23 May 2005
The latest news round-up from Tourism New Zealand including:
1. British visitor numbers to New Zealand increase by more than 20% 2. Construction begins on $20 million wine tourism initiative 3. Te Puia launched as new name for The New Zealand Maori Arts and Crafts Institute in Rotorua 4. The World of WearableArt Awards add two extra shows due to audience demand 5. New caving experience opens in Waitomo 6. Queenstown offers two new options in luxury accommodation 7. New luxury waterfront property opens in Auckland
TOURISM NEWS
1. British visitor numbers to New Zealand increase by more than 20%
Figures just released by Statistics New Zealand show more British visitors than ever before are going to New Zealand. There were 34,600 visitor arrivals to New Zealand from the United Kingdom during March 2005, an increase of 21.3% on the same period in 2004.
The trend is set to continue with the DHL Lions Series approaching in June, when around 15,000 British fans are expected to travel to New Zealand to follow the team.
�New Zealand continues to ride high in the United Kingdom,� says George Hickton, Chief Executive of Tourism New Zealand. �We recently won the Trailfinders magazine award for the �Destination You Would Most Like to Visit�, beating Australia and Peru. Awards like this, combined with significant media attention around the British and Irish Lion Rugby Tour, are keeping us at the forefront of travellers� minds.�
British visitors made up almost 15% of the 234,101 international visitors to New Zealand during March 2005, an overall increase of 10.6% compared to March 2004. The total number of UK visitors to New Zealand for the year ending March 2005 was 2,387,660, 10.4% higher than the previous year. The increasing visitor numbers mean approximately $69 million in additional foreign exchange earnings for New Zealand.
2. Construction begins on $20 million wine tourism initiative
Construction begins in May on Waipara Wine Village, a $20 million development in the Hurunui region of the South Island. Waipara, which lies north of Christchurch and south of Kaikoura, is New Zealand�s most rapidly expanding wine region, and the new Wine Village will provide a focal point for the burgeoning industry.
The development will encompass international hotel and villa accommodation, a restaurant and wine bar, a boutique ale-house and a food and wine school, as well as function and conference facilities, a retail area and the new Waipara visitor information service. Another key feature will be the high-tech wine tasting facility, which will offer virtual reality audio-visual tours of the region�s wineries.
Waipara Wine Village is being built on ten acres of prime real estate at Waipara Junction in the Alpine Pacific Triangle. The development is set to become a major contributor to the area, providing employment opportunities, participating in the local community and drawing in more visitors to the area. The development is due for completion by October 2006.
CULTURAL NEWS
3. Te Puia launched as new name for The New Zealand Maori Arts and Crafts Institute in Rotorua
After more than 40 years, the New Zealand Maori Arts and Crafts Institute in Rotorua has changed its name to Te Puia, which means �geyser� or �geothermal� in Maori. Te Puia was New Zealand�s first Maori cultural tourism enterprise, established after a Government act recognised the importance of preserving and protecting New Zealand�s indigenous culture.
The name change reflects Te Puia�s growth from an institute to train students in traditional Maori carving techniques to its development as a premier cultural experience. Required by the Government act to be self-funding, Te Puia is fully sustained by tourism, running a range of programmes demonstrating the contributions to and the roles of Maori culture in New Zealand throughout history and in the present day.
Today, Te Puia offers visitors a chance to interact with the landscape and Maori culture through guided tours, cultural performances, kiwi breeding programmes, and education workshops. Earlier this year, a new walk called Korero Tuku Iho was opened, taking visitors on a journey through time to the land of the ancients, where the Maori myths of creation are explored and explained.
The Arts and Crafts Institute was renamed in honour of Te Puia, a fortress that once stood on the site. First occupied in 1325, the fortress remained impenetrable across centuries of battle, guarding the culture, people and the arts and crafts of the Whakerewarewa Valley.
Te Puia is open all year round. General admission costs $22 (approx: �8) for adults and $11 (approx: �4) for children, which includes a guided tour and a daily Maori concert held in a traditional Marae � a Maori meeting house. Evening �Mai Ora� packages are also available, priced $75 (approx: �29) for adults and $40 (approx: �15) for children. These include a traditional �hangi� dinner and cultural show. Combination tickets, which cover general admission and the Mai Ora package, are also available for $87.50 (approx: �34) for adults and $46 (approx: �18) for children.
EVENT NEWS
4. The World of WearableArt Awards add two extra shows due to audience demand
Unprecedented demand for tickets to the 2005 Montana World of WearableArt Awards has led to the addition of two extra performances. For the first time this year, Wellington will host the Awards, which celebrate the quirky side of New Zealand art from the sensational to the downright strange.
Since its inception in 1987, The Montana World of WearableArt Awards has developed into an icon of New Zealand creativity. Over 300 creations from around the world are featured each year, around which a two-hour theatrical extravaganza of dance, music, lighting and choreography is produced to showcase the garments. The Awards include categories such as the Bizarre Bra Section, the South Pacific Section and the Illumination Illusion section, where black and white creations are paraded under ultra violet lights.
