TOURIST SEASON STARTS

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 803, 25 October 1929, Page 13

TOURIST SEASON STARTS

INQUIRIES FROM OVERSEAS BIG GAME FISHERMEN COMING The tourist agencies report a keen demand from overseas for information concerning New Zealand and the coming tourist season promises to be a good one. Most of the requests for information have come from Australia,, though a good number have also been received from travel agencies in England and America. Last year the New Zealand Government started a publicity campaign in Australia. It aas been such a success that it is to be continued again this season, with the object of getting more Australian tourists to visit the Dominion. It is quite evident that the reports and photographs of the earthquake on the West Coast of the South Island have affected the influx of visitors from overseas, particularly from Australia. This year promises to he more active than ever for overseas fishermen, many of whom have already made their plans for a visit to the Bay of Islands. The most interesting will be a return visit of Mr. F. A. Mitchell-Hedges,

the English author and explorer, who is due to arrive at Auckland in January. He has spent a great deal of his life exploring parts of the Central American republics, particularly beyond the Panama Canal tone, where he dis-^

covered a new race of people. In 1924 he paid a visit to the interior of British Honduras and brought back same amazing information regarding the ruins of a. great Mayan city. He has also spent many yeais in carrying out deep-sea, research, mostly in the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, and has contributed largely to the world’s knowledge of fish and their habits. Other prominent deep-sea fishermen who propose to visit New Zealand for this season’s fishing are: Mr. H. White-Wickham. who will reach Auckland on December 15; Dr. G. Radmore (England), Messrs. G. and W. Wentworth (Sydney). Mr. L. McCormick (Chicago), Mr. G. A. Burge 'England), and Dr. Watkins (Washington). Mr. Zane Grey will not return to New Zealand until the 1930-31 season. Many well-known South Island fishermen will journey to the North this year in search of big game fish.