Yet another award for NZ as a tourism destination

New Zealand was voted Country of the Year 2008 in a popular Australian travel show recently, adding to a number of awards received over the past year, Tourism Minister Damien O'Connor said today.

The travel show Getaway recognised New Zealand for its diversity as a holiday destination, as well as its breathtaking scenery, abundant culture, gourmet food and wine and its endless choice of unique experiences.

Mr O'Connor said many of these attributes underpin our 100% Pure New Zealand image, which is world famous and so important to our reputation as a leading tourism destination.

"It's great that our international visitors are recognising the diversity and uniqueness of New Zealand as a tourism destination. This award shows that our tourism industry is delivering a high-quality experience to visitors.

"The New Zealand Tourism Strategy 2015 highlights the need for New Zealand to deliver a world class visitor experience in order to stay ahead in what is a highly competitive industry globally.

"Offering outstanding customer service and ensuring we offer travellers deep, rich, authentic and unique experiences are crucial factors in delivering a world class visitor experience," said Mr O'Connor.

The award comes after a number of international tourism awards New Zealand has won recently including Best Holiday Destination Worldwide by readers of the British Daily Telegraph newspaper and the Conde Nast Award for number one destination by travellers in the UK.

"For a small country and long haul destination we are doing exceptionally well. To continue to compete with other countries we must deliver a better product than our competitors and ensure we are environmentally, economically, socially and culturally sustainable.

"New Zealand tourism operators should be proud. Our international visitors are obviously extremely satisfied with the experiences they have had here. I thank all operators nationwide and encourage them to keep up the good work," said Mr O'Connor.