Kiran Nambiar, business development director, Destination Queenstown speaks about the multifaceted offerings of Queenstown and his strategy of engaging with the travel trade in India
How would you define your new role as business development head of Queenstown vis a vis the global inbound travel market?
As the tourism marketing organisation for an internationally recognised destination, my role as business development director will focus on developing the strategy and strengthening relationships in the travel trade, conferencing and incentive and education industries in key markets, both international and domestic, to bring visitors to Queenstown.
Under your leadership, what’s your primary strategy to push the destination forward, both within and outside NZ?
Destination Queenstown’s vision is to position Queenstown as the Southern Hemisphere’s premier four season lake and alpine resort. Our strategy is to sustainably grow visitation to the destination by promoting travel during the shoulder seasons, and encouraging visitors to stay longer.
Queenstown is known as the adventure capital of the world. Would you be introducing some other unique highlights as well about the region that goes beyond adventure?
Queenstown is renowned as the adventure capital of the world, and we value this informal title greatly – however there is so much more to Queenstown! Queenstown’s luxury offering incorporates exclusive experiences such as private helicopter charters, exclusive activities, and some of New Zealand’s finest dining experiences with luxury hotels, lodges and private residences. It’s a popular honeymoon destination amongst international travellers and New Zealanders for this reason. Our destination is also known as a world class wine region, producing award-winning and renowned Pinot Noir to complement the high quality food offering available here, including Indian cuisine, vegetarian options, contemporary New Zealand dining and a range of international options owing to Queenstown’s cosmopolitan and diverse resident population. Furthermore, The Queenstown Trail is 120 km of undulating trails which form the basis of Queenstown’s cycling and walking offering, another drawcard for visitors from all over the world.
Keeping your long standing and strong connect with the India market, would India be treated with a special business strategy?
India is an emerging market for Queenstown and New Zealand as a whole. As such the strategy for this market alongside others is to encourage the Indian travel trade to increase their knowledge of Queenstown. It’s important to note that the peak outbound travel time over Indian summer aligns perfectly with Queenstown’s autumn, a time of year DQ works to promote as an ideal time to visit. Alongside the gorgeous autumn colours which give visitors a show, there are a number of events on in Queenstown and the surrounding region during this time, including the Akarua Arrowtown Autumn Festival (19-25 April) and later in June, the Real Journeys Queenstown Winter Festival (21-24 June)
What are the promotional strategies you intend to incorporate for India and other prime countries and regions?
I believe in improving the capability of our partners in the trade, C&I and education by equipping them with the tools to best sell Queenstown. I look forward to working closely with our partners in all markets to further develop our
relationship.
What is Queenstown’s present turnover and what’s the expected target for 2018-19?
In the year to June 2017 3.2 million visitors came to Queenstown, and 70 per cent of those visitors came from overseas. Destination Queenstown’s focus is to sustainably grow tourism to the region by encouraging visitation during the shoulder seasons of autumn (April through June) and spring (September through November), and encourage visitors to stay for longer.