Hawke’s Bay Tourism

Central Hawke’s Bay

Client:

Central Hawke’s Bay District Council

Location:

Central Hawke’s Bay

Completed:

November 2020

Project Services:

Strategic Advisory
Facilitation
Stakeholder Management
Destination Management Planning
Tourism Infrastructure Needs Assessment

Project overview

With the expected growth of the Central Hawke’s Bay District, the CHBD Council and community identified a need to manage the potential community, character, and economic impact and maximise opportunities. Veros was engaged to create a Destination Management Plan that helped Central Hawke’s Bay maximise visitor opportunities and prosperity while protecting the district’s communities and places.

A Destination Management Plan considers the management of all aspects of a destination that contributes to the visitor experience. The creation of the plan was a multi-stakeholder process that was locally driven and considered the social, cultural, economic, and environmental needs of the community, as well as the drivers for the visitor economy. Development of the plan involved understanding the district’s unique visitor proposition and the opportunities to capitalise on it, as well as the challenges facing its sustainable growth.

adele h about

As part of our work, we were thrilled to visit and learn the story behind Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu! And on a more serious note, we feel privileged to have worked with local stakeholders to develop an implementable, aspirational, and focused plan to develop an authentic, respectful and resilient visitor economy for Central Hawke's Bay.

Adele Hadfield

Strategic Projects Director

hawkes bay view
hawkes bay name
hawkes bay house
hawkes one
hawkes two
hawkes three

Project outcomes

The Destination Plan and Needs Assessment delivered a clear plan to stakeholders, enabling them to increase the value and volume of visitors to the region without negatively impacting locals. With a goal ‘to create a place locals are proud to call home and visitors remember as one of the best trips ever,’ the plan identified a series of priority actions and opportunities to focus on. For a small community, this meant resources had to be wisely allocated to affect real change.

One of the biggest challenges during the project was the impact of Covid-19 and the need to conceive of a post Covid-19 visitor world. In response to the resulting border closures, Tourism New Zealand turned its focus to the domestic tourist market. Luckily, this strategy aligned well with the region’s existing visitor makeup and was supported by an influx of additional domestic tourists as Kiwis embraced the opportunity to explore their own backyard.

Hawkes Bay Tourism

Featured Projects