Glowworms, Luxury And Manaakitanga: Rotorua’s Ambitions For A Brighter Future

Could 15, 2025

Rotorua, the birthplace of New Zealand
tourism. Iconic for its historical past, tradition and geothermal
wonders it’s additionally an journey seeker’s playground. The
metropolis has labored to rebuild from the results of closed
borders and a closely criticised emergency housing strategy.
Within the wake of the nation’s greatest customer business
occasion Trenz, held this month within the metropolis, Native Democracy
Reporting appears at Rotorua’s path to tourism
restoration.

5 years in the past lives modified because the Covid-19
pandemic took maintain and the world’s folks stayed
dwelling.

For Rotorua, which depends closely on vacationers,
it was a blow.

However now, the New Zealand Prime Minister
says town is “on the up” and an iconic native
attraction is welcoming extra friends than it did
pre-pandemic.

Town was within the highlight this month
when it hosted Trenz, an enormous tourism commerce present occasion which
introduced a whole lot of worldwide journey patrons and media
delegates collectively to satisfy New Zealand’s main
operators.

Throughout his speech on the occasion, Andrew
Wilson, chief government of tourism organisation RotoruaNZ,
mentioned Rotorua was “remodeling”, had skilled a
“real resurgence” in recent times and had a ahead
momentum with “no intention of slowing
down”.

Funding into “world-class experiences,
sustainable practices, and significant partnerships” that
mirrored its manaakitanga and ambitions firmly set Rotorua
up for the longer term, he mentioned.

This included the current
announcement of the luxurious Noho Lakeside Lodge to be constructed
alongside the lakefront Wai Ariki Sizzling Springs and
Spa.

Wilson additionally introduced the “iconic ecotourism”
operator Redwoods Treewalk would in September launch its
“breathtaking new journey” – Redwoods Glowworms. In a
70m-long “eco-cave” that includes waterfalls and rock
formations, guests could be suspended above reflective
water and surrounded by greater than 5000 glowworms,
“making a dwelling constellation”.

It was the
product of about 5 years’ planning and
analysis.

The enterprise partnered with Expedition Earth
in 2021 to create the attraction and Treewalk co-founder
Bruce Thomasen thought the bioluminescence notably
complemented its David Trubridge-lit
nightwalk.

Thomasen mentioned the enterprise was up 16% on
its 2019 customer numbers.

Innovation was steady,
he mentioned.

Latest additions included the award-winning
Trubridge Horoeka walk-in lantern in 2023 and the 8m-wide
Ruru lantern in 2024.

Thomasen mentioned Rotorua was a core
purpose New Zealand was a pretty vacation spot for
guests. He mentioned geothermal points of interest, tradition, lakes and
mountain-bike choices resonated with guests.

View
from the highest

Chatting with media at Trenz, Prime
Minister Christopher Luxon mentioned the dialog about
Rotorua had turned away from Fenton St and emergency
housing.

The final of the ultimate seven contracted
emergency housing motels in Rotorua are anticipated to shut by
the top of this yr. Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell beforehand
mentioned she hoped they upgraded and returned to being
“high quality tourism motels”.

Town had a “nice
future” and was “on the up”, Luxon mentioned.

Native
Democracy Reporting requested Luxon for particular examples of how
the Authorities was enabling tourism progress in
Rotorua.

“We’re doing all the pieces we
can.”

Luxon listed visa settings modifications, abroad
promotion together with to Australia and assembly with the Indian
tourism business.

A file 32 Indian operators
attended TRENZ. Luxon mentioned the nation of 1.5 billion had a
center class of 455 million who needed to
journey.

Wilson mentioned he supported newly decreased
necessities on translated visa doc certifications,
notably for the way it impacted Chinese language and Indian
guests, with the Indian market rising after about eight
years’ work.

By the numbers

RotoruaNZ’s
head of enterprise progress, insights and innovation, Justin
Kimberley, reckoned it was arduous to not really feel optimistic about
tourism within the metropolis.

He believed upcoming developments
would appeal to new guests and year-on-year visitation was
rising.

Each day Rotorua customer inhabitants throughout the
autumn faculty holidays was up 13.4% on final yr at 22,138.
Worldwide guests grew 36.8%.

Room for progress?
Sure, however he believed it delivered an amazing product and would
proceed to ship an “wonderful
expertise”.

February 2025 month-to-month customer card
spending was up 114% on February 2019 at $39.15m, in contrast
with a 116% elevate nationally.

Annual customer spending
in Rotorua to February 2025, primarily based on tourism digital
card transactions, was $441 million in keeping with MBIE information,
a file excessive, however solely when not taking inflation into
account. [Over the past six years, since pre-Covid, New
Zealand has experienced 26.6% inflation.]

The Auckland
market was the goal of current $93,985 Gown Journey marketing campaign,
selling Rotorua as a spa, therapeutic massage and “gown”
vacation spot, and Kimberley mentioned this was “beginning to
change the notion” of these seeking to vacation in
Rotorua.

In September 34% of Aucklanders surveyed
thought of Rotorua for a vacation, which rose to 73% this
month, he mentioned.

