NORTHERN ADVOCATE DAILY SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1926. TOURIST TRAFFIC

Northern Advocate, 20 February 1926, Page 4

NORTHERN ADVOCATE DAILY

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1926. TOURIST TRAFFIC

Registered for transmission through the post as a newspaper.

The fact that scenic beauties, natural phenomena and historic and sentimental associations are valuable assets to the countries fortunate enough to possess them is becoming increasingly recognised. New Zealand is bountifully pro- [ vided. with scenic and natural wonders —in which are included' the remarkable thermal region—and it is pleasing to note an organised, though woefully belated, attempt to make those attractions as widely known.as they should be known. This is a commonsense movement, which has sound business grounds for foundation. It has been rightly queried whether New Zealand's prim-i ary industries or her tourist traffic are the more valuable assets. Nobody would seriously suggest the subordination of the Dominion's primary industries, 'but, at the same time, it is questionable whether our tourist aTtractions,- properly developed, would not produce revenue that ' favourable • comparison with that fronr. j primary products/ As a .criterion of what,-in-a of course, might be: expected by'New Zealand,,it is interesting to recaJl A cable message recently received from Paris. In that message was indlcate'd the.value of the tourist traffic 'to' 'France;' '• The French National Tourist Office estimated, if ! was.stated, .that, more than one. million' tourists visit France in a year, and spend the very substantial sum of 76 " millions sterling in . that country. To . this total, it was said, Americans contribute 27 millions, and British people 21 millions. .France, of course, appeals x strongly to the 'people of Great Britain, . as it has so varied an' offering of interest, and all within easy reach. We : do hot have at hand the details of what the tourist traffic means to Switzerland, but the harvest reached by that fas-' t cinating eountry is enormous. It is. estimated that Americans of the r leisured class spend something like £76 per head in France, and an equal amount in Switzerland. What a similar

expenditure in New Zealand would moan is obvious. New Zealand, by its comparative isolation, cannot expect to entertain many to whom the Continent appeals by reason of its proximity and corresponding cheapness, but it may reasonably anticipate a larger per capita expenditure by reason of the fact that wealthier Britishers and Americans can make the journey to these parts. It is very satisfactory to know that the tourist .traffic in New Zealand is showing a steady increase. To the end of December last the returns showed an increase of £34,000 over those of the corresponding period of the previous year, and it was anticipated that 'by the end of the financial [year the increase will amount to at | least £40,000. This is gratifying. But |it is only the beginning of a growth j which we confidently predict will be rapid and enduring.