Prince Harry launches sustainable travel campaign in NZ
Prince Harry wants to know what Kiwis think about sustainable travel.
The royal has chosen to showcase New Zealand in the first-ever campaign for his not-for-profit organisation, Travalyst, which aims to bring sustainable travel ‘‘into the mainstream’’.
As part of the campaign, Harry stars in a video alongside Kiwi actors Rhys Darby, Rena Owen and Dave Fane. The video was filmed in California, where the prince is now based with his wife, Meghan Markle, and his children.
In the video, Harry is shown jogging when he is accosted by Darby’s character, a ‘‘rating agent’’. Darby explains he is from New Zealand and accuses Harry of dropping a lolly wrapper at Auckland’s Bethells Beach during his tour of the country in October 2018. Darby then explains they are trialling a system where, just as people rate destinations, they are asking how a destination would rate them back.
Darby informs Harry his score during his 2018 visit was three stars out of five – ‘‘not too bad’’ – and praises him for only using one towel during his stay, for buying local honey, and for not leaving the tap running while brushing his teeth.
As a perturbed Harry questions how Darby knows all of this, another rating agent appears, played by Fane. He claims he is supposed to be rating the prince.
At this point the rating agents’ boss, played by Owen, pulls up and greets Harry in te reo Mā ori. Asked how he is, Harry responds: ‘‘Kei te pai’’ (I am fine). After initially complaining about Darby and Fane, Harry admits the rating ‘‘has got me thinking’’.
The video encourages Kiwis to visit the Travalyst website, where there will be a holiday rating tool for visitors to engage with.
‘‘In a world where we are tasked with rating so many things, we are now asking: what if your destination rated you?’’
Prince Harry said in a statement. ‘‘Starting in beautiful Aotearoa New Zealand, we’re launching our first campaign. There is a wellknown Māori proverb: Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, e¯ ngari he toa takitini (success is not the work of an individual, but the work of many) – we invite you to be a part of our many.’’
Since launching in 2019, Travalyst has brought together several major travel brands including Booking.com, Expedia, Google, Skyscanner and Tripadvisor. The coalition aims to create an industry-wide sustainability rating system that will provide travellers with consistent, easy to understand information when booking their trips.