Each day business lodging keep
items obtainable are again to 66% of pre-pandemic ranges in
Rotorua and nationally 80%.

Kimberley mentioned the
lodging panorama in Rotorua had shifted in a optimistic
route.

The variety of resort keep items had
elevated by about 130 since 2018, which resulted from extra
“higher-value guests”.

It elevated by 5.2% final
yr to succeed in 1974 in March of a complete 4529
items.

Kimberley mentioned the decline in capability of
motels and different varieties like backpackers was pushed by
“apparent causes” similar to longer-term lodging
use.

Most if not all high-quality motels and
backpackers nonetheless provided customer lodging, he mentioned,
and there was no robust demand for low-quality and low-price
choices any extra.

Kimberley pointed to a current
Howarth resort sector report he believed confirmed encouraging
indicators.

Lodge occupancy for the previous three months was
at 82% in Rotorua, up from about 77% in 2024 and down from
about 88% in 2019.

Different optimistic indicators have been the Noho
announcement and the way motels and resorts have been re-investing in
their properties, “many with fairly main room
refurbishments”.

How operators pitched themselves to
the world
Ngāi Tahu Tourism owns each Agrodome and the
Nationwide Kiwi Hatchery in Rotorua, a spot normal supervisor
Jolanda Cave known as a key vacation spot for worldwide
guests.

Manaakitanga and manuhiri expertise was
Ngāi Tahu Tourism’s focus for the reason that pandemic.

Cave
mentioned it moved the hatchery to the Agrodome and elevated
choices there, such because the farmers markets.

Cave
mentioned the newly decreased necessities on translated visa
doc certifications got here at a “unbelievable” time as
the sector regarded to develop.

The Chinese language market was
about 60% what it was pre-Covid nationally by the top of
final yr, and was within the high 5 markets for Ngāi
Tahu.

It was up from 37% for the yr ending December
2023.

“What we’re seeing is that China continues to be
very robust for these companies which have at all times been
predominant for Chinese language markets similar to Agrodome right here in
Rotorua…”

That market was rising for the southern
iwi entity’s South Island companies, she mentioned, as Chinese language
manuhiri behaviours modified to be extra unbiased,
“wanting that value-added expertise, wanting one thing
fairly distinctive.”

Her takeaway from speaking with others
and listening to the heads of business at Trenz was that the following
12 months regarded “extraordinarily optimistic”.

Wai Ariki
Sizzling Springs and Spa normal supervisor Debbie Robertson known as
the occasion “phenomenal” and mentioned it showcased what the
enterprise and Rotorua provided.

Purchaser engagement was
optimistic and he or she mentioned there was a buzz concerning the
spa.

The luxurious providing opened in June 2023. About
75% of its market was home and he or she anticipated the
worldwide portion to develop.

Robertson mentioned its
level of distinction was its “elevated expertise” and
“cultural infusion”.

It wasn’t simply Rotorua
points of interest discovering worth within the occasion.

Chris and Dean
Savage, at Dive Tatapouri, supply reef ecology excursions and
swimming with wild stingray close to Tairāwhiti Gisborne. Chris
mentioned at Trenz they reconnected with patrons, made new
beginnings with others and supported the Gisborne group
by selling it as a vacation spot.

“It’s a journey
however when you get there you don’t need to
go away.”

Hawke’s Bay’s Gannet Safaris Overland
normal supervisor Sophie Phillips mentioned with nice bookings,
nice brokers and “superior engagement”, it was its greatest
Trenz but. The area was being included in additional
itineraries, she mentioned.

Ecotourism was a drawcard and
she mentioned folks have been “engaged with the individuality of the
tour” showcasing the biggest most accessible mainland
gannet colony on this planet and its lately launched dawn
tour.

Extra folks have been searching for “wow issue”
visuals and that was what they provided, she mentioned, in addition to
distinctive and extra unique “higher-end”
excursions.

Dunedin provided three regionally themed ice cream
flavours: Emerson’s London Porter and Spicy Peanuts; No8
Distillery Gin and Plum sorbet; and Southern Clam and Tomato
Shooters.

Enterprise Dunedin vacation spot supervisor Sian
Sutton mentioned it was a daring, enjoyable solution to stand out and stick in
the minds of event-goers.

Group effort

Wilson
mentioned Trenz went “fantastically effectively”.

RotoruaNZ
was amongst eight regional tourism organisations (RTOs)
concerned in a newly introduced commerce initiative focusing on the
North American market.

It was additionally concerned in a
partnership of 15 RTOs aiming to speed up customer return
from key markets together with Australia, North America and
China. Complete worldwide customer arrivals into Auckland
Worldwide Airport are at 84% of 2019
ranges.

Tourism and Hospitality Minister Louise Upston
voiced the intention at Trenz to show the $44
billion-generating tourism sector from the nation’s
quantity two export to primary.

5 years on from
the beginning of the pandemic, Rotorua is displaying indicators it’s
trending in the precise route to assist make that
occur.

– LDR is native physique journalism co-funded by
RNZ and NZ On
Air.

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