ITC student Luca Bianconi named best performer in NZ for IATA exam

Luca Bianconi, an international student from Italy, holds the letter informing him of his outstanding IATA results.

Please extend a warm congratulations to Luca Bianconi, the best performer in New Zealand for a renowned IATA exam.

Luca scored top marks on the Foundation in Travel and Tourism with Amadeus, becoming the fourth ITC student to do so in just four years. He joins Danielle Barham, Anastasiya Kolchunova and Hayley Miles in the ITC “IATA Hall of Fame”.

An international student from Italy, Luca says he thoroughly enjoyed studying for the exam.

“I have always been interested in aviation and I found it quite stimulating,” he said.

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ITC Industry News Bulletin #79

In this week’s airline, travel and tourism news, Lake Tekapo is the country’s most famous Instagram location, Air NZ creates a viral video sensation, and much more.

TOP STORIES

‘Summer Wonderland’ turns Christmas classic into NZ ad

Air New Zealand this week released a video to celebrate the upcoming Kiwi Christmas. It featured international star Ronan Keating, as well as local actor Julian Dennison of ‘Hunt for the Wilderpeople’, and was viewed more than 3.6 million times within 24 hours.

The video opens with Keating singing the Christmas classic ‘Winter Wonderland’, with Julian cutting in to make regular edits to better reflect the reality of a Christmas in New Zealand. For example, instead of ‘snow is glistening’, Julian suggests ‘your bro is glistening’.

The song perfectly highlights the silliness and fun of a hot day spent outdoors or at the beach, rather than the North American version of snow and fireplaces.

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Six ways to be a tourist in your own backyard this summer

Get a group of friends together and “play tourists” in your own backyard this summer.

One of the best ways to learn about tourism in New Zealand (other than studying at ITC, of course!) is to get out there and experience the industry for yourself.

Here are six ways to be a tourist in your own backyard this summer.

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ITC Industry News Bulletin #78

In this week’s airline, travel and tourism news, NZ is dominating Indian travel searches, Christchurch Adventure Park is set to open, and much more.

TOP STORIES

New Zealand the most searched destination by Indian travellers

Following Sidharth Malhotra’s extremely successful second visit to New Zealand, Skyscanner has released data that shows New Zealand is at the top of Indian travellers’ searches.

In fact, the volume of searches has increased by 52 per cent. Australia trailed not far behind with a 47 per cent increase in searches.

Much of this success has been put down to Malhotra’s genuine love of the country. During one of his visits he said “I feel like I am in paradise. It’s heaven on earth”.

During his time in New Zealand, the Bollywood star enjoyed visits to major cities as well as rural areas, experiencing some of the country’s most iconic attractions such as the Sky Tower walk, bungy jumping in Queenstown, and a tour of Hobbiton in the Waikato.

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Australia calling: Meet the ITC graduates working across the Tasman

Dozens of ITC graduates have moved to the likes of Sydney (pictured), Melbourne, Brisbane, and Perth to pursue their travel and tourism careers.

A funny thing happens when you study travel and tourism. You get bitten by the travel bug (if you hadn’t been bitten already!).

That explains why so many ITC graduates leave beautiful New Zealand to pursue careers abroad. Our alumni is scattered all around the world, from the US to the UK, from Tahiti to Thailand.

But no country has snapped up more talented ITC tourism graduates than Australia. We recently caught up with some of the graduates who are pursuing their tourism careers across the Tasman. Here’s a glimpse into their Australian lives…

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ITC Industry News Bulletin #77

In this week’s airline, travel and tourism news, an intriguing new attraction has been discovered off the coast of Kaikoura, Airbnb launches a new feature, and much more.

TOP STORIES

New Kaikoura attraction surfaces after quakes

Soon after the recent earthquake in Kaikoura, it became obvious that the town’s usually thriving tourism scene had been dealt a major blow. It hasn’t taken long, however, for the town to start bouncing back. 

Kaikoura Kayaks crew Matt Foy and Conner Stapley noticed a strange bubbling in Whaler’s Bay, and it looks set to become a new attraction for both visitors and scientists alike. The water bubbles cover a space of roughly 100 metres across the bay.

Stapley has already informally named the bubbles ‘Hope Springs’, which are believed to be a mix of hydrogen sulphide and carbon dioxide that are being released from the ocean seabed. More scientists will soon be on their way to further study the phenomenon.

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Love helping people? A career in travel & tourism could be your calling

In particular, airports are a great place to work if you love helping others.

If you love helping people, you probably desire a meaningful career. Perhaps you’ve considered becoming a counsellor, teacher, social worker or nurse? Or maybe you dream of one day working for a charity?

These are all fantastic career choices for compassionate individuals, but you might want to add another option to your list of altruistic careers: travel and tourism.

According to a recent survey by the International Travel College of New Zealand (ITC), many respondents said the best thing about working in travel and tourism is helping others.

“I love helping people and interacting with them – knowing that I could help or assist someone with something makes me happy,” said one ITC graduate, Nadine Semuelu.

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ITC Industry News Bulletin #76

In this week’s airline, travel and tourism news, New Zealand is ‘open for business’ after the quakes, regional tourism has received further funding, and much more.

TOP STORIES

New Zealand still ‘open for business’ in wake of quakes

On Monday November 14, another major quake struck the South Island of New Zealand. Measuring 7.5 on the Richter scale, it has caused damage to areas between Christchurch and Wellington, but Tourism New Zealand wants the world to know that the country is still open for business.

The main point to note is that while one area has certainly been affected, the rest of the country is still perfectly safe and is welcoming visitors with open arms. Any visitors wishing to travel between Christchurch and Picton or Blenheim won’t be able to travel along State Highway 1 and will have to take the inland route or fly instead.

“At this stage, it is impossible to predict the long-term impact the earthquake may have on tourism,” said Tourism NZ in a statement.

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ITC Industry News Bulletin #75

In this week’s airline, travel and tourism news, New Zealand celebrates a record-breaking year in tourism (and has been named as the best country in the world).

TOP STORIES

New Zealand officially the best country in the world

New Zealand has come out on top as the best country to live in on the planet, according to research from a Legatum Institute think tank.

The decision was based on a range of factors, including health, social ties, governance, nature, education, freedom, security, and business opportunities. New Zealand still won first place (despite the fact that many countries are wealthier) – largely thanks to its ability to turn wealth into prosperity. 

New Zealand was followed by Norway in second place and Finland in third. Our Tasman neighbours Australia also made the top 10 at sixth place.

“Free markets, free people, and the world’s strongest society ensure that New Zealand takes the top spot in the Prosperity Index,” explained the institute.

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ITC Industry News Bulletin #74

In this week’s airline, travel and tourism news, industry leaders predict the end of shoulder seasons, New Zealand wins prestigious luxury tourism accolades, and more.

TOP STORIES

Industry leaders predict the end of shoulder seasons

Like many major tourism destinations in the world, New Zealand has long experienced ‘shoulder seasons’ – off-peak times when visitor numbers drop, such as the middle of winter. However, if current trends continue, shoulder seasons may soon become a thing of the past. 

Lake Wakatipu boat operator Wayne Perkins has been in the industry for more than 30 years, and has noticed a huge difference. He told Radio New Zealand that accommodation is full year round, and that the difficulty of acquiring a place to stay in mid-summer and winter suggests that more people are booking in traditionally quieter times.  

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