Tourist facilities need upgrading
so pleased with the conditions in the dominion that they would make this country their new home. He assured them that they could be certain of a very warm welcome at whatever port they visited. At the conclusion of the Prime Minister’s remarks three rousing cheers were given him by the officers and crew.
It is to be hoped that the complaints which are now being published with respect to the facilities provided for tourists visiting the scenic resorts of the south will receive the full attention of the Government. For some time past there has been what we believe to be a wellgrounded opinion that the claims to consideration in respect of the tourist attractions of this island have received less than justice, and that there has been a disposition to encourage patronage of the northern show places to the exclusion of the south. Reasonable comfort for travellers is one of the first essentials
for developing the tourist traffic, and those who leave the pavements of the city for the bush and the open sky, are not unnaturally annoyed to find a road so bad that a journey of 12 miles by motor car occupies anything from an hour and 20 minutes to double that time. It appears from the statements of responsible people that the steamer on Lake Te Anau is in bad repair and that there is no longer any boat at all on Lake Manapouri. On the overland track, “the finest walk in the world”, there is room for improvement both as regards the track itself and the accommodation. Further, there is no launch at Milford Sound, and this is as inexcusable as the Manapouri omission.
they stole teaspoons. With a record crowd present the tea rooms were liberally patronised, and it was impossible to watch everybody all the time. As a result, the teaspoons disappeared onebyone and by the end of the day the stock had been seriously depleted. The spoons were of good quality. Probably that was a reason why they were stolen. It was agreed yesterday that the public could not be trusted so only one teaspoon, and that of inferior quality, was allowed for each table. Of course patrons protested against this, but they were told pretty plainly that the public could not be trusted.