SuperGold Card to cross the ditch

Photo / NZ Herald

The SuperGold Card is about to go trans-Tasman.

A reciprocal arrangement with Australian state and territorial governments will allow SuperGold cardholders to get discounts in Australia, while their Australian card-holding counterparts will be able to get discounts here, Senior Citizens Minister John Carter said today.

"With all the travel our citizens do between our two countries, I can see this as a great opportunity to grow seniors tourism and build on the Anzac spirit," Mr Carter said.

The scheme would not cover government- or state-funded initiatives, such as free off-peak travel for SuperGold cardholders in New Zealand, and the discounts would be met by businesses that voluntarily opted into the scheme.

Arrangements would be finalised over the next few months.

Mr Carter said senior citizens were a fast-growing population who were travelling more, with more than 100,000 heading over to Australia every year.

"The discounts will help their tourist dollar go further," he said.

The scheme would also encourage more Australians to travel here, bolstering the domestic tourism industry.

Mr Carter said 70,000 Australian seniors travel to New Zealand every year and spend more than $131 million.

The Ministry of Social Development and its Australian counterparts would be encouraging businesses on both sides of the Tasman to participate in the scheme.

There are more than 1300 SuperGold Card business partners in New Zealand with 5600 outlets nationwide.

- NZPA