The Tourism Export Council of New Zealand (TECNZ) is pleased with the outcome of its recent review with Qualmark. “I believe this process has strengthened our partnership and the team at Qualmark is fully committed to assist all our inbound tour operators to achieve a high standard of service offering” says Judy Chen, CEO of TECNZ.

All TECNZ inbound tour operator members have to complete a Qualmark assessment as part of its annual membership. The association has its own Qualmark inbound tour operator accreditation category that differentiates from non-member inbound tour operators. This also allows a closer partnership with Tourism New Zealand especially when promoting through the travel trade channels.

“New Zealand is one of the few countries that offers a national tourism quality assurance system backed by its key tourism marketing agency. The industry should embrace the value this offers and hopefully by working closely together we will be able to achieve managing our destination and the growth of our international visitors sustainably”.

Gregg Anderson, General Manager of Qualmark comments “from Qualmark’s perspective, we are delighted to be working closely with TECNZ in New Zealand and offshore to encourage the use of quality sustainable tourism businesses. TECNZ is a key partner for Qualmark. Its members handle a large number of international visitors annually and it has a strong influence on the supply chain”.

ENDS

For more information contact:

Judy Chen

027 6644 836

CEO@tourismexportcouncil.org.nz

Tourism Bay of Plenty to implement Destination Management after funding boost

Tourism Bay of Plenty will become the first Regional Tourism Organisation in New Zealand outside Auckland to become a Destination Manager, after a 48% boost in Council funding.

The $620,910 increase, approved in Tauranga City Council’s Long Term Plan, brings Tourism Bay of Plenty’s combined annual funding from its three contributing Councils – Tauranga City Council, Western Bay of Plenty District Council and Whakatāne District Council – to $1.9m.

Tourism Bay of Plenty CEO Kristin Dunne says the funding increase puts the organisation at the forefront of the Destination Management movement in New Zealand.

She applauded both the Tourism Bay of Plenty Board of Trustees and Tauranga City Council for their foresight in championing and supporting what was a “sea change” for the tourism industry.

“We are fortunate to have such a progressive and passionate Board and Council’s which recognise the potential this region has and the significant role we play in assisting its development.

“This will enable us to become an insight-lead organisation that knows who our visitors are and what they want – vital information to sustainably champion tourism growth regionally.”

Destination Management, a trend worldwide, is the strategic and sustainable management of visitor-related development, coordinated with residents’ interests, to preserve a region’s unique identity. It brings stakeholders together and provides them with the tools to work collaboratively to meet the demands of growing numbers of visitors.

In essence, it means sharing our love of “our place” with the world to the betterment of the community, not against it, says Ms Dunne.

Tourism Industry Aoetaroa CEO Chris Roberts says of the 31 regional tourism organisations in the country, Tourism Bay of Plenty has had one of the biggest, if not the biggest, funding boosts.

They are also among the first RTOs to make Destination Management a clear priority in their long-term planning, he adds.

“Tourism Bay of Plenty has succeeded in getting the backing of their council funders because they have a great plan and vision, which has been shaped by extensive consultation with local and national stakeholders.”

The boost bucks a funding cut trend, with Tourism New Zealand’s government funding reduced from $117.3m a year to 111.4m in the latest budget, while Hawke’s Bay Regional Council’s Long Term Plan includes a proposal to cut Hawke’s Bay Tourism funding by $1.8 million over three years.

This means Tourism Bay of Plenty now has the ability to shift the focus of the organisation from not just attracting visitors to the Coastal Bay of Plenty (which stretches from Waihi Beach to the Whirinaki Forest) but to better manage their experience once they get here.

“With the additional funding we will be able to implement our Visitor Economy Strategy 2018 – 2028, growing tourism in a way that is both economically and environmentally sustainable.”

Visitors spent a record $1 billion in the Coastal Bay of Plenty last year – a milestone that was originally not forecast to occur for another 12 years. This figure is expected to grow to $1.45 billion by 2028.

“A thriving visitor economy that is well planned and managed will bring with it greater social amenities and higher living standards. In short, we all stand to benefit,” says Ms Dunne.

Regional Tourism New Zealand Executive Officer Charlie Ives commended Tauranga City Council for signalling its long-term commitment to tourism in the Bay of Plenty.

“It is important that regions anticipate the pressure of tourism before it’s too late. We are already seeing early indicators in some areas, such as overcrowding and a lack of accommodation. These are warnings of the impact tourism can have on us if we don’t have a planned, developed and managed approach,” says Mr Ives.

