Dunedin tourism operators are putting the city on show for 32 Australian travel agents this weekend.
The agents are being hosted as part of Tourism New Zealand's biggest-ever trade familiarisation and training event, involving 440 international visitors.
Agents from the United Kingdom, Europe, North America, Mexico and Australia were divided into 24 tours throughout the country, each comprising 10 days of travel.
Their experience included a workshop about how to sell New Zealand to travellers.
Last weekend Tourism Dunedin hosted 14 agents from Europe and the UK for a single night as part of the nationwide tour programme.
The German and British agents also visited Oamaru and the Catlins.
Today Australian agents will travel to Dunedin from Mount Cook, via Oamaru.
They will participate in a haggis ceremony this evening and tomorrow will tour Larnach Castle, before going on a Monarch Wildlife Cruises and Tours trip around Otago Peninsula.
The agents will then do the Speight's Brewery Tour and have dinner at the Ale House.
They will travel to Christchurch on Monday morning.
Tourism Dunedin chief executive Hamish Saxton said the best way for travel agents to be enthusiastic about destinations and activities was to experience them.
They would become ambassadors for Dunedin, he said.
''Australia remains our largest international market and, as we still have direct flights between Brisbane and Dunedin, it is of utmost importance.''
