Tourism New Zealand (TNZ) Chief Executive Kevin Bowler says the
memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed today between Indonesian
carrier Garuda Airlines and Auckland International Airport will be
welcome news for the tourism industry.
"A new carrier into New Zealand offers the tourism industry an
opportunity to attract greater number of Indonesians in coming
years," he says.
The MOU signals an intention from Garuda Airlines to begin a
direct service from Indonesia to Auckland as soon as market
conditions and aircraft availability allow. There are currently no
direct services between Indonesia and New Zealand, although Air New
Zealand is scheduled to begin a limited season of twice-weekly
flights to Bali in June.
"Indonesia is a small but growing tourism market for New
Zealand, with 11,824 visitors coming here in the year to February
2012 (a year-on-year increase of 22.5 per cent).
"Garuda's plans to begin a direct service to Auckland will be
welcomed by everyone in the New Zealand travel industry, and comes
at a time when South East Asia has become a new focus for TNZ's
marketing work," Mr Bowler says.
TNZ is likely to increase its efforts in Indonesia in response
to Garuda's announcement.
"We will be conducting further market analysis to learn more
about Indonesia's travel trade and the habits of consumers, but we
would certainly be interested in discussing joint-venture
opportunities with Garuda and with Indonesian travel sellers with
the aim of increasing the number of Indonesians visiting New
Zealand.
"Partnerships with airlines and travel sellers are an essential
part of TNZ's business strategy. It allows us to maximise the
effectiveness of our off-shore marketing activities by combining
forces with our partners. It allows us to increase consumer
awareness of the range of experiences New Zealand has to offer,
while helping build demand for an airline's services, and enhancing
the reach of travel sellers' advertising," Mr Bowler says.
ENDS
Issued by Deborah Gray, Communications Manager, Tourism New
Zealand
deborahg@tnz.govt.nz;
phone +64 21 410 626