“Destination Management is undoubtedly the way forward, and we will be watching Tourism Bay of Plenty’s progress with interest.”

– ENDS –

For more information, interviews or images, please contact:

Julia Proverbs, Blink Public Relations & Marketing

NEW ZEALAND INBOUND TOUR OPERATOR ACQUIRES SPECIALIST AGRICULTURAL TOUR OPERATOR BUSINESS

Travel Time South Pacific announced that it has acquired AgriTravel International, a Waikato-based company which creates customised agricultural and special interest tours across New Zealand.

The purchase will strengthen Travel Time South Pacific’s inbound tour operator business and enable an even broader range of specialised product offerings for their international clientele.

The purchase of the specialist agricultural tour operator fits into Travel Time South Pacific’s growth and expansion strategies and will enable them to offer specialised agricultural tours both domestically and to the growing number of international clients seeking to visit one of the world’s most progressive agricultural nations.

“Our acquisition of AgriTravel International complements our overall tailor-made travel offerings so we can now provide a stronger focus on these much specialised agricultural tour itineraries and agri-biz programmes.” said Scott Mehrtens, Managing Director of Travel Time South Pacific.

“This investment adds to our capacity, geographic presence and enables us to support increasing numbers of requests from leisure and corporate sectors asking to include visits to our world-leading facilities, farms and companies that specialise in agricultural technologies and food production.” Karen Baldwin, who has been managing AgriTravel International for the last five years, will be joining the Travel Time South Pacific team with immediate effect. Karen said she was excited to be joining forces with an outstanding and experienced family-business that would strive to ensure the needs of all AgriTravel clients were a top priority, now and going forwards. Karen said, “AgriTravel will continue to work with its valued suppliers to offer creative tour programmes for our existing clients and new markets keen to meet the people and businesses that shape the agricultural sector in New Zealand.”
“It’s very exciting to be working with such a large team of experienced and passionate travel professionals at Travel Time South Pacific. Our priority will continue to be the creation and delivery of inspiring travel experiences to all our clients. ”

About AgriTravel International AgriTravel International is an experienced New Zealand based agricultural tour operator, planning and managing agricultural farm and technical tours, and business study tours throughout New Zealand. The company was set up over 25 years ago and has been managed by current owner Mrs Karen Baldwin since 2013. The business has strived to provide access to the country’s best agri-businesses, consultants, farms, universities and more, while combining technical programmes with leisure and New Zealand’s great sightseeing and natural attractions.

About Travel Time South Pacific Travel Time South Pacific are based in Hamilton, New Zealand and, along with their family-owned coach charter business run under the brand of Leisure Time Tours, have been operating for over 30 years. Time South Pacific are an Inbound Tour Operator and Destination Management Company offering a one-stop-shop to their global client base; creating and delivering tailor-made travel experiences across the group, independent travel, and M.I.C.E. markets. The company’s customers include international wholesalers, travel agents, and their clients – with a large majority of business in Western Europe, the United States, Canada, and Australia.

For more information visit: www.traveltime.co.nz www.leisuretimetours.co.nz www.agritravel.co.nz

Media Contact: Vicki Annison Marketing Manager Travel Time South Pacific 231 Kahikatea Drive, PO Box 6, Hamilton, 3242 +64 7 849 3493 vicki @lttnz.co.nz

The Rees Hotel Queenstown is a sophisticated five-star hotel situated right on the shores of Lake Wakatipu, in the South Island of New Zealand.

The Rees offers a variety of spacious and luxurious accommodation options including 60 Hotel rooms, 90 Apartments and five private, 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom Lakeside Residences, all with terraces, showcasing spectacular views across Lake Wakatipu to the alpine panorama of the Remarkable Mountain range.

The many exceptional features at The Rees Hotel include a library of rare books and art, courtesy shuttle to/from Queenstown town centre, complimentary high-speed Wi-Fi, movies and local telephone calls, conference rooms, a fully-equipped gymnasium, secure undercover parking, electric car-charging station and its own private beach and wharf accessing jet-boat and water taxi services. Guests can swim from our wharf or beach – but it’s not for the faint-hearted!

Our team of experienced local and international staff pride themselves on delivering professional friendly service that consistently exceeds our guests’ expectations and is a hallmark of The Rees Hotel’s reputation.

Quiet, private and sophisticated, The Rees Hotel Queenstown epitomises southern hospitality at its finest and an authentic New Zealand experience.

