TOURIST TRAFFIC

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2656, 30 December 1915, Page 3

TOURIST TRAFFIC

— 4 ; : INFLUX OF AUSTRALIANS. The opinion that the New Zealand tourist and health resorts will be very liberally patronised this season by Australian tourists was expressed by tho Hon. W. H. Edgar, lute Minister in charge of, the Victorian Tourist and Health Resorts Department, who arrived in Auckland by the : Niagara on Monday- ' . ' "This, of course, will.be due in some degree to the fact that the Continental resorts are closed for the time being," said Mr. Edgar, "but it is also owing ;to the >rapidly increasing popularity among Australians, of the fino Now Zealand tourist- resorts of which I. have heard so much but not yet seen. There is no more popular country for tourists than Nov/ Zealand, with the people of Victoria at any rate,- and your Dominion; was constantly, held up to me by returned travellers when I was Minister,as an example to be followed. !Al-though.'--I had not the opportunity to visit New Zealand, I made myself conversant with thb work of the New Zealand Tourist and Health Resorts Department, -and during my term as Minister I always liad in view tho splendid achievements of the New Zealand Government in opening up tho many scenic beauties, of the country. In my efforts to effect improvements at the tourist i resorts in Victoj ia, I must say that I always got my inspiration from New Zealand; I here wish to express the debt I owe to the New Zealand Government tourist agent in Victoria, Mr. H. J; Manson, who by means of lectures and in other ways: is doing a valuable work in spreading abroad a knowledge of the scenic wonders of New Zealand'.. To show the great' advantage of such agencies, I may say that I had the whole of my intended trip through New Zealand mapped out for me at the New_ Zealand Government Tourist Bureau in Melbourne, and I even obtained my permit to leave the State from the bureau office." , In reply to a question, Mr. Edgar stated that he thought that the diverting of the tourist traffic from Europe to Australia and New Zealand during the war would be of permanent benefit to resorts in those latter countries. Speaking of .Victoria in particular, he stated that it was rather remarkable that tho receipts from the tourist traffic at the Government bureau in Melbourno for November showed an increase of £2000 when compared with the figures for tho same month last year. Mr. Edgar intends to tour the principal tourist, resorts of the Dominion.