Revitalizing Paradise: Wānaka's Tourism Renaissance and the Green Future Ahead with Tim Barke
Feb 07, 2024Season 2Episode 4
The Wānaka App
The Outlet, The Talk of Wānaka
Discover the resilience and innovation that have catapulted Wānaka's tourism industry back to life post-pandemic, as Tim Barke, Chief Executive of Lake Wānaka Tourism, joins us for a chat. We unravel the creative ways local businesses pivoted during tough times, from tourist vehicles morphing into lifelines delivering food parcels, to an apple crumble craze that sweetened the community spirit. Hear how this breathtaking region has not only bounced back but is setting new benchmarks with its commitment to sustainability and the electric buzz around the anticipated rise in electric vehicles.
Discover the resilience and innovation that have catapulted Wānaka's tourism industry back to life post-pandemic, as Tim Barke, Chief Executive of Lake Wānaka Tourism, joins us for a chat. We unravel the creative ways local businesses pivoted during tough times, from tourist vehicles morphing into lifelines delivering food parcels, to an apple crumble craze that sweetened the community spirit. Hear how this breathtaking region has not only bounced back but is setting new benchmarks with its commitment to sustainability and the electric buzz around the anticipated rise in electric vehicles.
The stress that people have gone through the community and in tourism through COVID-19 has really left quite a deep impact on people. A lot of people have recognised the value that visitors bring to the district. We've all known that it's been a really key part of our economy. But they also bring a lot of vibrancy and events come with them, so locals and businesses alike have really been excited about welcoming people back.
Brent:
Welcome to the Outlet. I'm your host, Brent Harbour. In this podcast I talk to Tim Barke, chief Executive of Lake Wanaka Tourism. We talk about the recovery of Wanaka's tourism industry following COVID-19. How we're faring with tourism numbers and how the local community and tourism operators have embraced the return of visitors, along with some inspiring success stories and innovative approaches that have fuelled Wanaka's recovery.
Brent:
Let's have a look at what's on in Wanaka, brought to you by Liquorland Three Parks there for your next even t with Unreal Deals. Little Peddlers bike confidence courses run every Wednesday 1pm to 5pm. Now they're 45 minute session times at 1pm, 2pm, 3pm or 4pm. So make sure you come and join Electric Meg and the team to help your little one gain confidence on the bike. Now it's suitable for beginner bikers aged 7 and under. Meg will teach skills like safe braking and turning, biking around obstacles and cycling independently to help build confidence and get them ready for the trails. All the info can be found by clicking on Things to Do then events on your Wanaka app. Tim Barke is the Chief Executive of Lake Wanaka Tourism. In this chat we talk about the great innovations in Wanaka during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. We see if tourism numbers are keeping pace with the rest of the country and how the local community and tourism operators have embraced the return of visitors. Hi Tim, welcome to the Outlet Podcast.
Tim:
Thanks, Brent thanks for having me on board again.
Brent:
Not a problem. So tourism numbers appear to be improving around the country. How is Wanaka doing on its recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic?
Tim:
Now Wanaka is actually doing really well. We're back to pre-COVID-19 levels. We've had a really good summer. The businesses have been busy. The staffing levels have recovered a lot. That was last season. There was a lot of stress, businesses just not being able to get enough staff. There are still some shortages, but in general people are feeling a lot happier in where they're at, which is great.
Brent:
And how have the local community and tourism operators been in welcoming visitors back?
Tim:
Really good. Yeah, the stress that people have gone through the community and in tourism through COVID-19 has really left quite a deep impact on people and a lot of people have recognised the value that visitors bring to the district. I mean, we've all known that it's been a really key part of our economy. But they also bring a lot of vibrancy and events come with them, so locals and businesses alike have really been excited about welcoming people back.
Brent:
So could you share some success stories or innovative approaches that you've seen from the business community and the recovery?
Tim:
I was having a think about that. There's a lot of different stories of different businesses doing things both through COVID, and those stories are some of the coolest because a lot of them were focused on they needed to try and survive, but a lot of them were focused on well, everybody else in the community needs to survive as well. So we found a lot of businesses who, especially in tourism, if the visitor numbers weren't there, then how can they use their planned equipment to do other things? For example, there's some who volunteered vehicles to go and deliver food parcels to people that needed it, and other ones pivoted their businesses to be able to and that's a horrible word, everybody in tourism hates that pivoting, but rethinking how they could get through or what they could do. There was one really cool story of a food and beverage business who was thinking what can we do? We really need to get some revenue and let's make some epic crumble. We'll see if any of the locals want to make it crumble. And from what I heard, they put it out and the business network shared it and I think they ended up selling three tons of Apple Crumble to locals. Wow, it was something phenomenal. And not everybody needed the Apple Crumble, but Apple Crumble's nice and what a great way to help keep a business through.
Tim:
Lots of interesting ones. There was other ones where people are trying new things during the quieter period where they had time to focus on it, redesigning some of their products. There's a lot of products coming out which have a regenerative focus, so having getting visitors involved and how we like to look after the place locally, so some of the checking trap lines and that becomes part of the product. There's a forage and feast one where people are going out and actually finding what food you can you can actually eat that grows wild in the area. Yeah, all sorts of different plants..
Brent:
I mean it, is people really thinking about what they do and what else they can do? I suppose if this hadn't have happened, you might have just sat back and thought well, this is the business right.
