Twitchhiker Has Plenty to Say About New Zealand

The world’s first Twitchhiker has travelled from Newcastle in the UK to Stewart Island and is now on his way home, generating plenty of publicity for New Zealand in the process.

Thanks to the goodwill of New Zealand Twitter-users, 33 year old British journalist Paul Smith has completed his mission: to travel as far as he could in one month using only offers of transport and accommodation made through social networking website Twitter.

Paul Smith arrived in New Zealand on 23 March, after flying courtesy of Air New Zealand from Los Angeles. He then made his way down to Wellington and travelled south in his Maui campervan. During his trip he raised nearly GBP5,000 for charity.

He shared his thoughts on New Zealand with YouTube viewers from Tourism New Zealand’s ‘Have Your Say’ mobile studio while in Queenstown last week.

He describes New Zealand as one of the most amazing places he has ever been.

"It’s like seeing the world in HD because everywhere you look when you’re out and about there are so many textures and colours and shapes. There are far too many to squeeze into your eyes. It’s amazing."

Almost 11,000 Twitter-users followed the Twitchhiker on his travels across the globe and many more heard about his exploits through the media. Coverage of the Twitchhiker’s adventure included interviews on ABC’s Good Morning America, the BBC, Sky News and TV3’s Campbell Live and stories in the Los Angeles Times, the Guardian (UK), www.msnbc.com, the Telegraph (UK - includes 'Have Your Say' YouTube video) and various New Zealand newspapers.

Tourism New Zealand Chief Executive George Hickton says the Twitchhiker’s visit has been a big publicity boost for New Zealand.

"This has been a fantastic opportunity to raise awareness of New Zealand in some of our key markets, including the US and UK. The fact that New Zealanders were so keen to get behind the initiative is a credit to our generosity as Kiwis and certainly sent a strong message about our spirit of Manaakitanga, or hospitality"

The Twitchhiker’s video diary on Tourism New Zealand’s ‘Have Your Say’ YouTube channel has been viewed nearly 600 times.

The ‘Have Your Say’ mobile studio is about to begin its final month on the road. So far, over 1,000 video messages from international visitors have been uploaded to YouTube and viewed a total of around 80,000 times.

The fully-equipped mobile studio - a converted shipping container on the back of a flat bed truck - has been on the road since January. It will make a total of 40 stops on its journey, with the aim of spreading positive word-of-mouth about New Zealand by capturing as many video messages from international visitors as possible.

The mobile studio is in Alexandra in Central Otago today. It will then be in Wanaka on Thursday and Friday this week, before moving across to the West Coast on Sunday