Budd's lasting legacy
Tourists will be encouraged to take their time exploring the south through a new sustainable tourism campaign, originally conceived by much-loved former Destination Queenstown boss, the late Graham Budd.
The Southern Way website was launched last week, showcasing the touring network across the eight southern regions, and designed to inform and inspire visitors to slow down, explore further, stay longer and ultimately return.
It is a collaboration between the eight southern regional tourism organisations to collectively celebrate and share more about the depth and breadth of visitor experiences in the lower south of New Zealand.
Mark Frood, General Manager Tourism and Events at Great South, says the concept was initiated by Budd, former DQ and Great South CEO, back in 2018, having had a long-held wish for regions to work more closely together.
"It is a proud day for our combined regions to see Graham’s wishes come to life through this project," Frood says.
Graham Budd, who died in April last year while walking in Arrowtown
The website features places of interest, suggested itineraries and a wide-ranging set of world class experiences across Waitaki, Wānaka, Queenstown, Central Otago, Dunedin, Clutha, Southland, and Fiordland.
"Visitors don’t see local boundaries and encouraging people to move around between our regions, travel slowly, engage with our communities and explore further is another step towards our collective goal of welcoming a high-contributing and more sustainable visitor market" says DQ's marketing director Sarah O’Donnell.
Each RTO has now created their own destination management plans outlining priorities and wishes for the future of tourism in their place.
These plans now form the basis for how RTOs are working, with a transition from purely traditional destination marketing to also embracing the role of managing their destinations in line with community aspirations.
"Helping visitors to understand the value of taking time to explore this spectacular southern corner of New Zealand more deeply ensures that we are supporting a more sustainable future for tourism in the south," Frood adds.
Cycling on the Queenstown Trail
Funding for the development of the Southern Way collaboration was supported by MBIE through Covid recovery funding with the project managed under the leadership of Great South, Southland Regional Development Agency.
"We were tasked with taking a new approach towards inspiring visitors' travel patterns and it is exciting to see this project finally come to life. We are proud to bring our regions together to offer truly awe-inspiring experiences for our visitors," Frood said.
Dark skies at Mirror Lake, Southland. Photo: Great South
Trampers at Key Summit, off the Routeburn Great Walk
