Please distribute to all staff

February 24, 2010

In This Issue

• International Update
• Domestic Update
• Trade familiarisations
• Media update
• Visitor Activity Statistics
• Events - March 2010
• Dates for the Diary

International Update

International Update: For any clarification of any of the information in this section please contact james@rotoruanz.com

Australia

Below is a summary of Rotorua Trade Activity in the Australian market

BDM - Australia

Joey Rihari – Business Development Manager Australia has now been onboard with DRTM for 4 weeks. Joey is based in Sydney and is working Monday, Tuesday and Wednesdays. Joey’s main role is continual trade education at both wholesale and retail level and identifying opportunities within the distribution channels in Australia.

DRTM famil programme

Our famil strategy is simple –

1. Inviting NSW Wholesale Sales Managers to visit Rotorua and building relationships with them to allow DRTM to accompany them on their sales calls to key agents in Sydney. The first of these Famils resulted in 5 visiting Rotorua last weekend.
2. Wholesale consultants
   These are the people who make the actual bookings and have huge influence on itineraries. We want to get ‘Rotorua ambassadors’ into every wholesale reservation centre in Australia that sells New Zealand.
3. 200 Retail Agents
   Working with wholesalers we are aiming to get 200 top selling agents to Rotorua in 2010. At this stage we have 74 agents confirmed or already visited this year through various wholesalers.

Other Activity with agents

• A Sales Incentive with ANZCRO consultants resulted in a 22% increase on the previous year in Rotorua room nights sold over a 3 month period for travel till 31 March 2010.
• DRTM presented the North Island to the entire Infinity Holidays wholesale team at their Annual conference in Brisbane in early January – naturally focused on Rotorua
• Training of Kirra Tours Wholesale staff
• Presence on the Newmans stand during the Flight Centre Expo in Sydney and direct flight deals being distributed

Trade Marketing activity

DRTM has supported a number of marketing initiatives with various travel companies in Australia.

• Rotorua is currently the product of the month on Grand Pacific Tours Homepage grandpacifictours.com.au
• Full page Rotorua features are currently in market in the current Escape Travel Catalogue (110 stores Australia wide) and the Flight Centre Autumn Captain Catalogues which is distributed across the Flight Centre Network.
• Support of escorted coach tours ex Rotorua International Airport being published in the Sydney Sun Herald Travel Sections and distributed through retail chains.
• Various website features and deals of Rotorua packages on travel company websites.

Travel Expo in Sydney 6 / 7 March

DRTM will have a stand at the Travel Xpo at Homebush in Sydney in early March. Visitors can enter the “Win your way to Rotorua” competition and Rotorua packages on the direct services will be on the stand and are being promoted by a prominent travel company at the show. These can be booked on the day. Between 15,000 and 20,000 visitors are expected.

Travel Sellers Guide

DRTM has produced a non-product specific travel training guide on Rotorua to assist in educating travel agents and wholesale consultants. This 4 page glossy document will be distributed on all sales calls and training visits in Australia to be used as a training tool in conjunction with the GNZTR manual. This has also been adapted as a consumer piece also which can be handed out at consumer travel shows.

Product Manager Update

DRTM will be attending an Australian Product Managers update on Tuesday 2nd March in Sydney. If you have any significant updates you would like communicated with these managers please email it through to James at james@rotoruanz.com by Friday February 26th

Other International News

Japan

Destination Rotorua Marketing will be represented at Kiwilink Japan in March. A new marketing concept based around Eco-tourism, Adventure and Culture (A.C.E) has been developed to increase night stays in Rotorua by Japanese visitors. This concept was introduced during a market visit in October 2009 and we have already seen some promising brochure inclusions out of Japan including some extended night stays in 2010. Time will tell if they sell successfully.  At Kiwilink Japan 2010 a fully translated Japanese trade manual will be distributed to attendees. A ‘hidden’ Japanese image library is now on our website where Japanese travel companies can access via emailed links and upload photo’s for their brochures without having to follow complicated English instructions.  

Japanese visitor arrivals to New Zealand were up 10% in January 2010 with the first positive growth in two years. This is great timing with Kiwilink 3 weeks away and should mean positive and receptive Japanese Attendees!!

