New Zealand's biggest annual international tourism showcase Trenz will be held in Dunedin for the first time next year, Tourism Industry Aotearoa announced today.
Trenz 2017 is currently on at The Cloud and Shed 10 on Auckland's waterfront and was held in Rotorua in 2015 and 2016.
Tourism Industry Aotearoa Chief Executive Chris Roberts said they were delighted that Dunedin, in partnership with Southland and Waitaki, would be the host region for 2018, the first time Trenz has returned to the South Island since 2012.
"Trenz 2018 will bring up to 1200 international travel and tourism buyers, media and New Zealand tourism operators to Dunedin and will be one of the largest events for the city in the last decade.
"At what is traditionally a quiet time for local Dunedin tourism businesses, Trenz 2018 will inject several million dollars into the city's economy, including accommodation, transport, meals, functions and the hundreds of thousands of dollars spent staging the event," he said.
Mayor of Dunedin Dave Cull said today's announcement was a major coup for the
city and the wider region.