Headache for New Zealand Rugby World Cup hotels
The CEO of the body representing New Zealand’s conference and travel incentive industry has called for more informed research, into the impact of major world sporting events on the meetings industry.
Alan Trotter, CEO of Conventions and Incentives New Zealand, said it was important to stress that New Zealand was still open for business leading up to, and during the Rugby World Cup in September and October this year.
Trotter, speaking at AIME in Melbourne, said there was a “rain shadow†effect on the traditional convention and incentive market caused by a perception that the country’s hotels would be booked out by rugby supporters.
“When a country wins a bid for a major sports events – and the Rugby World Cup (RWC) is third in size only to the Olympic Games and the soccer World Cup – there is, first of al, a wave of euphoria.
“Then there is a perception that the host country will be closed for business for the six months leading up to, during, and after the event. Consequently, meeting planners, with long lead times, are put off booking events for 12 to 18 months ahead of the event.â€
Trotter said that hotels that wanted to be part of the Rugby World Cup had to commit to the bed bank demanded by the International Rugby Board. About 90 percent of New Zealand hotels agreed to do so.
“As a result we had to turn away a lot of meeting and incentive business for the period of the Rugby World Cup and this hasn’t been replaced. Now unsold RWC hotel rooms from the bed bank are back on the market.â€
Alison Rogers, Millenium Hotels and Resorts national director of sales for conferences and incentives, said the chain committed three hotels in Queenstown to the bed bank, and only one room had been taken up; while of 2000 room nights in the RWC bed bank at Rotorua, only 360 had been taken up.â€
Rogers said room rates were not a factor in the demand shortfall because they have risen, on average, only $5 compared to last year.
Ian Jarrett
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