MEETINGS 2024 Kicks off with Hobbiton™ Movie Set tour

Over 1,100 business events professionals from New Zealand, Australia and Asia-Pacific are heading to Rotorua next week for MEETINGS 2024 – the national trade show for the business events sector on 19 and 20 June.

The excitement starts this weekend, when more than 30 Australian hosted buyers are treated to a pre-MEETINGS tour of Hobbiton™ Movie Set to experience the brand-new Bagshot Row™ development.

On Sunday 16 June, Australian buyers will be collected from Auckland Airport in Hobbiton™ coaches to stay at DoubleTree by Hilton Karaka, then heading to the movie set in rural Waikato, before joining RotoruaNZ for a special one-day destination famil on Tuesday 18 June.

Business Events Industry Aotearoa (BEIA) Chief Executive, Lisa Hopkins says they are thrilled buyers can see more of the country's attractions while they are here, and experience what's on offer so close to host city, Rotorua.

“MEETINGS is so much more than a two-day tradeshow. It's going to be a multi-sensory set of experiences that will leave guests with long-lasting memories.

“Our visitors to MEETINGS 2024 can expect a full immersion into Aotearoa New Zealand's rich culture, and an extremely warm welcome in the heart of the North Island,” she says.

Shayne Forrest, General Manager Tourism at Hobbiton™ Movie Set says the team is looking forward to revealing the new set first hand to a large number of hosted buyers.

“We really appreciate the opportunity to showcase our piece of Middle-earth and to host buyers in our brand new Bagshot Row™ interior Hobbit Holes. These only opened to the public six months ago and the feedback has been incredible, with people blown away with the attention to detail that has brought these spaces to life, we think it's going to be very popular in the business events and incentive space.”

New Zealand hosted buyers will have their turn to experience tours of Hobbiton™ Movie Set before and after MEETINGS on Monday 17 June and Friday 21 June.

Many Australian hosted buyers are staying on after MEETINGS with the support of Air New Zealand and regional business events bureaux to visit Auckland, Taupō, Rotorua, Waikato, Wellington, or Christchurch.

BEIA's annual showcase will welcome a record number of buyers and exhibitors for two days at Rotorua's Energy Events Centre (picture above), with a pōhiri and welcome function at the Sir Howard Morrison Centre on Tuesday 18 June.

MEETINGS 2024 coincides with Te Tau Hou Māori - the Māori New Year, when Matariki reappears in the dawn skies, and RotoruaNZ is inviting hosted buyers to a special Matariki dinner on Wednesday 19 June to celebrate.

New this year, MEETINGS Education sessions for buyers will be held during lunch breaks both days, covering a wide range of relevant and trending topics.

The Tourism New Zealand Knowledge and Destination Hub will host 23 different 15-minute targeted presentations throughout the two days of MEETINGS. Attendees can find out what's new in New Zealand events with regional showcase updates from across the country,

Day buyers can register for free on the MEETINGS website. They can attend MEETINGS for any length of time and request priority registration for their choice of education sessions, plus complimentary activities in Rotorua, and return transport from Auckland.