A Beppu delegation officially welcomed to Rotorua today is studying how a major rugby game is hosted in preparation for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.
Rotorua Lakes Council held a pohiri this afternoon to welcome members of its sister city of Beppu, from the southern island of Kyushu, Japan.
The visit marks the 30th anniversary of the sister city relationship.
"We're very pleased to welcome Beppu deputy mayor Shinsuke Inomata and his group of Beppu council staff and chamber of commerce members to our city," Rotorua mayor Steve Chadwick said.
"It's a very special visit with this year marking 30 years since our two cities forged a relationship in 1987, and they're keen to see how we host big events here as they prepare to be hosts during the 2019 Rugby World Cup."
The delegation is in Rotorua during the weekend and has various engagements planned.
"The sister city relationship is important not just for council but for the Rotorua District," Mrs Chadwick said.
"While they're here to mark the 30th anniversary, the delegation will also take the opportunity to meet other local organisations they could forge ongoing relationships with for mutual benefit, including Te Puia and QE Hospital.
"There are also obvious benefits in terms of tourism - the relationship helps to encourage more people from Beppu to come to New Zealand and to include Rotorua on their itineraries.
"We get many visitors from Beppu here - next week we welcome Shosei High School, which is here on an exchange visit."
Some of the delegation that arrived today will attend the Maori All Blacks-British and Irish Lions clash tomorrow night while others will enjoy the game from the Official Fan Zone at the Energy Events Centre.
"It will give the delegation an opportunity to see how Rotorua caters to an influx of thousands of visitors," Mrs Chadwick said.
"They'll get an insight into the various considerations a major event requires, including co-ordinating volunteers, working with accommodation and hospitality providers, and organising supporting events to add to the visitor experience and help activate and involve the local community."
The Beppu delegation will attend a number of Lion-Maori All Blacks events and will use these opportunities to promote their city and the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
They will be at the Guinness World Record haka record attempt and will have a display at the iSite.
"They've used local businesses to produce the collateral they'll be handing out while in Rotorua so that's been a small added benefit of this visit," she said.
"They'll also take in some tourist attractions which they'll be able to talk about when they go back to Beppu."
Rugby representatives are also expected to meet the delegation while they are in Rotorua.
Te Puia is hosting a dinner in partnership with Auckland's Japanese Consulate Office tonight which Te Puia chief executive Tim Cossar said was part of maintaining long-established relationships in Japan.
"From a tourism point of view Japan is a reasonable part of our market so it makes sense to take these opportunities to solidify those existing relationships," Mr Cossar said.
"For us this visit is also about building relationships which will be critical to the success of our Tuku Iho exhibition which will be touring in Japan in 2019."
Other engagements for the delegation include a talk by delegation member Associate Professor Toyoki Maeda of Kyushu University who will lead a presentation on a potential cultural exchange.
The visitors will also take in Hells Gate and the Redwoods Tree Walk on Sunday before leaving Rotorua.
Speaking through a translator, Mr Inomata said the sister city relationship with Rotorua was important to Beppu and was a natural fit, given the geothermal resources and which were a feature of both cities.
"There are many similarities between our cities and it is important to share our stories and learn from each other."
The deputy mayor said, through the opportunities created by having a sister city relationship, his city had made wide-ranging connections with Rotorua's education, tourism and business sectors.
Mr Inomata is looking forward to watching tomorrow's Maori All Blacks-British and Irish Lions clash.
He said he was a big rugby fan, having played as a high school student and in the late 1980s watching Japan take on the All Blacks.