Good as gold: innovations in adventure-based tourism Down Under.

New Zealand is a place where adventures happen. It's where outdoor enthusiasts of all kinds can find enjoyable, challenging, fun, and exciting pursuits. However, instead of looking wistfully or enviously to this distant land, perhaps American parks and recreation professionals can borrow some ideas and replicate some of the activities that make New Zealand an outdoor recreator's paradise.

Born of fire and ice, New Zealand is a microcosm of the world's natural attractions. There are steep mountains, deep lakes, swift rivers, active volcanoes, and untouched coastlines - all within an area the size of Colorado. New Zealand is a relatively new country - officially recognized in 1947 - with its inhabitants coming from two distinct origins: the Polynesians who arrived in 950 A.D. and British immigrants who began arriving in the 1840s.

Kiwis - as New Zealanders are known - are an innovative and restless lot who will go to great lengths to seek out challenges and experience the new and different. A by-product of their love of adventure is a mix of commercial recreation enterprises that serves a strong domestic market and a rapidly expanding international market. International tourist arrivals to the country grew by 13% (14% in revenue) in 1994, which is well ahead of the world average of 3.8%. Perhaps equally as impressive is the international recognition New Zealand is receiving for the unique sensitivity of its tour operators. In 1994, for example, Whale Watch, Paparoa Nature Tours, and Southern Heritage Expeditions all won the prestigious Global Ecotourism Awards, which are judged by a panel of the world's more preeminent conservationists.

Aerial Adventures

There are numerous operations that specialize in aerial sightseeing trips by plane or helicopter. Some operations are linked inextricably to the ski, mountaineering, and guides and outfitters sectors since there are many trackless areas of New Zealand. Others are linked more to the past, such as the War Birds Flights and Museum in Wanaka.

One of the more unique non-mechanized aerial adventures is paragliding. Paragliders are evolved parachutes designed to steer easily and glide efficiently (up to 1:9 ratios). Flights are solo, with instructors communicating with clients via a radio in the helmet. Initial instructions take place on grassy slopes where novice paragliders can master take-offs and landings. By the end of a half-day lesson, students can experience up to a dozen flights at progressively higher altitudes. A second round of lessons generally occurs at ski fields where flights average six minutes. After 40 successful flights, the truly converted can sit for the PG2 exam which entitles a person to paraglide unsupervised.

Inspired by the ritualistic jump called the Naghol on the South Pacific Island of Vanuatu - where young men jump off huge towers, their falls broken by skillfully selected vines tied around their ankles - is the sport of bungy jumping. New Zealand bungy jumping traces its roots back to Kiwi A.J. Hackett's famous bungy dive from the Eiffel Tower in 1986. After that exploit, Hackett teamed up with New Zealand famous speed skier Henry van Asch to make commercial bungy jumping safe. The equipment is manufactured under strict New Zealand government standards in which a jump cannot exceed 15% of its test capacity. A daily log system is used to retire equipment after 20% of its working life. During the past eight years, A. J. Hackett's has sent 450,000 clients hurtling into river gorges from the historic Kawarau Suspension Bridge (140 feet) and the Skippers Canyon Bridge (232 feet) without a single accident. Undoubtedly, bungy jumping is a sport for those who crave an adrenaline rush that can last for days. The jump begins with a crawl into a preparation area, where the jumper's ankles are strapped to the bungy cord and adjustments are made to take the jumper's weight into account. From there the jumper hobbles to the jump platform and prepares to jump into thin air. Once the jump is over, the jumper is pulled into a rubber raft by the landing crew and taken back to dry land.

Water Adventures

As an island nation carved by glaciers and rivers, New Zealand is a Mecca of water-based activities and operations. Nature watch harbor tours, sea kayaking, sailing, and diving are typical examples of coastal recreation opportunities. Inland rivers range from flat water to numerous Class II to V sections. Here is a look at just a few of the unique water-based tourism attractions:

* River sledding is a white water sport where you discard the raft and kayak and don a 5mm thick wet suit, helmet, fins, and modified boogie board and run various high volume class II-IV rivers. Clients are taught the basics of ferrying, eddy turns, and body surfing. Guides lead the way through rapids that would take novices years to master in an open boat or kayak. * Jet boating is a popular and hair-raising way many tourists see the New Zealand rivers. A Kiwi invention dating back to 1957, jet boats received international attention from Jon Hamilton and Edmund Hillary's river expeditions of the Sun Kosi River of Katmandu (1968) and their "Ocean to the Sky" expedition (1977) to the headwaters of the India's Ganges River. Jet boats are aluminum crafts driven by a sophisticated three-stage pump, not a propeller. The inboard engine intakes water and impels it through a nozzle in the stern in a high speed stream. The boat is steered by directing the stream. They are ideal for shallow water since the boat has no propellers to damage. The v-shaped bow is pitched for large high volume rapids. With a flat bottom hull in combination jet stream propulsion, boats can execute 360 degree spins within a boat length at 40 mph. * Surf rafting is a two-part adventure combining thrills with learning. The crafts are inflatable rafts with rigid aluminum hulls powered by 40 hp outboards. After clearing the surf, the excursions transform to natural history tours where a host of fauna can be viewed at a non-intrusive distance. Seasonally participants can snorkel kelp forests frequented by sea lions and other creatures. * Grade V white water rafting is not particularly a Kiwi invention. Commercial rafting operations at this level have also existed in such highly regarded areas as the Goley River of West Virginia and the Tuolome River of Northern California. It is noteworthy that in New Zealand the sheer number of Grade [V to V high volume rivers which are runnable throughout the year is substantial. Equally as impressive is the emergence of a mix of raft guide operations and boat manufacturers that, under the leadership of the New Zealand River Guides Association, have proven to be more than capable of handling these rivers on a routine basis. * Cave rafting is yet another variation of rafting. Here the participant dons a wet suit, lighted helmet, and inner tube and floats along one of several rivers through spectacular limestone caves. An added feature is the opportunity to drift through cavernous rooms lined with glow worms, insects that light up rooms with a magical radiance.

