NO ROOM FOR PROVINCIALISM.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 238, 8 October 1935, Page 6

NO ROOM FOR PROVINCIALISM.

Where in the North Island are the people who, we are told from time to time, say to tourists, "Don't go to the South"? No officer of the Tourist Department would give such advice, nor would the representatives of shipping companies and motor services be likely to take such a short-sighted view of their own interests. It is reported that an American when in Dunedin said that such advice had been given him, but it should be recalled that a similar report a few months ago was afterwards refuted by the tourist to whom it was attributed.

Unfortunately it is true that a number of tourists arrive at Auckland or Wellington with only a fe\v days at their disposal, and the advice' given them naturally is that they should visit a few of the well-known resorts in the North. But such tourists should not be allowed to leave with the impression that they have seen all the best things the Dominion has to offer. It should be impressed upon them, orally and by means of tourist publications, that there are in the South Island easily accessible scenic attractions very different in kind from those in the North, but no different in quality. The most important "selling point" in our tourist business is not the excellence of our scenic attractions, but their variety and the fact , that all can be seen without excessive travel or expenditure. The tourist business should be regarded as one business, and the advertising of it abroad should not be left entirely to the Tourist Department.