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Queenstown Mayor Jim Boult and the team at Destination Queenstown have been to Shanghai and Hangzhou for their inaugural China Tourism Exchange. They were the first municipal delegation from New Zealand to China ahead of the 2019 China-New Zealand Year of Tourism.

Focused on showcasing Queenstown as a premium four-season destination, a select group of ‘New Zealand and Queenstown Inc.’ businesses joined the Mayor in events that saw them progress trade relationships. The cornerstone business-focused event of the visit was a VIP dinner in Shanghai that gave 90 Chinese travel industry partners a personal taste of Queenstown’s premium experiences.

The China Tourism Exchange was also the launch event for Destination Queenstown’s new winter strategy in China, encouraging travel during winter and educating the Chinese travel industry on the different ways to experience Queenstown during New Zealand’s ski season.

China’s snowboarding legend Wang Lei was a guest of Destination Queenstown in Shanghai. During this event, he shared his experiences training in the Southern Lakes with attendees and local Chinese travel trade media.

Destination Queenstown chief executive Graham Budd stated:
“Travel is a great creator of friendships, and this Exchange will help further the work that our operators are already undertaking in this important market to promote Queenstown’s four-season premium experience, from activities to accommodation and sightseeing products.”

Queenstown Mayor Jim Boult says tourism is a vital driver for economic growth and cultural understanding for both our countries.

“With the 2019 China-New Zealand Year of Tourism initiative we have the opportunity to foster new relationships as well as to strengthen the valuable ones we already have.”

Looking for opportunities to further develop the Queenstown-Hangzhou Sister City relationship was on the menu following lunch with local Hangzhou Municipal Government officials. Vice Mayor Chen Weigiang meet with China Tourism Exchange delegates to discuss how to improve relationships and encourage wider sector cooperation between our two countries.

Along with completing travel agent training in Hangzhou, with 60 agents meeting to deepen their knowledge of Queenstown’s tourism offering, the delegation visited the headquarters of international retail giant, Alibaba.

A portion of the delegation has travelled to Chengdu in Sichuan Province to continue their sales mission and connect with the travel industry there.

You can read more about the trip on the Queenstown NZ website(external link).