Cruise ships and their passengers are usually a frequent sight in Mount Maunganui during summer, but not this season. Photo / File
Cruise ships and their passengers are usually a frequent sight in Mount Maunganui during summer, but not this season. Photo / File
By Kiri Gillespie
Twelve months ago Tourism Bay of Plenty was concerned at managing the impacts of over-tourism in the community.
Now, its chief executive has revealed things could not be more different in the organisation's annual report for the 2019-20 year.
The report, presented to the Western Bay ofPlenty District Council and the Tauranga City Council last week, revealed the impact of the tragic Whakaari/White Island eruption on the sector, the ramifications of Covid-19 which will still be felt for years to come, and also the fallout from the "pantomime powhiri" in December 2019.
In the first six months of the 2019-20 financial year, the coastal Bay of Plenty was the second-highest performing region in terms of growth, with results over twice the national average.
The impact from Covid was expected to be felt by Tourism Bay of Plenty for the next few years, prompting an immediate shift to domestic and local markets, she said.
A monthly breakdown of visitor spending showed a positive summer with a peak of $146m in January. This dropped dramatically to $11m in April, reflecting the Covid-19 alert level 4 lockdown.
In total, visitor spending decreased 7.1 per cent to $1017 million
in the year ending June 2020. Nationally, visitor spending dropped 12.3 per cent.
Dunne said the report reflected "the incredible mahi (work) of a hardworking and talented team ... who have bravely faced two crises this year with absolute courage and commitment".
Chairwoman Laurissa Cooney
said in the report the organisation had been operating in "crisis management mode" since December 9, 2019.
"Soon after the eruption, Covid-19 was declared a global pandemic and ... saw the tourism industry grind to a halt.
"The timing of this so soon after the Whakaari/White Island eruption has brought additional challenges and impacted our ability to undertake usual business activities."
In December, photos of Golden Princess cruise ship crew posing as Māori with crude skirts with "scribbles" across their faces sparked upset at the "blatant racism".
At the time, Tourism Bay of Plenty publically condemned the actions, saying it was saddened and offended.
However, there have been highlights.
Cooney said the coastal Bay of Plenty was in a strong position prior to the pandemic, experiencing 8 per cent growth in the region's visitor economy for the year ending January 2020.
This meant the impact of Covid travel restrictions "has been less significant here compared to some other New Zealand tourism hot spots".
Such was the impact of Covid-19 on Tourism Bay of Plenty, international expert Anna Pollock who held several events regarding conscious travel and regenerative tourism, became stuck in New Zealand unable to leave.
Pollock became a significant factor in guiding the industry through some challenges of the pandemic, Cooney said.
In March 2020, Tourism Bay of Plenty launched its Love of Tourism strategy and it planned to embrace this further moving forward. It also planned to use the downturn to help operators upskill, develop businesses for when tourism restarts and helping the development of indigenous cultural experiences.
Kath Low,
head of destination marketing, told the Bay of Plenty Times the eruption and ongoing impacts of Covid had "rocked the tourism industry to its core".
The past 12 months have been "a mega challenging year and not one any of us want to repeat".
"But it is a resilient industry full of people who love where they live and what they do," she said.
"The strength of the people behind our tourism businesses are what will ensure the industry moves forward. We are raising the profile of the coastal Bay of Plenty and supporting each tourism business as best we can to move forward."
Western Bay mayor Garry Webber says we need to think outside the square to help the Bay's tourism sector. Photo / File
Western Bay of Plenty mayor Garry
Webber said that while it had been a tough year for Tourism Bay of Plenty, it also presented an opportunity "to think outside the square and see what we can do to fill the gap where we can".
"Other areas are doing newspaper articles and advertising on television to promote their area. I think that's something we need to do," he said.
"Rotorua has been badly hit. We need to help our neighbour so what can we do to not just help the Bay of Plenty but also Rotorua as a neighbour in trouble."
Webber said this was an area the council was looking at.
Tauranga Mayor Tenby Powell. Photo / File
Tauranga mayor Tenby Powell said Covid-19 combined with the tragic Whakaari eruption amplified what has been very challenging events. However, the Tourism Bay of Plenty team had been "visionary" in identifying the importance of domestic tourism pre-Covid, which had made a difference, he said.
"We are a magnet city with a very strong domestic market. We have fared much better than other parts of New Zealand."
Powell paid tribute to the team who has worked hard and long hours, often behind the scenes.