SUCCESSFUL CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL RETURNS TO MARTINBOROUGH THIS SPRING

 The successful Chamber Music Festival will return to Martinborough for its second year this September featuring a who’s who of the country’s top musicians performing pieces that span three centuries.

The Martinborough Music Festival, to be held from Friday, 28 September to Sunday, 30 September, will see six incredible musicians play four concerts in three days. Bach’s Cello Suite No 3 in C Major, the oldest piece of music composed in the 18^th Century, through to Gareth Farr’s String Quarter No 2 Mondo Rondo, the most recently composed piece of music, will be performed.

Wilma Smith, founder of the NZ String Quartet and subsequently the NZSO’s and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra’s Concertmaster, will lead a string quartet with Amalia Hall (violin) from Orchestra Wellington, Chris Moore (viola) from the Melbourne Symphony and two-time winner of the National Concerto Competition and Mattias Balzat (cello), previously described as a “teenage prodigy”.

 Diedre Irons, ONZM, will perform on the beautiful Schimmel grand piano bequeathed to the Martinborough community by the late Cherry van Kranen, while “one of New Zealand’s finest music exports”, clarinettist Mark Walton will be a huge drawcard.

“After making such a successful debut on to the events scene in 2017, we are delighted to stage the Martinborough Music Festival again this spring and are proud to announce such an incredible line up of performers who underpin the quality of this festival,” says festival spokesperson Edward Allen.

“They will perform four concerts in three days including Beethoven, Brahms and Bach but also some Mozart, César Franck, Schumann and Darius Milhaud. This year there will be a very special local connection with Gareth Farr’s String Quartet No 2 ‘Mondo Rondo’ being performed.”

Another highlight leading into the Festival will be when Mark Walton, recognised for his work in music education with an Order of Australia, holds music workshops at Wairarapa College, Kuranui College and Martinborough School.  Brendan says Mark’s workshops are always popular and his mission is “to get everyone in the world playing a musical instrument” as Mark believes it makes life so enjoyable.

Early bird tickets for the 2018 Martinborough Music Festival are on sale now, with sale opening up to the public on July 1^st. For more information visit www.martinboroughmusicfestival.co.nz.

….more

Programme: The 2018 Martinborough Music Festival

FRIDAY 28TH SEPTEMBER

7.30PM

Beethoven – Cello Sonata in C Major

Cesar Franck – Violin Sonata in A Major

Brahms – B Major Piano Trio No 1, Op 8

SATURDAY 29TH SEPTEMBER

2.00PM

Beethoven – String Trio in C Minor

Gareth Farr – String Quartet No 2 ‘Mondo Rondo’

Brahms – Clarinet Quintet in B Minor, Op 115

SATURDAY 29TH SEPTEMBER

7.30PM

Schubert – Quartettsatz, D 703

Mozart – Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K 581

Schumann – Piano Quintet in Eb Major, Op 44

SUNDAY 30TH SEPTEMBER

2.00PM

Bach – Cello Suite No 3 in C Major

Darius Milhaud – Suite for Violin, Clarinet, and Piano, Op 157b

Brahms – Piano Quartet in C Minor, Op 60

ENDS
For more information please contact:

Brendan Smyth

Phone:  (021) 434 161

Email:  jellybrats@gmail.com

Web:  www.martinboroughmusicfestival.co.nz

Introducing SKYCITY’s new Horizon Hotel

SKYCITY Entertainment Group today unveiled the name of its third Auckland hotel, Horizon Hotel, currently being built alongside the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC).

The five-star Horizon Hotel will open in late 2019, bringing 303 new high-end rooms to the city centre, uniquely connected via an air bridge over Hobson Street to three city centre blocks across the NZICC and SKYCITY Auckland’s entertainment precinct. It will also be located directly above a new retail and dining laneway that will connect Nelson and Hobson Streets, and will be a stone’s throw away from the award-winning Federal Street dining precinct and the iconic Sky Tower.

Brad Burnett, General Manager of SKYCITY Hotels and Tower, says Horizon Hotel will play an integral role in meeting the demand for room nights in Auckland, and already has bookings for 2020 in line with major conference bookings at the NZICC.

“With such a buoyant tourism market and a huge pipeline of events coming to Auckland, including the opening of the NZICC, Horizon Hotel is well positioned to play an important role in supporting the city’s growth. It’s exciting to be at the forefront of that and we can’t wait to welcome both local and international visitors to Horizon Hotel.

