Southland poised to be next cycling tourism destination

Southland could be the new kid on the block as a must-do cycling tourism destination.

A new report on Murihiku Southland’s cycle trails and mountain bike parks, with input from interested parties to understand their priorities, showed the region was poised to achieve just that.

Between the region’s existing cycling assets such as the Around the Mountains Cycle Trail and motivated groups working on future projects, the Murihiku Southland Cycle Tourism Opportunity Assessment showed that with more investment and coordination, growth could be on the horizon.

The assessment, released in September, was a priority for the Southland Murihiku Destination Strategy which showed cycling was a key pillar for the region.

Its results support the Southland Cycling Strategy which aimed to improve cycling opportunities, and bring multiple benefits to Southland’s community, including improving tourism diversification.

Mark Frood, the tourism and event manager for Southland’s regional development agency Great South, said the opportunity for development in their backyard was significant.

“From the mountains of Fiordland, lakes, rivers, farmland and an extraordinary and wild coastline with views to Rakiura, we have a huge variety of landscapes and experiences, which are distinctively different from those of our neighbours,” Frood said.

“Queenstown and Central Lakes draw in significant numbers of domestic and international cyclists, and there is opportunity to leverage this.”

A 2021 cycle tourism market insights report showed that 35% of adult Australians were engaged in the market, with 40% of those saying they were likely to travel to New Zealand for “leisure” in the next three years, Frood said.

Great South’s destination development advisor, Nic Wills, said, the assessment showed not only tourism opportunities, but community benefits also.

“The assessment is focused on the tourism potential for cycling in our region, but, of course, there are wider social and economic benefits to our local communities, including assisting with low emission transport options.”

Frood said more than 70 groups were interviewed, including iwi, stakeholders, community groups, councils and the Department of Conservation to help inform the assessment.

“There are many groups working throughout the region and all will need support to complete their projects,” Frood said.

“The assessment goes some way to sharing the current situation and the opportunities for the future, that will help councils, funders, and ultimately Government to see where the support is needed.”