For more information on our Japanese market activities please contact james@rotoruanz.com

Rugby World Cup

As you are probably aware the first of the Rugby World Cup packages started selling in early 2010. DRTM is putting together a Rugby specific product update that we will send to the RWC contacts within the Official Travel Agents. So if you have anything that is developed with the Rugby World Cup in mind and you think the Official Travel Agents would be interested or could include in there travel packages please email this information through to james@rotoruanz.com

South America

Destination Rotorua will have a representative on a Kangaroo Tours roadshow to Chile and Brazil. This is a developing market for New Zealand and Rotorua needs to have a presence here. If anyone would like information regarding South America from a recent Tourism New Zealand market visit please email james@rotoruanz.com who can send you a link for a market update seminar.

Kiwilink Asia

Applications are now open for Kiwilink Asia. The event will be held in Singapore in October with a target of 90 companies from around Asia in attendance.
For more information please click on this link.

New Product workshop in UK – July

This information has previously been sent out and applications are closing at the end of this week. This is a Tourism New Zealand event to be held in London in July. This is an opportunity for new products to the UK market to meet with travel buyers from the UK and Europe. One of the criteria is you must be totally new to the market and your product is not contracted or brochured in Europe at all. For more information follow this link.

Product Listings on Tourism New Zealand Trade Website

Tourism New Zealand is wanting to list more product on their trade website. This is the site that is promoted to travel sellers worldwide and features an ‘Industry Guidebook’ where travel sellers can search for a particular product in any region of New Zealand.  Many Rotorua operators have a listing on the TNZ consumer site but not the trade site. If you are already registered with a consumer listing on the newzealand.com website, you simply need to log in and click on ‘add trade information’ and follow the process

For those that are not on either site you will need to create an account at register.nztb.co.nz  and follow the registration process. Remember to make the trade listing factual and relevant to those selling your product rather than emotional/motivational content that you make towards a consumer.

Listings on Tourism New Zealand websites are free.

Domestic Update

Domestic Update: For any clarification of any of the information in this section please contact craig@rotoruanz.com

Promotion Campaigns

We are currently running promotion campaigns through key publications such as Luxury holidays & Corporate Travel, NZ Life & Leisure, Littlies and Mindfood magazines with a holiday in Rotorua as the draw card. In joint ventures with local operators and accommodation providers these have enabled us to leverage full page print advertisements as well as an online component featuring on their websites and in e-newsletters sent direct to databases. These are a great way to generate exposure and buzz for the destination with excellent responses to date.

Autumn Messages

Coming up we will be introducing autumn messages to the domestic market based around the newly introduced ‘Thrill Me’, ‘Pamper Me’, ‘Free Me’ campaign. These allow a focus on which type of holiday theme most appeals to visitors looking to experience Rotorua.

Consumer shows

Building on the success of last year DRTM will once again enter a joint venture with Fish & Game Eastern Region to promote Rotorua at the upcoming New Zealand Boat Show. The stand generated excellent interest last year targeting Aucklanders to fish the Rotorua region. This year the aim is to build on that as well as promoting the regions abundance of activities to keep partners and children entertained as well.

Unfortunately the Big Boys Toys Expo has again been cancelled this year by the organisers, alternatives are being looked into.

If you would like to be considered for Consumer Shows please email craig@rotoruanz.com. Alternatively if you are attending a consumer show, again contact Craig if we can assist in any way or whether there is potential for a Rotorua presence next time.

Rotorua What’s On

DRTM and Jasons first joint venture publication of the new official visitor guide was released in summer 09/10. The autumn edition is almost complete and will be ready by mid March for distribution.

i-SITE Visits

Training of front line staff on Rotorua city updates, new products etc got underway last year and will recommence from March 2010. If you have any significant or new updates you would like communicated within these visits please email craig@rotoruanz.com.

Trade Familiarisations

Sale Managers - Australia  - 14 - 16 February
Infinity/Flight Centre Frontline - Australia - 19 - 21 February

Media Update

Media Update: For any clarification of any of the information in this section please contact heather@rotoruanz.com

There has been a good increase in enquiries from international media this year, with 20 booked media famils in the first month and a half. The focus has been different with seven from UK-Europe, three from NZ/Australia, three from US/Canada and the remainder from Korea and Thailand. TNZ are noting that interest in Rotorua from media in the UK and Europe is at a very high level, with the focus being on the Rugby World Cup in 18 months time. We will be taking as much of an advantage of that as we can.

The media format is split between print and film, with three of the film famils relating to national TV breakfast shows in Canada, Korea and Japan.

