The Tourism Summit due to be hosted in Waikato was held virtually this year. Photo /File
The Tourism Summit due to be hosted in Waikato was held virtually this year. Photo /File
The Tourism Summit Aotearoa has been looking down the road at what the state of travel might look like next year, when international tourists return to our shores.
In his opening address to tourism operators on Monday, TIA chief Chris Roberts said that he thought it would be difficult to attract overseas visitors with the current reopening plan.
Quarantine-free travel would be key to bringing back international manuhiri, he said.
"It's pretty hard for us to imagine what sort of leisure or holiday visitors are going to come to New Zealand and spend the first seven days locked up."
Quarantine was not the only speedbump identified by the proposed Recovery Roadmap for Tourism.
The recently identified Omicron strain of Covid-19 was another issue on the minds of industry leaders.
Air New Zealand's chief of sales Leanne Geraghty said that the protection of current Covid-19 vaccinations against Omicron's would be a key factor in determining how disruptive it will be.
If it is determined that new vaccines are required, there could be significant delay from the supply chain.
TIA chief executive Chris Roberts addressed tourism leaders at the virtual summit. Photo / Supplied
However the TIA chief said that any delay to the current reconnection to the world plan could see an additional $16 billion wiped off the projected earnings from international travel, on top of the $26 billion already accounted for since February 2020.
Tourism Minser Stuart Nash said helping 100,000 New Zealanders get home first was a priority.
"It's about protecting the health and wellbeing of New Zealand citizens," said the minister.
While there was a possibility that quarantine requirements could be eased, what happened over the next few months would be a "We'll see how returning Kiwis go," he said. From Fiji to Singapore other countries planning a restart have looked at more lenient quarantine for arriving visitors. From shortened 48-hour isolation and resorts for receiving new arrivals, there had been some creative solutions from other international tourism destinations to take the sting out of the quarantine process.
However, it would depend on how the phased easing of borders for New Zealanders played out.
"We are certainly not taking these projections as set in concrete," said Roberts. "TIA will continue to advocate strongly to government to achieve the best possible outcomes for our industry, which was the first to be hit by the pandemic and will be the last to recover."
Tourism champions: Tourism Awards New Zealand
The online summit also saw the presentation of 11 awards for outstanding tourism businesses around the country.
Rewarding community, conservation, new talent and Māori operators TIA said that the shortlisted operators were chosen from those seen to be building tourism futures at an uncertain time.
Ahead of the new travel freedoms coming into effect with the Covid-19 Protection Framework, the awards rewarded guides and destinations which had thrived during the past 20 months' domestic only market.
Tourism Industry New Zealand Trust Community Engagement Award Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari (Waikato) Department of Conservation - Conservation Award The National Kiwi Hatchery (Rotorua) Tourism Talent Employer of Choice Award iFLY Indoor Skydiving NZ Ltd (Queenstown) Toitū EnviroCare Environment Award Wellington Zoo Trust Tourism New Zealand Industry Collaboration Award Nelson Regional Development Agency He Kai Kei Aku Ringa Māori Tourism Award Dark Sky Project (Tekapo) Westpac Resilience and Innovation Award Waiho Hot Tubs (Franz Josef Glacier) NZME Visitor Experience Award Redwoods Treewalk & Nightlights (Rotorua) PATA New Zealand Trust Emerging Tourism Leader Award Loren Heaphy, ChristchurchNZ Marsh Tourism Industry Champion Award Ceillhe Sperath, TIME Unlimited Tours Sir Jack Newman Award - Outstanding Industry Leader Dave Bamford
However the 11 awards recognising tourism businesses building the future of Kiwi hospitality were well timed, given the imminent easing of travel under the national Covid-19 Framework.
