 percent of international visitors to New Zealand in the year ended April 2019.

Business Centre - Be.Accessible

Be. Accessible is a social change initiative and a holistic framework for accessibility with a view to create a truly accessible New Zealand. Be. Accessible is managed by the Be. Institute and aims to work across all sectors and communities throughout the country. The belief is that every person has their part to play in the creation of accessibility regardless of how big or small the change.

Be.Accessible deal with many travel organisations and many of those in one of the accessible travel directories have completed a Be. Welcome Assessment (usually Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum rating). This assessment has been designed to identify access features you may need to know when researching or preparing to visit, entering, experiencing and leaving the location or service. All Be.Accessible rated businesses will have a Be.Accessible logo shown.

Be.Accessible Rated Business Directories

1. Be.Accessible Rated Businesses (all)
2. Be.Accessible Places to Stay
3. Be.Accessible Things to Do
4. Be.Accessible Dining
5. Be.Accessible Retail
6. Be.Accessible Guided Tours
7. Be.Accessible Getting Around

Find out more about booking an assessment with the Be. Accessible team (includes accessibility assessment, report on current situation, meeting and suggested improvements).

Top Tourism Site of the Month

This month's Top Tourism Site Award goes to Moose Lodge Estate.

www.mooselodge.nz

Established in 1898, Moose Lodge Estate is one of Rotorua's oldest luxury lodges. Its heritage is celebrated through one of our most modern ways to publish information, the website. It offers a fascinating browsing experience as it unveils its current day offerings of top-class accommodations, golf, meals, functions, weddings, high tea (and more) juxtaposed with its timeless, historic features.

This website is elegantly designed with a high-quality video presentation introducing many aspects of the business on its home page through well-considered images.

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:

1. Enhance New Zealand as a travel destination
2. Publish useful and informative content
3. Are laid out in a professional and aesthetically-pleasing manner
4. Are designed effectively for the World Wide Web
5. Demonstrate easy functionality, interactivity, originality, outstanding graphic quality and marketing reach.

We welcome any feedback — send your comments to: news@tourism.net.nz