Tourism
Media releases about travel and tourism.
14 January 2016
NZ golf tourism set to get trans-Tasman boost
Golf tourism in New Zealand is set to get a boost after the launch of the Great NZ Golf Guide, a new AA Traveller/Tourism New Zealand partner publication that will highlight the very best New Zealand has to offer golfers.
15 December 2015
Demand for travel information grows as summer sets in
New Zealand’s love for a good summer adventure has seen domestic travel experts AA Traveller distribute more than three million maps and guides to keep up with growing demand.
20 October 2015
8 summer swimming holes
It’s a Kiwi summer tradition – grabbing your towel and togs and heading to wherever you can dip, dive and drop into some water, but where are the best places to go?
28 September 2015
Popularity of new guide fuelled by pedal power
New Zealanders love their bikes and the speed at which the 2016 New Zealand Cycle Trail Guide has disappeared off shelves proves it.
25 September 2015
Summer holiday accommodation booking up fast, says AA Traveller
If you haven’t booked your summer holiday accommodation yet, you may be about to miss out on popular properties.
31 August 2015
Watch out for monkeys and false teeth
When it comes to travel disasters the team at AA Travel Insurance has heard its fair share of horror stories.
31 August 2015
Hamilton motel’s 24-hour approach wins national award
Hamilton motel Astra Motor Lodge never sleeps. Located near Waikato Hospital the team receives calls at all hours from the Intensive Care Unit or emergency departments asking for rooms for family members.
18 August 2015
National award in arms reach for three moteliers
When it comes to outstanding customer service, three motels have proven they’re the best in the industry and are now up for a national award.Far flung Stewart Island’s Bay Motel, Radfords on the Lake in Te Anau, and Astra Motor Lodge in Hamilton are all finalists for the AA Traveller Supreme Host of the Year award.The coveted award, now in its eighth year, recognises and celebrates motels with exceptional standards of customer service and hospitality.This included examples of placing hot water bottles in beds 10 minutes before guests with medical conditions arrived, to helping a husband surprise his wife on her birthday by organising a romantic waterfront dinner with a personalised cake and chocolate and bubbles for the couple’s room.In addition all three motels proved to be the go-to expert on tourism information for their towns, and also provided the means to get to where their guests wanted to be.As online accommodation reviews increasingly make or break businesses, AA Tourism Publishing General Manager Moira Penman says often the choice between staying with one motel over another comes down to what customers can read online.“Now more than ever moteliers need to understand the impact good customer service has on the long...
25 June 2015
Masterton holiday park tops in hospitality
It was countless examples of sacrifices made for guests that won Mawley Holiday Park in Masterton the AA Traveller Spirit of Hospitality Award last night at the Holiday Parks Conference in Auckland.
18 June 2015
Small kindnesses lead to national hospitality recognition
When it comes to creating the ultimate holiday experience, five holiday parks from across New Zealand know just what it takes to turn an average vacation into the ultimate holiday experience.Mawley Holiday Park in Masterton, Beachaven Kiwi Holiday Park in Waihi, Queenstown Lakeview Holiday Park, Waikanae Beach Top 10 near Gisborne and Whangateau Holiday Park north of Auckland have been selected as finalists for the AA Traveller Spirit of Hospitality Award.The award recognises and celebrates the effort put in by the people who provide the experiences at New Zealand holiday parks.AA Tourism Publishing General Manager Moira Penman says it’s often small acts of kindness, along with hosts consistently doing that little bit extra for their guests, that makes these finalists stand out.“The finalists this year have shown outstanding examples of hospitality from specially catering Christmas breakfast to make international guests feel at home, to providing lifejackets and fixing the wheel on a trailer to ensure two young boys got to enjoy their first ever fishing trip with their dad,” says Ms Penman.“Each of our five finalists has gone above and beyond to make hospitality in the holiday park sector truly shine,” she says.