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Tourism Bay of Plenty has secured almost $186,000 of government funding to promote nine key events to attract more domestic visitors to its coastal region over the next 11 months.
These events are among 132, from around the country, named in the first round of the Regional Events Promotion Fund, a new $5 million Government initiative to encourage New Zealanders to visit and spend more in various regions outside the peak summer season.
Tourism Bay of Plenty general manager Oscar Nathan says he’s delighted the region has been awarded the second-largest portion of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s contestable fund.
“This reflects the quality and diversity of the well-established or more recently established events that we included in our funding submission,” Oscar says.
“The Government gave us an extremely tight deadline to submit our submission and we collaborated with our key funders (Tauranga City Council, Western Bay of Plenty District Council, and Whakatāne District Council) to determine which events to put forward.
“We unfortunately didn’t secure all the funding we wanted for the events we submitted, but we’re very pleased with the result.”
Tourism Bay of Plenty’s annual Flavours of Plenty Festival secured $50,000 worth of promotional support – the largest slice of the region’s REPF allocation.
“Our foodie festival has built a strong national profile in its first three years, attracting a growing number of visitors and supporting vital economic growth. It’s great to see MBIE acknowledging this past success and the festival’s ongoing potential with the REPF amount it has allocated.”
Other REPF funding is heading to the Bay of Plenty Garden and Art Festival ($30,000), Zespri AIMS Games ($24,500), Toi Kiri ($22,055), National Jazz Festival ($21,000), Echo Walking Festival ($17,415), XAIR ($13,500), Local Wild Food Festival ($5000), and Ōhiwa Oyster Festival ($2350).
Each event will need to match this promotional funding, according to the REPF’s 50/50 co-funding criteria.
The Government introduced the REPF to support regional tourism and hospitality sectors during New Zealand’s quieter visitor months.
“This funding will continue to bolster our region’s reputation as an attractive visitor destination throughout the year. Residents will also enjoy the extra buzz and economic value that these events bring,” Oscar says.
Applications for Round Two of the REPF are expected to open in March 2025.
