Ad of the Day: Tourism New Zealand welcomes Aussies in hilarious dream adventure
While New Zealand and Australia have shut themselves off to the rest of the world, back in April it announced plans for a ‘Trans-Tasman bubble’ between the two countries. And so, to encourage movement on this quarantine-free travel route, respective tourist boards got to work.
Australians are invited to stop dreaming of New Zealand and instead go
Exploring the idea that Australians have been dreaming of going to Aotearoa, Tourism New Zealand has devised a hilarious ad created in partnership with the Special Group.
‘Stop Dreaming about New Zealand and Go’ stars ‘an Australian friend’ longing to visit New Zealand as he slumbers. Out pops a dream buddy New Zealander, who gently whispers ‘Kia Ora’ (a Maori greeting) to ‘wake up’ the dreamer, before they embark on a dream trip to his country.
Zooming through various tourist destinations, since the traveller is dreaming the trip follows a weird and unusual narrative. Granted a ‘dream beard’, the dreamer sits and eats fresh crayfish in a room full of versions of himself alongside New Zealander Di, who is with another Australian on their crayfish dream.
Suddenly the dreamer is pedalling through vineyards, before speedboating through a spectacular landscape that turns out to be a hot tub that the men relax in, placed next to a giant ‘dream kiwi’.
“‘Stop Dreaming about New Zealand and Go’ aims to spark the emotional longing in Australians to experience a unique and meaningful New Zealand holiday,” explains Declan Malone, marketing lead for Australia for Tourism New Zealand.
“We know travelling overseas is one of the most missed activities for Australians, who previously made up 40% of international arrivals to New Zealand. We wanted to remind our friends over in Australia that New Zealand’s beautiful landscapes, wide-open spaces and welcoming people are only a short flight away.”
The spot follows the ‘Be the First’ campaign, launched by Tourism Australia back in April. Similarly, ‘Welcome Back New Zealand’ relies on humor to encourage New Zealanders to visit its country.
Both countries have been success stories of this pandemic, thanks to their decision to shut off access to the rest of the world. However, this has dented both travel industries.
In January, it was reported that Australia was set to lose $7bn, placing 320,000 jobs at risk. And, before the pandemic, tourism constituted a significant part of New Zealand’s economy, employing 230,000 people and contributing $30.2bn to economic output. So while tourism to the rest of the world will undoubtedly be cut off for a long time, the tourist boards in each country are keen to get things moving again.
You can watch ‘Stop Dreaming about New Zealand and Go’ in full above. To get in touch about Ad of the Day, please email imogen.watson@thedrum.com.
