Tourism NZ Signs New Ambassador

Mountain biker enthusiasts already know that New Zealand is a go-to destination for fantastic trails. With their government and main tourism body right behind the promotion of our sport, they are long way ahead of Australia when it comes to MTB tourism. Their ‘New Zealand Cycle Trail’ (NZCT) is a prime example of this.

The NZCT is a network that includes over 2,700km of off-road cycle trails. Routes range from cruisy rail trails and winery rides through to challenging multi-day adventures such as the Old Ghost Road.

As it stands around 8% of all Aussie’s ride bikes whilst holidaying in New Zealand — that’s around 36,000 people. Their data also shows that these visitors also tend to spend more than your average tourist whilst visiting.

Encouraged by these figures, Tourism New Zealand is looking to attract an even broader spread of the Aussie population. To do this they’ve enlisted Megan Gale as their new ambassador. The international model, designer and actress has been signed on to promote NZCT to the Australian market.

While this mightn’t make dyed in the wool mountain bikers any more likely to visit – they’ve already got their flights booked – it may put our sport a little further into the mainstream limelight, which can’t be a bad thing when it comes to the broader growth of mountain biking.

So expect to see Megan featuring in ads for the NZCT and next time you see her in a TV commercial, make sure you point out to your mates that she’s a mountain biker too!