Alpine Adventures

For backpacking, or what Kiwis call tramping or bushwalking, opportunities abound in New Zealand. Most visitors gravitate to the famous tracks such as the Milford, Abel Tasman, and Routeburn tracks, but there are quite literally hundreds more throughout the country. Tracks can range from the relatively easy two-day descents of the Greenstone Valley to steep and exposed alpine crossings such as the Copland Pass. Visitors can organize their own trips or secure the services of a professional guide from numerous guides and outfitter operations.

One of the unusual aspects of these tracks is that most have huts on them. The climate can change quickly and severely, and huts offer a welcome retreat from fierce winds and bad weather. Camping is allowed on these tracks as long as campers follow the guidelines laid out in the New Zealand Environmental Care Code.

Getting lost in areas of dense native bush is a risk, so the Department of Conservation has established a voluntary system of logbooks that helps them find hikers when they are missing. Hikers/climbers are requested to fill out an intention forms available at park headquarters and visitor centers and asked to log in at huts along the way. Huts in the alpine areas have solar powered radios where evening radio checks confirm the status of backcountry users in the area. This, along with an elaborate search and rescue system, keeps the remote and potentially hazardous regions relatively safe for visitors.

New Zealand has long been known as one of the most popular places for skiing in the southern hemisphere. Numerous alpine and nordic ski opportunities abound, and there are several heli-skiing companies that lead guided trips in the Alps. Glacier skiing is one of the more unusual options where skiers take a skiplane to the upper reaches of a glacier and experience what can be a 6 to 12 mile ski run to the lower glacial moraines. Though accessible by nordic skiers from below, the Tasman, Fox, and Franz Josef Glacier upper sections are becoming popular fly-ski areas among alpine and telemark skiers.

On the Lighter Side

Not all innovations Kiwis have pioneered are death-defying daredevil feats. One particularly reproducible innovation are the commercial maze and puzzle centers that are springing up around the country. Originally modeled after the hedge mazes of Europe, today a maze is a series of fenced-off corridors and alleys with a confusing number of dead-ends, further complicated by a number of bridges that carry you from one quadrant to another. The idea is to get to the towers at each corner and back again to the exit, a complex feat particularly in a three-dimensional maze. However, marked exits do exist for those who become lost, disoriented, or frustrated.

Innovations in the

Lodging Sector

The New Zealand lodging industry has had its fair share of product innovations beyond the expected hotels, motels, hostels, bed and breakfasts, and campgrounds. Backpackers are a budget form of accommodation similar to a youth hostel. They usually are in older refurbished houses with fully equipped kitchen and laundry facilities and with common sleeping and dining areas. Lodging surveys show that they are patronized by people from a wide range of ages and socio-economic backgrounds. Backpackers seemingly are filling a niche in the market among visitors who prefer to spend their time and money exploring and use accommodations only as a place to sleep.

Farmstays are another uniquely Kiwi innovation and have proven to be very popular. These facilities allow visitors to experience life on a working sheep or dairy farm and at the same time interact with a Kiwi family. Lodging can range from a cottage to a room in the main house. I understand that most families who offer farm holidays are motivated more by a desire to meet people and not as a major income earner.

Willing Workers on Organic Farms (WWOOFS) is a recent variation of the farmstay theme. WWOOFS is an association of more than 300 organic farms in the country where for conscientious work farmers will provide lodging, food, and a hands-on learning experience.

Public-Private Partnerships

It is important to note that all of this should not suggest that New Zealand has handed over its natural heritage to tourism interests. In fact only a fraction of the country's natural resource base is developed for tourism, and there is popular support to keep it that way.

What has occurred is the formation of a strategic alliance between the conservation estate and local and national tourism interests. Due to the growing proclivity among government officials to eliminate deficit spending and at the same time cut taxes, vertically integrating parks into the economic fabric of communities creates strategic value.

Though the licensing fees that parks glean from these public-private relationships are an important source of income, they are eclipsed by the broad based support parks derive from its partners. By creating stakeholders in the local business community, parks are in a better position to remain on politicians' priority lists. Given today's economic reality, creating such a grassroots base of support may afford us a better way in which to operate in the 21st century.

Park managers, entrepreneurs, tourism planners, and others who see potential the tourism operations addressed in this article are encouraged to contact operators directly. The names and addresses of the leading companies can be found in commercial travel guides, most notably from the Lonely Planet series.