New Zealand’s high-value business events industry hits the spotlight tomorrow when CINZ Meetings 2017 opens in host city Auckland.

Conventions and Incentives New Zealand (CINZ) Chief Executive, Sue Sullivan says the two-day exhibition is the largest in the event’s 21 year history, showcasing 19 regions and more than 195 exhibitors to over 500 conference, event and incentive organisers.

“Exhibitors and buyers will hold more than 6,000 meetings during our two days of pre-scheduled appointments and social networking events. With the support of key regional convention bureaux and Air New Zealand, we have also hosted 44 Australian buyers and media on seven different regional pre-MEETINGS tours, and another 36 will visit Hobbiton and Hamilton-Waikato on Friday.”

Last year MEETINGS generated more than $55million of signed business during its two days of pre-scheduled appointments.

New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism Hon. Paula Bennett will be joined by industry leaders to visit MEETINGS on Thursday 1 June.

Sue Sullivan says New Zealand is becoming recognised as a world-class conference, incentive and event destination. “Our industry is at the centre of high-value tourism, as one of the key drivers of the sector’s development. It is a significant generator of income, employment, investment and knowledge-sharing for New Zealand,” she says.

“With the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC) underway in Auckland, and a boutique-style, premium central venue in Christchurch, New Zealand is set to capture a bigger share of the international multi-day convention market.

“Regional New Zealand will also benefit from these new venues, as large conferences book to take their sub-conferences to venues outside of the main centres.”

Convention Delegate Survey results from the Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment (MBIE) for the year to December 2016 show international conference visitors stayed an average of six nights in New Zealand, spending an estimated $334 per night, double the average spend for all international visitors.

Multi-day conventions generated 1,005,000 visitor nights in New Zealand with delegates spending an estimated $588 million in 2016. On average each international delegate spent a total of $2,009 in New Zealand. MBIE’s latest Convention Activity Survey shows the number of delegates attending all events increased to 3.6 million in the year ended March 2017, from 3.4 million in the year ended March 2016, while the total number of delegate days increased to 4.5 million in the year to March 2017, compared to 4.2 million the previous year.

MEETINGS attracts international conference and incentive organisers, brought here with support from Tourism New Zealand (TNZ) and Air New Zealand. They include more than 35 hosted buyers and industry media from China, India, South-East Asia and North America, and over 85 from Australia. For the first time, Air New Zealand is bringing a group of influential buyers from Argentina to attend MEETINGS.