Tourism industry set for recovery

Tourism industry set for recovery

After a tumultuous 2011, New Zealand’s multi-billion dollar tourism industry is back on track, with the number of international travel Buyers booked to attend the sector’s premier international trade event later this year exceeding targets.

“We are expecting 302 Buyers from more than 30 countries to attend TRENZ in Queenstown in the Southern Lakes, 7-10 May, which is a great result,” says Tourism Industry Association New Zealand (TIA) Communications Manager Ann-Marie Johnson.

The Buyers, who herald from visitor markets all over the globe from Australia to Russia to Argentina, will meet with about the same number of quality New Zealand tourism operators to negotiate contracts for the coming tourism seasons. Operators who exhibited at last year’s TRENZ said it generated a total of $164 million in new business alone.

“The high Buyer interest reflects visitor arrivals to New Zealand, which despite natural disasters and economic woes in some of our traditional visitor markets, increased by 3% in 2011,” says Ms Johnson. “That contrasts with Australia, which saw international visitor arrivals decline slightly last year.”

Tourism New Zealand Chief Executive Kevin Bowler says the Buyer numbers are looking fantastic and TRENZ 2012 is shaping up to be a hugely successful event.

“Total buyer numbers have already surpassed last year’s which clearly shows the international demand for travel to New Zealand is strong. The tourism industry has shown itself to be resilient to the challenges of 2011 and interest in TRENZ is a positive signal for 2012.

“We are seeing more Buyers than anticipated coming in from Australia, Germany and the US, and solid numbers from China. These are the markets that Tourism New Zealand has prioritised for growth and working alongside trade is a critical component to achieving the target of increase in visitor numbers,” says Mr Bowler.

“There is also solid interest from Japanese Buyers and we are confident that we can capitalise on this to support positive changes in the market.

“TRENZ is an excellent opportunity for Tourism New Zealand to bring international Buyers here and ensure they are well versed in the unique product offering that is Destination New Zealand.”

Qantas Regional General Manager New Zealand and Pacific Islands, Rohan Garnett, says the high intake of Buyers from international markets attending TRENZ 2012 is a positive sign that interest in New Zealand as a destination remains strong.

“The importance of New Zealand to world tourism is clearly reflected in these Buyer numbers.

“We are looking forward to meeting with the delegates at TRENZ this year and seeing further growth in international arrivals to New Zealand over the next 12 months.”

About TRENZ

TIA manages TRENZ, which brings together about 280 New Zealand tourism operators (Exhibitors) with a similar number of invited international travel and tourism buyers and media from New Zealand’s major tourism markets. The event directly helps to grow New Zealand’s tourism industry, worth $9.7 billion in foreign exchange annually. Hosted by the Southern Lakes region, TRENZ 2012 will be at the Queenstown Events Centre, 7-10 May 2012.

TRENZ is supported by Tourism New Zealand, Air New Zealand, Qantas, host region Southern Lakes and other industry partners.

For more information visit www.trenz.co.nz

ENDS

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