Tourism funding boost welcomed
The Government's pre-budget announcement of $5 million for regional tourism is a vote of confidence in the sector, Regional Tourism Organisations New Zealand chairman Don Gunn says.
The Government's pre-budget announcement of $5 million for regional tourism is a vote of confidence in the sector, Regional Tourism Organisations New Zealand chairman Don Gunn says.
Prime Minister John Key yesterday announced Tourism New Zealand would get $25m to sell New Zealand to visitors during the lead up to the 2011 Rugby World Cup, as well as $5m for regional tourism organisation joint venture initiatives with Tourism New Zealand
The latter was recognition that regional tourism organisations were turning a desire to visit New Zealand into actual bookings, Mr Gunn said.
"Our commitment as regions is to work together even more closely to ensure that the upcoming campaigns are inclusive of all those regions that are able to participate, get a bigger return on investment, and showcase the wonderful regional propositions that New Zealand offers a visitor," he said.
"In a tough global market, in order to retain New Zealand's position as a top destination, this investment is vital."
Tourism Industry Association chief executive Tim Cossar said the funding injection was a vote of confidence in the future of New Zealand tourism.
"At this stage, the additional $30m is for one year. So the industry will have to prove that we can use it to keep building the contribution tourism makes to New Zealand," Mr Cossar said.
He was confident that would be achieved, and said the industry had already shown good work was being done in developing public-private joint ventures with the use of existing funding.
The New Zealand Hotel Council has also welcomed the commitment, along with Totally Tourism, whose managing director Mark Quickfall said it would strengthen existing marketing efforts and allow the industry to better pursue new markets.
"The current level of funding limits the industry to putting most of its focus on traditional, proven markets. But this will mean we can do more work to promote New Zealand to new and emerging markets and find innovative ways to get our message out there," he said.
NZPA
Fri, 14 May 2010
Fri, 14 May 2010
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Tourism funding boost welcomed
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