Rotorua shines for business events industry

Photo credit: Mead Norton

Rotorua’s Business Events team is reflecting on a successful week promoting the city at the year’s biggest tradeshow for the business events industry. 

Conferences and business events bring around $50m into the Rotorua economy, so the annual CINZ MEETINGS tradeshow is an important way of sharing the city with the people responsible for organising the country’s most significant business events.   

Destination Rotorua’s Business Events manager Craig Murray was pleased with the number of leads the Rotorua team generated during the two-day conference in Auckland’s ASB Showgrounds. 

“This was my ninth MEETINGS event, and probably the most successful. We worked alongside nine Rotorua operators running appointments with event organisers who are looking for new and interesting ideas for their next big event. 

“We received a lot of interest from Australian corporates this year, with leads ranging from high value incentive groups of 40 people, through to conferences of 450 delegates wanting to stay for four nights. 

“We now have 13 conference organisers requesting proposals, with a potential economic impact to Rotorua of $2.2 million.” 

In the lead-up to MEETINGS, the team hosted a group of professional conference organisers and trade media in Rotorua, introducing them to conference locations and fun delegate experiences. The group’s itinerary included a cruise on a luxury catamaran with Pure Cruise and a soak in the Lake Rotoiti hot pools. This was followed by a Volcanic Air float plane excursion, landing on Lake Tarawera, then a transfer with Multi Day Adventures to Black Barn for dinner. The next day they stopped in at Off Road NZ and then Hobbiton on their way up to Auckland.  

Craig explains: “The best way to tell Rotorua’s unique story is to bring a group of people here so they can experience it for themselves. This group had such a great time that they couldn’t stop telling the other MEETINGS delegates all about it!”

To see a video of their experience, please click here.

ENDS