Younger U.K. visitors here?

Press, 28 February 1981, Page 10

Younger U.K. visitors here?

BY

FELICITY PRICE

A big international travel firm is looking at new ways of promoting New Zealand to British tourists. It wants to open up the market to a much wider range of travellers than those who want to visit their young families on the other side of the world. Mrs Carol Arnold, manager of Blue Star Travel, has been staying in Christchurch this week during a three-week tour of New Zealand with her daughter, Mrs ' Nika Challacomb. Mrs Arnold is based in Rustington, Sussex, but her agency has branches all over Europe, and in the United States. When she returns to England, Mrs Arnold will be holding a series of promotional evenings to introduce her clients to New Zealand, and to try to persuade them to come here.

“The distance from England to New Zealand is great, . of course. Two countries couldn’t be further apart. But travel and communications these days have made distances seem closer and people are travelling further and further afield,’’ she points out.

Mrs Arnold says that her agency sold a lot of trips to New Zealand from England, but most of them were for older people who wanted to visit their children and grandchildren in New Zealand. “I would like to try to promote New Zealand to people who are between

30 and 50, . perhaps with teen-age children, or young couples without children,” she explains. “I can see the possibility of a big market opening up here, in that age group.”

Mrs Arnold and her daughter have been most impressed with New Zealand — with its “magnificent variety of scenery, its well-appointed hotels, its warm climate, and its beautiful beaches.”

In spite of the gloomy weather of the last few days, they v.rre determined to get a suntan, to "show off to people at home.” By catching a few hours of sun whenever they had the chance, they have done quite well. Perhaps one of the best ways for British families to see New Zealand, they have decided, would be to hire some of the many camper vans available, and to tour the country from one end to the other.

“I know that the English would love it here.

For one thing, New Zealanders speak the' same language. It sounds funny, I know, but with Europe on our back doorstep, we can pop over to France or Spain for comparatively little cost. However, the language barrier is always a problem.” Carol Arnold has been in the travel business most of her working life — first as an air hostess for East African Airways, and then as an agent for Blue Star Travel. During her lifetime, she has been to just about every country in the world, except Russia and Rumania. This is her first visit to New Zealand. Mrs Arnold has had multiple sclerosis _ for many years, but it is in remission, ' which has enabled her to lead an active life. She thinks she will return with her husband, a builder, and see more of the country and its people.

Her daughter owns a hotel in Devon, and is enjoying the holiday. The two are hoping to leave Christchurch on Friday for the Bay of Islands — providing they can get. a flight into Auckland. After a few days there, they are off to Singapo~e for a few days before returning home. Mrs Arnold says that the industrial problems in the travel industrv in this part of the world will be one of the things that she will not he telling people, about when she gets back to Britain.