Don’t miss the thrill!

25 February 2010 

Don’t miss the thrill!

Auckland welcomes three prestigious international sailing events in March as part of the Auckland Festival of Sailing.

The inaugural festival opens with the Omega Auckland Match Racing Regatta on 3 March. Omega racing action continues until 6 March, and is followed by the Louis Vuitton Trophy (7 to 21 March) and the BMW Sailing Cup World Final (22 to 25 March).

All Aucklanders have the chance to experience the thrill of this exciting festival – the biggest sailing event since Auckland hosted the America’s Cup in 2003.

Market Square in the Viaduct Harbour will come alive in a spectacle of colour, with a plenty of off-the-water festivities and opportunities to get up close to the action!

Maritime-themed entertainment, activities and attractions will pack out the space, which will be transformed into the Louis Vuitton Trophy event village, featuring the opportunity to see the big boats up close as they dock right outside the O’Hagans bar and cheer on the sailing crews as they leave in the mornings and when they come back at night!

Thanks to Auckland City Council, everyone can get up close to the racing on free public spectator boat trips running during the two key weekends of the Auckland Festival of Sailing on 13 and 14 and 20 and 21 March.

This once in a lifetime opportunity is limited to the first 120 people per sailing, with two sailings on each day at 9.30am and 1.30pm. Registrations for a place onboard Olympic Spirit are first come, first served, and open one hour before each sailing time at the departure location, in front of Kermadec bar and restaurant, Viaduct Harbour.

The Viaduct will host the Auckland International Boat Show (11 to 14 March), which showcases Auckland’s internationally renowned marine industry.

People can purchase a special 42BELOW Auckland cocktail at participating Viaduct bars between 5 and 15 March, and be in to win passes to the Louis Vuitton Trophy VIP and Team Lounge.

Voyager New Zealand Maritime Museum also invites Aucklanders to discover how our region’s love affair with sailing began. For the whole month of March, Auckland region residents can visit the museum galleries and see Blue Water Black Magic – A Tribute to Sir Peter Blake for just $5 per adult, with free admission for accompanying children aged 14 years or under. (Proof of Auckland residency required)

One thing is for sure – there will be no shortage of action in Auckland during March.

Auckland city Mayor, Hon John Banks, says it is exciting to bring together such an esteemed line up of major international sailing events for the Auckland Festival of Sailing.

“This festival is a wonderful opportunity to showcase Auckland’s spectacular harbour location to the rest of the world. It’s also great news for Aucklanders, and businesses in the marine, tourism and hospitality sectors,” says Mayor Banks.

Tourism Auckland chief executive, Graeme Osborne, says the Auckland Festival of Sailing is part of a packed month of superb events in the “City of Sails”.

“Not only does the festival underline Auckland’s envied maritime lifestyle and rich maritime heritage, it also means that visitors to Auckland will be spoilt for choice, with action on the water complemented by a host of events, including Auckland Cup Week, Pasifika and Trans Tasman sporting fixtures. While tourism in Auckland is already big business, these great events are positive for growing visitor spend and further cementing Auckland as a compelling destination,” says Osborne.

The economic spin-off from last year’s Louis Vuitton Pacific Series was significant – the event injected at least $16.1 million of additional cash into the Auckland economy and increased the region’s GDP by at least $11.5 million.

Chair of Auckland’s Regional Economic Development Agency, AucklandPlus, Michael Barnett, says the benefits of hosting a major international event stretch far beyond the regatta.

“The international exposure generated from hosting the Louis Vuitton Regatta gives our award-winning marine industry the opportunity to showcase the world-class skills, products and services that have earned our marine industry its international reputation for excellence,” he says.

Daily highlights of last year’s regatta totalled 340 hours of airtime over 30 channels in more than 100 countries, and reached more than 600 million viewers. "You couldn’t buy that kind of global exposure for Auckland," Mr Barnett says.

The marine industry will be making the most of the international exposure generated by the regatta with a number of investment and trade related events.

Auckland Festival of Sailing is sponsored by Auckland City Council, Tourism Auckland and AucklandPlus.

ENDS

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