"We've found a lot of Aucklanders don't know things as we as locals know the place. We shot the commercial in 30 different locations around the region, we've tried to show some of the unknowns, the lakes, the forests, the beautiful sunsets - things that Aucklanders don't know about."
Among those watching the commercial were Bruce Thomasen, deputy chair of the Rotorua Tourism Committee and operations manager at Skyline Rotorua.
"I think it's exciting and spot on," he said.
"It's for all the markets that we're targeting, to put Rotorua back on the spot as a tourism icon. We've got great stuff to do and this ad nails it. I'm proud and pleased about what they've done. These are exciting times."
Featured in the commercial is the Polynesian Spa, whitewater rafting, Zorb, Rotorua Canopy Tours and the Agrodome, among many others.
The campaign has received more than $1.1 million so far, with $400,000 from the tourism industry, $300,000 from Rotorua District Council and $350,000 in the Destination Rotorua budget.
Those at the launch heard one in four visitors to Rotorua came from Auckland, and that was the market they were predominantly targeting with this commercial.
Destination Rotorua general manager Oscar Nathan said he "got tingles" from watching the commercials.