While on the subject of film crews, some of the famils that have come through in the past two months are certainly bearing fruit. Sophie Schuitt, a leading German actress came through with her film crew working on a travel documentary about New Zealand, in which Rotorua is a feature. Also on their way is a leading Dutch chef in Herman van Blijker, who is bringing to New Zealand a team of 10 reality contestant chefs and maitre’ds, filming eight episodes of which Rotorua is highlighted. This particular show has a weekly viewer total of around 1.8 million people and will premier in September this year. This is great news for our region and come as a direct result of the famils and recce’s that have been done and the warm welcome our tourism operators have extended to the factfinders.

Also coming down is Thai TV, filming a drama series in Rotorua sometime in April.
Getaway, the popular Australian travel series, is also scheduled to bring its film crew here next week.

Visitor Activity Statistics

New Zealand Tourism Industry Monitor – Feb 2010

(Source:  Covec – Tourism Industry Monitor Feb 2010)
Results from the NZ Tourism Industry Monitor indicate New Zealand tourism businesses expect demand to increase by 1.4% and profitability to increase by 2.1% for the three months commencing 1 February 2010 over the same period of the previous year.  47% of respondents have a positive outlook of demand increasing over this period, while 20% have a neutral outlook and 33% a negative outlook.  The Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Central Plateau regional outlook for growth in demand is -1% to +3%.  The most optimistic region is Southland with 0% to 4% expected growth in demand. 

International Visitor Arrivals (IVA) to New Zealand – Dec 2009

(Source:  Statistics NZ – External Migration Dec 2009)
International visitor arrivals to New Zealand for the month of December 2009 were up 5.9% over December 2008.  Arrivals were up from Australia (up 10.5%), UK (up 1.0%), USA (up 11.7%), Germany (up 6.1%), Korea (up 8.9%) and Canada (up 1.6%).  There were fewer arrivals from China (down 16.2%) and Japan (down 4.9%).

Rotorua Commercial Accommodation Monitor (CAM) – Dec 2009

(Source:  Statistics NZ – Commercial Accommodation Monitor Dec 2009)
Visitor nights spent in Rotorua commercial accommodation for the month of December 2009 were up 9.7% over December 2008 (versus +4.4% nationally) - domestic visitor nights were up 6.2% (versus +2.7% nationally) and international visitor nights were up 13.3% (versus +6.6% nationally).  For the same period, all sectors of Rotorua commercial accommodation had positive growth in visitor nights – hotels up 12.2%, motels up 5.6%, holiday parks up 11.1% and backpackers up 10.1%. 

Rotorua Attraction & Activities Monitor – Dec 2009

(Source:  APR Consultants  – Rotorua Attraction & Activities Monitor Dec 2009)
Visits to Rotorua Attraction Monitor participant businesses for the month of December 2009 were down 9.2% over December 2008 - domestic attraction visits were up 0.1% and international attraction visits were down 12.6%. 

Upcoming Statistics NZ releases

International Visitor Arrivals to NZ:  January 2010 will be released 1 March 2010
Commercial Accommodation Monitor: January 2010 will be released 12 March 2010

Most of the New Zealand tourism monitors can be freely downloaded from tourismresearch.govt.nz

For more information about Rotorua visitor statistics or to subscribe to any of the Rotorua specific tourism monitors please contact Gina on DDI (07) 349 7289 or gina@rotoruaNZ.com

Events - March 2010

For more information or to check out the latest events, go to rotoruaNZ.com/events

Dates for the diary

Blue = Destination Rotorua Marketing participation

2010

2-4 March, AIME  - Melbourne

25 - 30 April, South American Roadshow - Brazil and Chile

24th - 27th May, TRENZ - Auckland

22 – 24 June, Meetings 2010 – Auckland

22 – 23 July, Australian Business Events Expo – Sydney

25 - 29 July, UK IMA Workshops - London

2 - 9 August, Grand Pacific Roadshow - Australia

21 September, PAICE Plus Expo – Sydney

13 - 17 October, Kiwilink Asia - Singapore

December, PCO Conference – Tasmania

Recipient and sender details

We have collected your contact details. This information is collected to enable us to keep you up to date with tourism news pertinent to the Rotorua tourism market and keep you informed of the activities of the Destination Rotorua Marketing office. We will not disclose your contact details to third parties.

David Whorwood
Marketing Manager
Destination Rotorua Marketing
Private Bag 3007, Rotorua
Phone +64 7 349 7280
Fax +64 7 349 4133
marketing@rotoruaNZ.com