Pania's Pānui

Next week is going to be a busy one for those attending TRENZ - the programme of speakers, events, and meetings will provide numerous opportunities for tourism businesses to engage with trade and industry insiders to ensure they do their best to get visitors to your experience! Hopefully I'll have a chance to catch up with you there.

Lesley Immink and the team at TEC have been great supporters of NZ Māori Tourism. Les has always been willing to share her enormous amounts of knowledge with us and Māori tourism experiences, and her passion for the industry is unparalleled. E ai ki te whakataukī “whāia te iti kahurangi ki te tūohu koe me he maunga teitei”. Haere pai e te hoa, ā, haere i runga i te Rangimarie.

A Friday treat for those of you who haven't yet seen it, a little tamaiti doing the haka. Ka rawe!

Nga mihi, na,

Pania and the team at NZ Māori Tourism

Biosecurity Response

A biosecurity response is underway after the detection of myrtle rust on mainland New Zealand for the first time, it was announced yesterday.

Myrtle rust is a fungal disease which can seriously damage various species of native and introduced plants in the myrtle family, including pohutukawa, rata, manuka, gum, bottlebrush and feijoa.

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) was notified on Tuesday evening by a nursery in Kerikeri that five pohutakawa seedlings had suspected myrtle rust, and laboratory testing has now confirmed this.

PS - Is your Māori tourism experience listed on our website? If not, reply to this email and we'll get your business listed straight away.

Kei te mōhio rānei koe? (Did you know?)

The New Zealand Story workshops help you develop your story so you can stand out from the competition, close sales and win new business. These fully-funded, two and a half hour sessions get you thinking from the moment you walk in the door. Find out more and register here.

The 2018 WINTA Summit will be held in association with NZ Māori Tourism. The Summit will be held in Paihia, Northland, from 15 - 18 April 2018. Save the dates in your calendar now! More details will be released soon.

Below are a selection of recent Instagram posts from around Aoteaora New Zealand using the hashtag #kiaora - we encourage manuhiri (visitors) to use #kiaora to showcase their experience with Māori tourism.

He Tangata: William Stewart of NATIVConnectioNZ Ltd - Real Māori Experiences

I grew up in Whakatane with my grandparents and it was the best childhood you could imagine. The area we grew up in, Wairaka, had a real strong cultural footprint. Our people have been here for 1000 years. Living with my grandparents, I spent a lot of time at the marae, and our house was right by the sea and the river and because we were a small semi-rural location, all our fun was derived from family and friends and the natural environment.

Iwi Statistical Standards

In order to maximise the opportunity for improving the collection of information on iwi and Māori groups to better meet the needs of people who use this information, Stats NZ are pleased to extend the deadline for submission feedback to the updated iwi statistical standard to 9am Monday, 15 May 2017.

It's not too late to have your say. You can still make a submission through our online form. You can also print the form and send the completed form back by post or send a scanned copy of your submission form by email to iwi.review@stats.govt.nz

For more information please see their website or email iwi.review@stats.govt.nz

The latest edition of Māori Tourism Quarterly can be read here.

Modest fee increases for NZ’s Great Walks

The Department of Conservation (DOC) is introducing modest increases for some Great Walks hut and campsite fees. These increases are part of the Department’s first review of its Great Walks pricing in five years. They are designed to increase revenue from the walks by about $880,000 per year, without significantly reducing demand or participation.

Tourism New Zealand Roadshow - Strategic updates May/June 2017

These will be held in Christchurch, Queenstown, Wellington, Rotorua, and Auckland. Register here.

Kiwi Link South America 2017

Following the success of Kiwi Link 2016 and to support the development of this market, Tourism New Zealand will again be holding Kiwi Link.

These events will provide a great opportunity for tourism operators to develop relationships, promote products, educate and upskill wholesale and retail travel sellers.

Business Calendar

Use this tool to quickly find opportunities, training, compliance dates and related tasks from across government. You can search by region, date, and category.

Nga Pānui (Notices)

If you have an announcement you'd like here, please email amy@maoritourism.co.nz for it to be included in the next edition of Newsline. It can be anything from a job position, exhibition opening, videos or photos featuring your business, new Māori tourism products, etc.

TIME Unlimited Tours - Cultural ‘City to Cape’ Collection: “Realising the full potential our Maori Sixth Sense”
TIME Unlimited Tours is delighted to start the 2017 ‘Maori New Year’ with the launch of its inaugural itinerary for their Cultural ‘City to Cape’ Collection. As part of its Winter TIME Collection, the new suite of tour products aptly named “Season of Matariki – A Star Journey” targets premium visitors from the North American, South American, Chinese and European markets who seek a fully integrated, seasonally themed Maori cultural experience. These experiences range from one day, one way or multi day options throughout the culturally significant regions of Auckland and Northland.

Lions Tour 2017
The Rugby 2017 Festival follows the matches from Host City to Host City, and gives you the chance to meet the people, see the sights and taste the flavours of our place. On the field the rivalry and traditions will play out, but between matches seek out the best of New Zealand and get close to what makes this country so special. We’ll be adding more great stuff to the programme right up until kick-off so keep checking or download the app to stay up with the play.