Tourism Industry Expecting Benefit From Olympics

Tourism Industry Expecting Long Term Benefit From Olympics

The tourism industry is quietly confident of some significant benefit from the Olympic Games, but is expecting it to come more from promotional opportunities than from pre- or post-Olympic travel to New Zealand, Tourism Industry Association Chief Executive, Glenys Coughlan said today.

"Our survey of TIA members about what benefit, if any, they expect to flow to New Zealand from the Olympic Games in Sydney shows some 47% expect the Games to be either beneficial (44%) or very beneficial (3%), with just 11% assessing the Olympics as having a negative affect on their business," Ms Coughlan said.

"Overall, operators surveyed have not experienced any real increase in booking as a result of the Olympics being on our doorstep. 70 percent of those surveyed said they had had no change in the amount of bookings they would normally expect at this time of year and a further 19 percent said they had experienced a decrease.

"It is clear that mega-events like the Olympics, and the America's Cup, APEC and the Millennium, can, if anything, have a short-term disruptive affect on tourism, but brings long-term benefits to the industry due to profile raising. ?..

Both the head of the Australian Tourism Commission, John Morse, speaking in New Zealand last month, and comments by the head of Tourism Holdings Limited at the release of their annual report made just this point.

"Australia is expecting most of the benefit from the Games to occur after the Games. THL head Dennis Pickup commented that while THL had suffered somewhat due to a concentration of events in New Zealand, THL expect long-term benefits to their business from those events.

"This is backed up by the fact that of those we surveyed who indicated they were expecting to benefit from the Olympics, 76 percent said the benefit would come after the Games," Ms Coughlan said.

ENDS More information: Simon King, (04) 494 1845, (025) 807 252

The Tourism Industry Association represents 3,500 businesses and organisations within the tourism industry Members include airlines, airport companies, and regional tourism organisations, rental car, coach and taxi companies, inbound tour operators, travel agents, adventure tourism operators, accommodation providers, tourism attractions, researchers, training organisations and tourism services providers Tourism is New Zealand's largest export earner - accounting for 16 % of this country's export earnings The Tourism Industry Association organises the New Zealand Tourism Conference, TRENZ and the New Zealand Tourism Awards

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