Being motorhome friendly was seen as a huge tourism boost for two South Taranaki towns last week.
Hawera and Opunake were officially welcomed into the New Zealand Motor Caravan Association's (NZMCA) nationwide Motorhome Friendly scheme last Thursday at a reception at the South Taranaki District Council in Hawera.
Taranaki motorhomes members met with South Taranaki Mayor Ross Dunlop and councillors to hand over two certificates to the council acknowledging Hawera and Opunake as New Zealand's 46th and 47th Motorhome Friendly towns.
NZMCZ chief executive Bruce Lochore said it was a move which would bring a healthy boost to tourism spending in the Hawera and surrounding areas
The two new locations bring the number of Motorhome Friendly towns in Taranaki to three and along with the two NZMCA Parks in the region (in Hawera and New Plymouth) show the association's drive to share the benefits of motorhome tourism, without adding extra strain to local facilities or heaping extra costs on local ratepayers, he said.