How to Host Famils When No One Can Travel

While the domestic market is active with the entire country in Level 2, international visitors seem a long way off. But they will return.

To that end, we realise we can take this opportunity to refresh our destination proposition, elevate our brand messages and communicate the values of manaakitanga to our travel partners overseas.

Christchurch and Canterbury will still be here, once our borders reopen and we want our travel trade partners to sell our destination to visit.

But how do we do that? Well, we have to innovate, something our city does very well.

Famils are one of the most powerful tools we can use to sell Christchurch but they’re a no go right now.

So, in the year the Christchurch was supposed to play host to TRENZ, we asked ourselves – if we can’t bring the trade audience to Christchurch, how about if we bring Christchurch to the trade audience?

We decided to transform our engagement with trade into an experience, inspiring them to dream about Christchurch as a holiday destination for their clients and take them on a virtual journey through our region.

And we decided to use cutting edge technology to achieve that.

The ChristchurchNZ Virtual Famil experience started with a Powhiri and virtual arrival at Christchurch International Airport, followed by immersive city exploration with a live broadcast from the Christchurch Gondola.

Then the audience was taken on a journey through the Alpine Pacific Touring Route visiting Hanmer, Kaikoura, North Canterbury wine region and to the Mackenzie region touring Lake Takapo and Mount Cook National Park. The Canterbury showcase included a live broadcast from the middle of the Mackenzie High Country which added a huge wow factor to the experience.

We partnered with the Virtual Famil company to deliver this interactive experience. The Virtual Famil team helped deliver on our vision – from creating content to rehearsals to the most seamless experience on the day using the latest technology.