The exploits of India's cricketing superstars and the adventures
of leading Bollywood Actress Preity Zinta have helped to push New
Zealand's profile sky high over the last few weeks.
This week New Zealand made the front page of six daily
newspapers, with photographs printed inside many other papers. The
highlight was a photograph on the front page of The Times of
India - the widest circulated English newspaper in the world
with a readership of 13.3 million. The occasion? Dapper Indian
cricketer Sachin Tendulkar doing the Sky Walk on the Auckland Sky
Tower.
Preity Zinta, a beautiful Bollywood superstar, and the Indian
cricket team have been bungy-jumping, sky-diving, sky-walking,
fishing and sailing their way around New Zealand - all under the
watchful eyes of a 40-strong Indian media contingent, which is
following the team around New Zealand for their current tour.
"Preity Zinta is a leading Bollywood actress who is enormously
famous. To have her visit New Zealand has been a huge boost to New
Zealand's profile in India," says Kiran Nambiar, Tourism New
Zealand Regional Manager India and South East Asia.
"It's brilliant timing, as many Indians are currently thinking
about booking a holiday in May or June."
There were 23,746 Indian visitors to New Zealand in the year
ended February 2009. This was an increase of 4.9 per cent, which
goes against the current downward trend of many of New Zealand's
other tourism markets.
Opportunities for PR of this proportion are far and few between
in India. The combination of two of India's favourite obsessions -
cricket and Bollywood superstars - has proved too good to miss,
with major media outlets giving stories around the visits
front-page coverage and exposing New Zealand to millions of
readers.
Preity Zinta's visit was arranged by New Zealand Trade and
Enterprise, but Tourism New Zealand spent a day with the actress in
Taupo where she participated in a number of local tourism
activities.
"This is like getting Angelina Jolie to agree to come and do
these activities and work with us," says Kiran Nambiar.
Media coverage of her visit has already appeared in Britain's
Guardian newspaper and The Times of India, among
other outlets.
Tourism New Zealand is hosting a number of media outlets that
are following the cricket tour and has also hosted the Indian team
for a day of activities around Auckland, including the now famous
Sky Walk.
"This is the most intensive high-profile coverage New Zealand
has ever had in India," says Kiran Nambiar.
"All the big-circulation publications covered the stories of
what Ms Zinta and the cricket team have been doing in New Zealand
and New Zealand as a destination has benefited. We're working hard
to keep up this momentum."
A high-level group of Indian travel agents were also hosted by
Tourism New Zealand during the early stages of the cricket
tour.
Preity Zinta raved about New Zealand when she returned home,
saying she had a ball in the country: "I love adventure sports. And
I love New Zealand."
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