“Along with its physical connection to the NZICC, the name ‘Horizon Hotel’ connects our guests to the purpose of their stay, as many of them will be here to expand their horizons through the knowledge and connections made during their conference,” says Mr Burnett.

Architect Gordon Moller, who designed the hotel in association with Warren & Mahoney, agrees saying: “the design of the hotel emanated from the opportunity to expand the horizons of the site by curving the building to maximise the views from all guest rooms.

“Together with this, the enhanced light experience when perceiving a horizon is represented in the extraordinary curved glass facades of the hotel that feature 300 glass fins that capture light in a crystalline way, enhanced by the clear marine light of the Auckland isthmus.

“The interiors of Horizon Hotel continue this theme with grand public spaces featuring natural stones, marbles and timbers, with the horizon-like curves of the guest room environments creating a unique and special experience.”

Horizon Hotel will feature floor-to-ceiling windows to take in the spectacular views out to the Hauraki Gulf and Waitemata Harbour and over central Auckland, and modern rooms designed with New Zealand inspired materials and colours. Guests will enjoy outstanding facilities and state-of-the-art technology, including a gym, keyless entry and its own signature restaurant, lobby bar and cafe, and relaxing internal courtyard.

Each room will be approximately 32sqm, with both standard rooms and suites available, with all suites offering interconnecting twin rooms.

While conference group bookings have already been made for 2020, Horizon Hotel will not open for bookings until late 2018, with an opening date of late 2019.

ENDS

For further information, please contact:

Rebecca Foote

Senior Communications Advisor
SKYCITY Entertainment Group
M: 021 389 150

E: Rebecca.foote@skycity.co.nz

Amidst the bustle and jubilations of graduation week there was a lot of hard work being done in Dunedin this weekend.

ProGuides New Zealand, the country’s association of professional tour guides, this year chose Dunedin for its annual conference. The theme was “Sustainability in Tourism”, PGNZ’s follow through on the Tourism Industry Aotearoa’s call for commitment to this important industry challenge.

Local guest speakers to the meeting included Prof James Higham, the University of Otago’s expert in sustainability in tourism. He spoke about the fact NZ is facing one of the biggest challenges in the history of the industry as tourism megatrends filter through to our shores. He stressed the importance of NZ being prepared.

The ProGuides sustainability workshop reiterated that cohesion in the industry is of the utmost importance.  “Central and local government agencies need to work more closely to provide adequate and timely infrastructure in the cities and regions”, says Wilhelm Lehmberg, ProGuides Chair. “Sustainability is not just about encouraging visitors to reuse shopping bags and coffee cups – it’s also about agencies like DOC working at nationwide level to get the best value from the funds available.  Buy local, yes, but plan and purchase rationally.”

“All this aside”, said Mr Lehmberg, “the most important message coming out of the weekend was the importance of sustaining visitor satisfaction by imparting local knowledge through professional local tour guides such as our members.”

The other guest speaker, Mike Lord, Dunedin City councillor, spoke on sustainability issues faced by the Otago rural community and using technology to sustaining responsible land management.  He mentioned that Dunedin was well aware of the challenges it faces in tourism, especially as cruise ship numbers are set to increase significantly over the coming years.

On Sunday, delegates took a walking tour around the redeveloping warehouse district and viewed the exciting inner harbour proposals. The weekend finished with a visit to Port Chalmers and Orokonui Eco Sanctuary.

Wilhelm Lehmberg

Chair, ProGuides New Zealand

Tel: 021 687 674  Email: info@proguides.co.nz

Paying homage to the Tui bird, Naumi Auckland Airport was carefully designed to exude contemporary yet bold
accents with inspiration from visual features of New Zealand’s native bird as well as a play on nature and natural
elements to enhance guest interaction.

Located three kms from Auckland Airport and 17 kms from the Central Business District, tranquility and
comfort beckon at Naumi Auckland Airport. Quiet gardens surround 193 spacious rooms with private patios
and over 1500sqm of indoor and outdoor event space.

A swimming pool, gym and delightful Asian Fusion cuisine complete your experience.

Naumi Auckland Airport makes the perfect base to rest up, meet up and continue your journey.

Tomahawk Update:

GDPR. No, it’s not just another buzzword that’s afloat on the internet. Everyone with a website needs to pay attention!

What is GDPR?

GDPR stands for General Data Protection Regulation and it goes into effect internationally on the 25^th of May 2018. GDPR is an updated version of the Data Protection Directive that has been in effect since 1995. In the simplest terms, it boils down to protecting the rights of people who give you their personal data.

To learn more, click here.