Tim:
Yeah, that's right, exactly. I mean, even you know there are likes of helicopter operators who have jumped in helping with conservation efforts, and there's one helicopter operator who has put solar panels all over the anger and they're putting together a hydroelectric scheme to help pump electricity back into the grid and, you know, make the grid more resilient, and you know, stuff like that is just gold for this community. That's one of the one of the big challenges that we've got coming up here to. This is an electricity network system that's got to be able to survive the increasing demand for electric vehicles, and having locals doing that is, you know, if you can do it, that's perfect, and so I think there's got to be more of that going on.
Brent:
It's not just going to be the cars. There's boats, there's scooters, there's so many different things now that they're managing to get electric, so that will be really important, won't it?
Tim:
Yeah, that's absolutely right, and you know the cool stuff about businesses that are coming up with these innovative ideas of how they can help the place in the community. It becomes good business for them as well. You know those are the stories that they share and we share them through Lake Wadukatourism and the work that we do in our marketing and that's making us more attractive internationally. Because there was research that literally came out yesterday from the government which shows that visitor demand is changing quite significantly, especially internationally, that people are looking for businesses and products that are the good track records for looking after the place, because I think there was a lot of negative publicity through COVID in particular, and people when they're travelling now they want to feel like they're doing something good for the place and that they're actually making a positive impact, rather than feeling that they're not going to be welcome because you know they're creating a negative impact.
Brent:
We'll get back to my chat with Tim Bark, Chief Executive of Lake Wanaka Tourism, in just a moment, but first here's a couple of jobs listed on the Wanaka app, thanks to New World Three Parks, for when it's your job to do the grocery shopping.
Brent:
These are current as of February 8th 2024. Klean commercial requires a commercial cleaner starting this month. Now the roll is 15 hours per week, paying $35 per hour, and all work can be completed during the day, with the bulk in the afternoon days, a Monday to Friday and every second weekend. And Central Heating Solutions are looking for a heat pump installer to provide customer driven service focusing on high quality heating systems and high efficiency heating designs. You can join the teams based in Wanaka, Queenstown or Cromwell to install and maintain heat pump systems in a wide range of rewarding projects. For these jobs and more, click on the jobs button on the navigation bar of your Wanaka app. Now we get back to my chat with Tim Barke, chief Executive of Lake Wadukatourism. Sustainability in tourism and also, you know, social enterprise too, is very important for a lot of people when they're planning what they're doing.
Tim:
Yeah, yeah, it is, it absolutely is, and you know it's quite an extensive study the government did and we've now got hard evidence that these markets are changing Really. Interestingly, and, to be perfectly honest, that's quite surprised me, but the two countries that show the strongest interest in those types of products are that type of change and considering those when they select which businesses and products they're going to go with are India and China.
Brent:
Yeah.
Tim:
Yeah, those markets are important to us on a number of different levels. As climate change becomes a bigger thing and where everybody is focusing on carbon emissions and how can we reduce the limit. Our primary markets for Wanaka and New Zealand are Australia and domestic, but the ones Southeast Asia in particular are sort of the next closest and people are considering their impact when they choose who they get a book with and where they're going to go. So being able to come here to a place that has this amazing natural vibrancy reputation and to a place where they're confident that communities are going to welcome them is really important.
Brent:
Yeah, that's really good to know. So are there any upcoming events or developments in Wanaka tourism that you're really excited about?
Tim:
Yeah, I mean we got the destination management plan done after two years of research and liaising and communicating with the community and community groups and businesses, and we're now focused on the implementation of that. We learned a huge amount of what our community wants and what's the future to look like and how tourism they see tourism as being able to help contribute to that. So that's what we're focusing on implementing. But there are other things, like you know, some a lot of the events that we're able to operate through COVID-19 are now starting to get going again. We've got Challenge Wanaka coming up very shortly, and likewise Warbirds over Wanaka. That's been a six-year hiatus because of just the timing. That's really exciting to be able to get them back up and going. And that got a really significant technological advance, an aviation part of their program. So I'll be really interested to see what that looks like too, because there's a huge amount of technology that's changing so rapidly and especially in aviation and other transport.
Brent:
So if people want to find out some more information. Where are the best places online to follow more about what's happening in tourism in Wanaka, Tim ?
Tim:
Best places. Just go on to wanakaconz. That's our Lake Wanaka Tourism regional platform for visitors and the community and industry. There are lots and lots of different stories about what's going on. There are events that are coming up, but there are also stories about what businesses are doing and what community groups are doing. We've also just launched a. We've been working with the local historic society and the library to be able to launch an online version of a historic timeline for the area so that again, locals and businesses and their staff can learn more and more about what happened in this place in the past and, you know, they can add those into their common truth.
Brent:
Oh, that's good. Well, it's been so good talking to you again, Tim. I'm sure we'll catch up again soon. Thanks, Brent.
Tim:
Great to talk with you as well.
Brent:
Thanks for listening to The Outlet, your local interview and information podcast for Wanaka. Now, if you do have a story or an interview you think should be featured on the outlet podcast, just get in touch by using the contact button on the navigation bar of your Wanaka app. The Outlet is produced and published by the Wanaka app and it's supported with funding from the New Zealand Public Interest Journalism Fund. All episodes of The Outlet are available in the podcast section of your Wanaka app and wherever you get your podcasts.