Destination Queenstown chief executive Tony Everitt was in Auckland yesterday to discuss with Tourism NZ and Jetstar how DQ and Wakatipu tourism operators can take advantage of the new multi-media marketing partnership.
Asked what the deal meant for customers, Tourism NZ marketing and communications general manager Justin Watson said in a telephone press conference yesterday it provided more choice.
Jetstar Group chief executive Bruce Buchanan described Queenstown yesterday as "one of our primary strategic leisure hubs".
"One of the primary focuses of this partnership is building the Australian [market] and we think Queenstown is a fantastic product to be marketing ... I've got a soft spot for Queenstown; it's where I holiday with my family every year, and it's high on my agenda." Mr Buchanan said there were a lot of different elements that drove tourism growth.
Jetstar was keen to partner with Queenstown Airport over the medium term to increase the number of flights, including the introduction of night flights.
"If that happens, the range of flight possibilities into Queenstown and growth goes up dramatically," he said.
"The other variable is the airport capacity. The work they've done on extending the runway, the runway lights and the international terminal are all critical for us to grow that destination. So once those constraints are solved, then you'll see continued growth from us in the Queenstown market." Asked if a budget airline meant budget tourists and a high volume of visitors with low-spending habits, Mr Everitt said not necessarily.
"Different types of visitors spend their money on different things," he said.
"If you look at the backpacking sector, for example, they're maybe spending a small percentage of their total budget on accommodation, but you'll find they're spending a lot of money on the activities ... It's really a question of where the visitor chooses to distribute their money."
The partnership announcement followed Air New Zealand's notice on Monday it would increase the number of seats from 1428 to 1818 when it switched from operating three ATR services a day between Queenstown and Rotorua to operating a Boeing 737-300 six days a week from November 2012 to March 2013.
Queenstown Airport aeronautical general manager Simon Barr said on Monday the "larger aircraft and increased flight frequency means more capacity and more visitors to our region".
New Zealand Hotel Council Queenstown chairwoman Penny Clark said on Monday the extra capacity would allow more time-limited travellers to have a whistlestop tour.
"The marketplace has been demanding it ... It's all good news for the hotels, rather than the rugby and motor homes.
"It's another source of customers and anything that brings people into town has to be positive and it will take traffic off the roads."
The national carrier also announced on Monday it would offer a trial service between Christchurch, Mt Cook and Queenstown over six weeks in the peak of summer, to operate three times a week, with flights timed to connect with the direct service between Tokyo and the Garden City.
Christchurch International Airport chief executive Jim Boult, of Lake Hayes, said the Japanese travel market had been calling for such a service for a long time.
"Lots of international travellers book a trip here with the expectation of seeing mountains and lakes, so flying over the Southern Alps and Canterbury plains between Christchurch and Mt Cook, then to Queenstown, will certainly make those travellers happy," he said.
