Concerns over a "creeping" sense New Zealand's image as a safe adventure tourism destination is under threat were aired at an industry forum in Queenstown last night.
Tourism Industry Association (TIA) advocacy manager Geoff Ensor told about 70 industry representatives who attended the Adventure Tourism Forum the Department of Labour's adventure tourism review, which was sparked by "some bad and savage accidents", would tighten safety expectations for both the New Zealand public and overseas visitors and lessen their "tolerance for mistakes".
He said it would take three years to "embed" the review's recommendations but revealed 2011 would be a "big year", bringing "core changes", including moves to bring non-registered operators "out of the woodwork" by October.
A J Hackett Bungy chief executive Michelle Trapski backed the review but stressed moves had to be made quickly to stem foreign tourists' "creeping" sense of "jittery" unease since the review began in 2009.
"We're starting to see a slight impact and it's concerning if we don't start to mitigate that ... it's quite hard operating under a cloud. No-one's come out with definite steps that we as a sector can confidently go out to our customers with," she said.
Kiwi Discovery and Queenstown Rafting general manager Tim Barke echoed the concerns, saying the overwhelming number of operators met safety criteria.
"The message that we need to get out is that we're already OK. There are a few holes to fill, but we need to get that message offshore," he said.
Queenstown Lakes District harbourmaster Marty Black said accidents were "inevitable" but a big part of the problem was the "old Kiwi attitude - let's have a go, she'll be right. That mindset's got to change."
He said the district suffered from the "Queenstown syndrome - we're tall poppies" - and said the resort suffered undue scrutiny when accidents or deaths occurred in the Lakes district compared with other parts of the country.
Mr Ensor acknowledged the TIA may not have responded quickly enough to operators' concerns over negative visitor perceptions, especially given next year's Rugby World Cup.
"We understand there's a sense of urgency."
Among the review's recommendations are a registration scheme for businesses operating outside Civil Aviation Authority and Maritime New Zealand audits, the establishment of an industry-led body, the development of a practice guide - especially for new operators - and the evaluation of accredited auditing systems
