New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon will host Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, along with his fiancee Jodie Haydon, in the resort tomorrow and Sunday for the annual Australia New Zealand Leaders’ Meeting.
It is the first time the meeting has been held in Queenstown since 2021, when former prime ministers Scott Morrison and Dame Jacinda Ardern had a tightly controlled and scheduled meeting, primarily due to Covid restrictions.
Queenstown Lakes Mayor Glyn Lewers said it was "brilliant" the leaders were meeting in the resort, and considered they could not pick a better spot to "show off New Zealand Inc to our Australian cousins".
Mr Lewers would be spending some time with the prime ministers, including being part of Mr Albanese’s greeting party.
Other engagements include a business roundtable with the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum.
A large media contingent from across the Tasman was expected to cover the visit, while some outlets were planning on doing other Queenstown-specific stories while in town.
Mr Lewers said there were stories to be told, particularly around tourism and growth pressures, "and I’m open to talking with them about it".
Destination Queenstown and Lake Wanaka Tourism chief executive Mat Woods said the meeting was "a really big deal", and hoped the media coverage further bolstered the resort’s reputation across the Tasman.
"Australia is our most important international market — it’s a market that we’ve been working hard on for 40-plus years — Australians love Queenstown, Queenstown loves Australians, community and industry alike.
"We just get that great opportunity to showcase Queenstown and build on all that work we’ve been doing ... to show what a great destination we are for Aussies to visit."
Queenstown Business Chamber of Commerce chief executive Sharon Fifield said given what was happening around the world at present, it was good to see the two leaders continuing to strengthen their relationship.
In a statement, Mr Luxon said one certainty in an otherwise uncertain world was the Australia-New Zealand relationship was the "bedrock as we look out into the world".
"Australia is our only formal ally and a vital economic partner.
"With a two-way trade of $32 billion, I look forward to discussing what more we can do as we tackle economic challenges on both sides of the Tasman."
