Tourism New Zealand has launched a new domestic campaign to encourage people back into their home city centres to experience dining, nightlife and activities.
“The activity is aimed to support New Zealand’s cities as attractions, restaurants and cultural activities recover from the impacts of COVID-19 and the stay at home phenomenon,” says Tourism New Zealand chief executive Rene de Monchy.
The campaign focuses primarily on Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch city centres. It was launched March in Auckland with a mass karaoke event where lyrics to some popular New Zealand songs were displayed on the Stock Market boards at Britomart.
“Insight shows that visitation to the city centres is lower than pre-COVID and the campaign aims to help encourage people into their cities to experience all there is to offer from museums and galleries, to restaurants, retail and urban areas,” says Rene.
“We want people to rediscover the magic in their city centres. They are special places – they are the heartbeat of our urban areas, economic generators and social hubs where we can come together as a community. Those encounters with culture, people, and the environment are here to find.”
The campaign was developed alongside the regional tourism organisations of each region to support the central cities and generate more visitation across the Autumn months.
The RTOs are supporting with the second phase of the campaign that will ask people to share their ‘Re_Views’ of their cities and help others find more to discover.
“It’s great that new research has revealed that nearly all (96 per cent) of residents in Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington, Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, and Ōtautahi Christchurch surveyed believe a vibrant and thriving city centre is vital to the country’s wellbeing and success. We want to tap into this sentiment and encourage people to get out and about,” says Rene.
