Tapping into wine tourism

Obviously not all of that was on wine – but there is the opportunity for wineries to increase their share of that spend.

Keri Edmonds, New Zealand Winegrowers Wine Tourism Manager, says the international wine tourist is spending more, staying longer and visiting more regions than the average visitor. They also are not seasonal travelers, they visit all year round. In essence they are premium travelers who are looking for experiences and memories. To tap into that lucrative market, wineries need to be ensuring they are catering for their needs.

Edmonds says the behavior of consumers and wine travelers in particular has changed in the past decade. Where once the product itself was enough to entice travelers, now their focus is more on the experience created by the product or service. Travellers want to be able to taste in a conducive space, they want to be able to dine or stay and they want experiences outside the normal tasting.

In response, NZW has established WINE+, which provides wineries with the opportunity to collaborate with each other as well as work with other tourism providers to create diverse experiences.

Research undertaken last year by NZW shows there are 279 wineries offering more than 400 wine tourism experiences in New Zealand. They range from cellar doors with tastings to restaurants, accommodation, wine tasting experiences with winemakers, tours of vineyards and cycling or sailing activities.

Those current experiences are highlighted on nzwine.com/visit, broken down into four separate segments – Sip, Dine, Stay and Play. Since it was launched 14 months ago, it has had over 20,000 unique visitors. “The highest visited pages are actually Dine or Stay, not the Sip,” Edmond says, “this demonstrates the wine tourist is wanting a WINE+ experience whilst visiting our wineries”

She says it is vital that all wineries who have some form of experience, ensure their details are up to date within the site. 

With partners Air New Zealand, Tourism New Zealand and Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE), there are plenty of other opportunities for wineries to get their individual messages out. Particularly on newzealand.com, New Zealand Tourism’s global website.

“It is used by a significant number of international travelers as a research tool,” she says, “before they come to New Zealand. There is a food and wine section where you can list for free, your winery experience.”

Given in 2017 there were over 50 million unique visitors, this is a fantastic opportunity for wineries to promote themselves.

There are also a number of modules that wineries can download that specifically provide information on the tourism sector. 

Developed by NZW and Tourism NZ, the modules only take a few minutes to complete and range in topics from wine as an international tourism opportunity through to growing the Chinese market. All are available on the nzwine.com members website. 

While a lot of emphasis has been placed on the international wine visitor, the industry cannot forget that the domestic visitor also plays an important role. 

With an average income of just under $100,000, more women than men visit a winery, 55 percent female, versus 45 percent male. 

On average they will visit three wineries in a day, and again are looking for more than just a tasting – they also want experiences. 

Wine Tourism’s focus areas

Product development: This is where NZW can help you to develop wine experiences. A tourism toolbox is currently being developed that looks at successful wine tourism experiences, not just here in New Zealand but overseas as well. This will be a valuable source for wineries looking to extend their tourism attractions. NZW are also facilitating product development and capability workshops in each wine region over the financial year.

Partnerships: NZW is working closely with Air NZ, Tourism NZ, Regional tourism organisations and Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE) to develop and promote winery visitor experiences.

Promotion: Through the nzwine.com/visit website and social media pages of other partners, the experiences available for wine tourists can reach millions of potential visitors. 

Preparation: Keri Edmonds and NZW as a whole are only too happy to help wineries develop their visitor strategies. Again, the building of resource material and tools will play a big role in this focus area.

Support: Edmonds says that is the role of NZW first and foremost – “to provide value to our members”.

What you can do: Send any tourism relevant photos to NZW so they can be used in future promotions. (Wineries will be credited). Update your information in the nzwine.com/visit pages. 

Make sure when you use social media you include not only the #nzwine, but also your own winery hashtag and also #nzmustdo. This hashtag has a million images on it already, all promoting the amazing experiences available in New Zealand. 

But Edmonds says the wine images a few and far between. You can help change that.  Keep an eye out for your regional product development and capability building workshop. 

National Cellar Door Day

This new NZW Wine Tourism initiative takes place on Saturday November 17. The aim is to drive awareness for the upcoming summer tourist season, and help drive more visitors to cellar doors throughout the country. Currently NZW are developing a social media campaign and member toolkit to support the launch of this event, which is to be an annual one.

Regional and sub-regional associations are encouraged to work together, along with local members and capitalise on social media what activities are available individually and at a regional level.

Diarise the date now – November 17, National Cellar Door Day.