Wānaka and other South Island tourism regions most affected by the absence of international tourists will be able to apply to a special ‘kick-start’ fund to help gear up for the return of visitors.

Tourism minister Stuart Nash says the confirmation of dates for reopened borders yesterday (Wednesday March 16) allows the fund (created as part of the $200 million Tourism Communities: Support, Recovery and Re-set Plan last year) to open for applications.

“The accelerated re-opening of our borders is a moment to celebrate for our tourism sector,” Stuart said. “Businesses, workers and whole communities can now look forward to April and beyond, and start planning for a new buzz of activity.”

“The $49M kick-start fund is now available for those businesses who are ready to scale up operations or come out of hibernation to prepare for the return of international visitors, starting with vaccinated Australian travellers from 11.59pm on 12 April.”

Some businesses which had to scale down activities will be able to scale up again, the minister of tourism said. PHOTO: Wānaka App

Operators in Queenstown and Wānaka; Fiordland; Kaikōura; the glacier region of Westland; and Mackenzie District-Aoraki Mt Cook are potentially eligible for the new support.

The minister said tourism operators in these key regions have worked hard to stay connected with the visitor economy and the travel, culture, hospitality and recreation sectors.

Some, however, had to reduce opening hours, scale-down activities, go into temporary hibernation, or switch to other projects, such as Jobs for Nature schemes to improve facilities on conservation, council, iwi or private land.

Applications to the fund will formally open on April 1, then be assessed and processed by local agencies in each region. Payments are expected as soon as possible.

Businesses will need time to obtain verified financial records that show their pre-Covid income, Stuart said.

“Tourism businesses that existed prior to the global pandemic are eligible for grants worth two weeks of pre-Covid revenue, between $10,000 and $50,000 each, if they had a fifty percent drop in annual revenue compared to 2019-2020 levels.

He said the grants could be used to refresh facilities or marketing, train and hire new staff, or source new stock in readiness for opening. 

The fund will be administered on the government’s behalf by local agencies. In the case of Wānaka, Queenstown and surrounding areas, that agency will be Queenstown Lakes District Council.

Queenstown Lakes District businesses who believe they may be eligible and are yet to register with Regional Business Partners can register here. Find the Tourism Kick-start Fund guide for applications and Q&As here.

A tourism business is defined as a business where at least 50 per cent of its operational output is purchased by tourists.

The government has invested $600M in support to the tourism sector in the past two years.