Motorhomes' interactive system leaves snail mail in dust

Chris Rusden

The days of the postcard airmailed from exotic places - and usually received three days after the sender gets home - could be numbered as the techno-savvy traveller goes digital.

Tourism Holdings (THL) will shortly install a system called Maui Interactive into 50 of its motorhomes, testing demand for technology which includes DVD movie playback, games, tourism guides, a global positioning system, travel diaries and electronic postcards created with the tourist's own photographs.

Should the pilot programme prove successful over the coming months, the system will be rolled out across some 1100 Maui vehicles in Australasia next year.

Tourism New Zealand chief executive George Hickton said the growth of technology meant that where holiday experiences were once expressed on a postcard, visitors could now share opinions and send pictures almost instantly.

"The thing that's happening - whether it's a phone with text messages, whether it's something else that's a bit more sophisticated ... good news and bad news - is now travelling very quickly."

The immediacy of these reviews meant there was even less room for the tourism industry to provide a bad experience.

Although technology was not yet a major driver for choosing a destination, the next five years would see significant development and it was vital New Zealand didn't get left behind.

"We see a massive change in the way in which the travel distribution channel works," Hickton said. "We have to stay in touch, otherwise people will say, 'Look, I'm not going there. It's not technologically sophisticated enough and it sounds too hard'."

Hickton would like to see the free advice provided by local tourism information sites co-ordinated for remote access nationwide.

THL's Rentals division chief operating officer Chris Rusden said the take-up by customers of online booking services had been faster than expected.

"It leads us to think our consumer is much more technologically savvy than I perhaps gave them credit for," Rusden said.

Rusden hoped the new Maui system would be a step forward in anticipating the future demands of tourists.

"I'd like to think that once we offer this, people will think, 'Yes, that's something that we want, that's a competitive advantage and it's something that appeals to us'."

The system includes maps integrated with a global positioning system to direct visitors to their destinations and the ability to book anything from hotel rooms to tourist attractions in advance of arrival.

A cellular data modem would provide internet access and broadband connectivity where available.

"Virtually anywhere you can get a mobile connection you should be able to get this [service]. This is definitely not tied to hotspots," Rusden said.

THL will gain no direct financial benefit from customer use of the system but hopes it will provide the firm with a competitive advantage.

The technology platform developer, Nelson-based PolyMEDIA, could generate revenue through advertising, commissions and a daily charge paid online by tourists wishing to access various aspects of the service. The most basic elements such as watching DVDs would be free of charge.

THL Rentals has about 1.2 million vehicle customers a year in New Zealand "and they all want to consume tourism product and it's a great opportunity for the sellers of tourism product to be able to market to that group through Maui Interactive", Rusden said.

"[If] New Zealand wants to be at the cutting edge of the global tourism market this is the type of thing the industry needs to be offering to the consumers."