Raggamuffin has become a highlight on Rotorua's events calendar and figures which reveal this year's instalment boosted our local economy by $10 million underline its importance to the city.
The reggae festival was extended to two days this year, which has increased its benefit to Rotorua.
While many events areinevitably struggling for numbers given the current economic climate, some have endured and continue to attract good crowds and participant numbers which provide a huge boost for the city and surrounding region.
What Rotorua must do is continue to provide a great experience to people who come here for the likes of Raggamuffin, the annual Kurangaituku netball tournament, the marathon and other big events. We need them to keep coming back, to fill our hotels, motels and camping grounds, to eat in our cafes and restaurants, visit our tourist attractions, bathe in our geothermal pools and shop in our stores and that means we all have a part to play.
Our role may simply be to make the visitors feel welcome, it may be to ensure they get good service wherever they go, that they get good food and coffee, a fun time, decent accommodation, and efficient and timely transport.
We also need to make it viable and attractive for organisers to continue having big events here, make sure our roads and public facilities are up to scratch and our venues aren't too pricey.
These events are helping to keep our city ticking over.
