TOURIST TRADE

Southland Times, Issue 23346, 2 November 1937, Page 12

TOURIST TRADE

NEED FOR EXPLOITATION There is a method whereby New Zealand can receive niillions of pounds without having to send out anything, and so avoid much of the cost and drudgery of producing things, states the Commerce Journal, official publication of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce. This can be achieved by attracting thousands of visitors, who, for the pleasure of sampling our sport or looking at our country, would leave millions of pounds in the Dominion. Every 10,000 tourists annually mean about £1,000,000 left in the country, states the Journal. It is not realized that if we could attract 140,000 visitors yearly their payments here would equal the annual interest on our national debt 0f£280,000,000. Another aspect is that a pleased visitor is a possible investor, whether as a prospective settler or as a participant in a Government or local body loan. There is no embargo on travel except time, expense, and lack of knowledge. These things invention, competition and publicity continually strive to eliminate. Surely it is a wise policy for the Dominion, the first country in the world to set up a State Tourist Department, to concentrate on the exploitation of its remarkable resources of scenery, sport, healing waters and climate, the article concludes