By Gareth Vaughan
The resumption of overseas tourism isn't merely a matter of flicking a switch with everything then returning to how it was.
Rebecca Ingram, Chief Executive of Tourism Industry Aotearoa, says the industry, dramatically impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic with the border closed and domestic travel restricted for periods of time, continues to face major challenges.
Speaking in the latest episode of interest.co.nz's Of Interest Podcast, Ingram says there's no understating the impact of the last couple of years.
"This restart we're going through at the moment, it's really not just flicking a switch. You can't just shut something down for a couple of years and then hope that it will turn back on just the way it was," says Ingram. "So it's very difficult out there at the moment. People are having to make lots of choices with imperfect information."
While the industry is feeling quite hopeful about the upcoming summer, flight connectivity isn't back where it was pre-Covid, and the industry lost 72,000 workers. Ingram says tourism businesses are looking to recruit staff for everything from beauty and massage therapists for spas and hotels, to mechanics for rental car companies right across the country.
And in a world where climate change and net-zero carbon emissions is on the agenda, there's also debate about the types and volume of tourists New Zealand should be targeting.
Ingram talks about this and more in the podcast.
4 Comments
Mixed feelings about Rebecca's vision and approach (sounds very much like tourism strategy from a govt dept) and typically good questions from Gareth. The govt wants to control and direct but the strategic vision is all 'woke-y' and unnatural. Look at the current tourism boom in Spain:
- Proximity to large target market. No stress about carbon footprint barriers.
- Different value propositions that appeal to different target segments from 'high spending, aspirational' to 'price conscious'
- Authentic, fascinating, comfortable-in-its-own-skin local culture with broad appeal (history, art, food, etc)
- Good domestic transport infrastructure
- Wide range of accommodation at the right prices
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-07-19/spain-poised-for-nea…
I have been considering our next holiday to celebrate a milestone wedding anniversary and here are my thoughts and findings. Fly to Sydney for a few days - low risk reasonable cost. Take a cruise ex Sydney to Singapore - big problem Cruise lines insist on triple vax so thats out. Other considerations - assuming no stoopid vax requirements - fly times too long - stop overs of 8 hours in Sydney making an Asian or Bali trip for a 9000 mile flight 18/24 hours each way too long and takes too much time out of holiday. Fly to Raro extorntionate prices so that takes out international travel. Trip to Auckland to attend a course on distilling - ripoff price by Air NZ ensures we will not go. Si it looks like a road trip S Island and a spa pool instead. Sorry Hospo industry but the industry is not pulling together so will no doubt be surprised when business is not what they expect and will blame the customers until the coming recession makes it even worse.
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