Should we keep the name 'Rotovegas'?

Rotovegas.

It's a nickname, and one that doesn't seem too cruel on the face of it.

But dig slightly below the Rotorua community's surface and you'll find heated opinion on the term, particularly now it is officially part of the Kiwi vocabulary.

Author and broadcaster Max Cryer's just-released Godzone Dictionary says Rotovegas is "an amusing and affectionate nickname for Rotorua, combining its name with Las Vegas, as a none-too-subtle acknowledgement of the tourist and Maori entertainment industry that makes up a major part of the local economy".

It should also have said "controversial".

Rotorua historian Don Stafford said it was "ridiculous" Rotovegas had made it into a dictionary.

"Rotovegas suggests bright lights, loud music, everything Rotorua is not," he said.

"It's ridiculous to have it listed in any sort of dictionary, even one like this."

Mr Stafford said he was not sure how long the term had been in use.

"It's certainly never entered my life for my whole life ... If I saw a building called Rotovegas, it would be the last one I would want to go into."

Rotorua entertainment legend Sir Howard Morrison has also previously criticised the term, saying it was "blasphemous".



However, not everyone is against it. Several businesses have adopted the name including Tenpin Rotovegas, Rotovegas Roofing and even Rotovegas Youth Health.

Tenpin Rotovegas co-owner Kevin Brooks reckons he has had only positive feedback. "All around New Zealand people will say they are heading away to Rotovegas for the weekend.

"It shows that Rotorua is seen as a party place, rather than a sad place where people get mugged and robbed."

Rotovegas Youth Health clinical leader Tania Pinfold said the clinic's name was chosen after a survey of local teenagers.

"I can't say I feel too strongly about it either way," she said.

Destination Rotorua Tourism Marketing's assistant general manager Ruth McIntyre said recent research into whether Rotovegas would be a good focus for a marketing campaign quickly showed that it would definitely not.

"Really early on [in the survey] it became obvious that there were a lot of negative connotations in people's minds around gambling.

"We decided Rotovegas was not a good representation of the destination."



Film-makers Jonathan King and Matthew Grainger are working on a script called Rotovegas, set in an alternate-reality Rotorua of 1969.