More than $550,000 has already been distributed to events in Fiordland and Southland since April this year, from the Government’s Regional Event funds administered by Great South.
The Southland fund is now exhausted, but $200,500 is still available for events based in Fiordland. A total of $180,000 has been distributed to 16 events in Southland and $359,500 distributed to 16 events in Fiordland, across two funding rounds.
Among the successful applicants for events in Southland were the Matariki Festival and the NZ Junior Motocross Championships and successful local applicants for events in Fiordland include HopnVine and the Kepler Challenge and Luxmore Grunt.
There will be two more rounds for Fiordland events, the first closing February 25 next year, and the second on August 26.
The fund was established by the Government as part of its post Covid-19 Tourism Recovery package, to stimulate domestic tourism by supporting existing events or helping grow new events.
Great South GM Tourism and Events Bobbi Brown said it was pleasing to see some new applicants and some fresh thinking to attract visitors to the region.
‘‘The funding is all about attracting visitors from outside of the region by encouraging them to attend our unique events.
‘‘There are also some bigger sporting events and conferences being held in the region that will bring a lot of visitors to Southland and who will be encouraged to take the time to experience the region.’’
Southland District Council deputy mayor and Fiordland funding panel member Ebel Kremer said it was exciting the funding had also attracted some key large-scale events to Fiordland, like the Spirited Women adventure race in October 2022 and the NZ Rodeo Nationals in March 2023, that were likely to attract more than 3000 visitors each. ‘‘Events like these will provide a much-needed boost to the community.’’
