Southern hospitality shines for visitors and locals alike
Canterbury firms contributed to substantial goodie bags of local products that were waiting for each team member.
OPINION: What a feel-good factor the America’s Cup celebration parade gave the city this week.
We couldn’t have asked for a better way to kick off the city’s new promotion organisation, Christchurch-NZ, than Wednesday’s parade to honour the achievements of Emirates Team New Zealand.
How wonderful to see so many Cantabrians braving the less than perfect weather to share in the excitement of the team’s amazing international success.
We weren’t going to let a bit of sleet and snow get in our way (and neither were the team). We’re made of tough stuff here, and it showed.
In hosting Emirates Team NZ we were determined to wrap a lot of warm Cantabrian hospitality around them and the team made it very clear how much they appreciated what we’d turned on.
We didn’t just organise a parade to celebrate their achievements – we ensured they were looked after from the moment they landed until they flew out.
The team was hosted at a dinner after they arrived and a lunch after the parade that enabled them to savour some of Canterbury’s best food and beverages.
And Canterbury firms contributed to substantial goodie bags of local products that were waiting for each team member in their hotel rooms.
While they had already experienced big parades in Auckland and Wellington, the team acknowledged the extra special welcome they received in Christchurch.
They particularly loved having the young yachties from six local clubs joining them in the parade.
We’re confident every team member will remember their Christchurch experience as something pretty special – a whole lot more than just another parade.
Providing people with great experiences is critical to attracting visitors to our region and having them recommend Christchurch and Canterbury to others.
We’ve got some great natural advantages, but what gives us the extra edge is our people, being open and welcoming to visitors, and being committed to giving them great experiences here.
That’s what we all remember about places we visit – the experiences we had there.
Even though we didn’t hold a test match here, we hosted a lot of Lions supporters, especially in the week between the first and second tests when Wellington’s accommodation was overloaded.
The feedback we heard, and the anecdotal evidence shared with us, suggested the visiting rugby fans loved their time here and that had a lot to do with how committed local folk were to ensuring our visitors had a truly memorable experience.
It was clear from chatting to some of the many locals drawn into the central city for the parade how impressed they also were.
We need to build back that confidence and pride in the central city among our residents, by focusing on what’s been achieved rather than what is still lacking.
Yes, it has taken longer than we would have liked, but the central city is really coming together now and all the thought and planning that went into the laneways and along the banks of the Avon was clearly worthwhile.
By the time we’re enjoying Cup & Show Week in November, the central city will be even more appealing, with The Terrace’s restaurants, bars and cafes ready for customers, and numerous new shops open for business in The Crossing and elsewhere.
There was a parade to celebrate this week, and much more to celebrate ahead.