PM Jacinda Ardern at Napier Art Deco Festival, a favourite of John Key's

Jacinda Ardern on the campaign trail in Napier in 2017. She returns today as Prime Minister enjoying the Art Deco Festival. Photo / File

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will enter one of the favourite playgrounds of predecessor John Key when she takes part in Art Deco Festival celebrations in Napier today.

She will ride at the front of the Vintage Car Parade, which starts at 12.30pm, and partner Clarke Gayford has volunteered to be a judge at the Deco Dog Parade.

Key attended Art Deco weekend festivities at least three times, officially opening the weekend in 2010 and 2011 and returning again in 2015.

During the 2010 festival he was captured in videos as part of a You Tube series to promote Napier and the Art Deco Festival, alongside then-Mayor Barbara Arnott and Shaun Wayne, a lookalike of cricketer Shane Warne developed by comedian Peter Flaherty.
Promoters described it as "a jaw-droppingly fearless 7 minutes of non-stop banter".

There was no suggestion yesterday the prime minister of nearly a decade later would be propelled into any similar exposure this year. Mayor Bill Dalton said he would be lunching with Ardern. Art Deco Trust acting general manager Vicky Rope confirmed Ardern was coming by invitation and said: "We are thrilled the Prime Minister has accepted our invitation to attend the festival this weekend and we can showcase the era that was the turning point for Napier and the region following the 1931 earthquake."

Among other dignitaries and high-profile names in Napier for the weekend of the Art Deco Festival are US Ambassador Scott Brown, broadcaster Kere McIvor, an Art Deco regular and host of Kerre McIvor Mornings 9am-Noon weekdays on NewstalkZB, and TV presenter Erin Simpson and former Bachelor NZ star Zac Franich. Others include attaches from other universities and Napier-born navy chief Rear Admiral David Proctor.

The festival is shaping up to be the one of the biggest yet. More than 40,000 people will participate in more than 300 events at the five-day celebration.

Visitors to the festival make up 25 per cent of all attendees. Many come from overseas to enjoy the regional showcase.

Hawke's Bay Tourism has this year invested in bringing key international travel buyers to the region to enrich their appreciation of the festival - the ultimate objective being to increase the number of Art Deco holidays being booked through travel agent channels.

AOT Group general manager Stuart Neels said "being a part of it first-hand is the very best way for us to educate our travel sellers to then sell it".

Hawke's Bay Tourism general manager Annie Dundas said the growing attraction of the Napier Art Deco Festival to celebrity personalities and media was testament to the quality of the festival and overall appeal of Hawke's Bay.

"The Napier Art Deco Festival is a key event for us, and it's not showing any signs of slowing down. Hawke's Bay Tourism is delighted to be able to use our resources to facilitate the attendance of international travel buyers and media personalities through our PR and media programme."