CEO Gabrielle Hervey said that since online preferential bookings opened on February 1, the interest has been so high that the seventh and eighth performances were added to satisfy public demand. The additional performances take the total audience for the show to over 26,000.
Formerly staged in Nelson, this is the first year that the Awards are taking place at The Events Centre in Wellington. The Awards Shows take place between Friday 23rd September and Sunday 2nd October 2005. The extra shows will be at 8pm on Thursday 29th September and 1pm on Saturday 1st October.
Ticket prices range from $65-$145 (approx: �25-�56) and can be booked via the official website:
ADVENTURE TRAVEL NEWS
5. New caving experience opens in Waitomo
From July 2005, visitors to Waitomo on the North Island will have even further opportunity to explore New Zealand�s spectacular underground landscape with the opening of a new walking tour by Waitomo Glowworm Caves.
The tour will take visitors deep into Ruakuri Cave � an underground realm with narrow winding corridors, hidden waterfalls and unusual features, including 30 million-year-old fossil shells and an ancient Maori burial ground. Laced with myth and legend, Ruakuri was first discovered by Maori some 400-500 years ago, taking its name from the pack of wild dogs that used to inhabit the cave entrance way, �Rua� meaning �den� and �kuri� meaning �dogs�. Other features of the cave tour include a ghost walk, bridal chambers, and a mirror pool.
Tours depart four times daily and last approximately 90 minutes. Prices are $40 for adults (approx: �40), $15 for children (5-14 years) (approx: �6) and it is free for under-4s.
ACCOMMODATION NEWS
6. Queenstown offers two new options in luxury accommodation Queenstown will soon be offering two new options for visitors seeking luxury accommodation in the town, both on a small or a large scale.
The Spire, a ten-room boutique hotel in central Queenstown, has just opened in May 2005. The hotel provides a �modern meets alpine� experience, with iconic contemporary designer furniture and hi-tech in-room entertainment.
The spacious guestrooms feature stone-clad gas fires and large balconies. The hotel also houses a luxuriously cosmopolitan bar, InSpire, and an exclusive, reservation-only fine dining restaurant, ASpire, which seats just 16 guests. ASpire�s menu is by award-winning chef Rex Morgan of Wellington�s celebrated Citron restaurant. Morgan is a former New Zealand Chef of the Year, a consulting chef for Air New Zealand, and the winner of numerous awards at some of New Zealand�s best restaurants. ASpire will serve fresh and innovative cuisine within a stylish designer setting in an expression of the hotel�s contemporary philosophy. Rates begin at $810 per night (approx: �310) for single occupancy, including breakfast, airport transfers, post-arrival beverages and early evening drinks and snacks.
Construction is also nearing completion at the central Queenstown site of the brand new Sofitel Queenstown. The 5-star hotel will be operated and managed by the international Accor Group under its premium international brand, Sofitel. The hotel is due to open on 12th August 2005.
The Sofitel Queenstown will be the first international 5-star hotel in Queenstown, and the first Sofitel-branded hotel to open in New Zealand. The hotel will feature 82 elegantly appointed guestrooms, superb restaurants and bars and a day spa.
Queenstown offers a complete range of accommodation options to suit all visitors, from premium backpacker hostels to luxury lodges.
7. New luxury waterfront property opens in Auckland
VIADUCT Landing, a new luxury holiday rental property operated by Essence of New Zealand, will open in Auckland on 1st June 2005. Situated on Prince�s Wharf, a short walk from Auckland�s centre, VIADUCT Landing is a perfect base from which to explore the city.
With three bedrooms and two bathrooms, VIADUCT Landing accommodates up to six guests and provides wrap-around sea and city views of Auckland and the Viaduct Basin. The 200 square metres of outdoor living space create a remarkable oasis in the inner city and the property lies adjacent to a luxury health and beauty spa.
Family-owned Essence of New Zealand operates two other luxury properties � Pukeko Landing at Lake Tarawera and Te Kowhai Landing at Lake Taupo.
All offer visitors the quintessential New Zealand experience, with singular properties in unique locations. To celebrate the addition of VIADUCT Landing, Essence of New Zealand is offering a special price for all three destinations. The properties are each available for $790/night (approx: �305) for exclusive use (all accommodate up to six people).
Each is fully equipped for self-catering (gourmet kitchen, laundry etc), with full service/catered options also available.
www.essencenz.com For more information on New Zealand, please visit: www.newzealand.com or phone 09050 60 60 60 (60p/minute).
For more information, please contact Susie Tempest / Kate Popham, The Saltmarsh Partnership, tel: 020 7928 1600 or email: susie@saltmarshpr.co.uk or Gillian Monahan, PR Manager for Tourism New Zealand, tel: 020 7389 0149 or email: gillianm@tnz.govt.nz
