Motor Caravan and Camping Tourism in Franklin, Aucklandaudit Of

Motor Caravan and Camping Tourism in Franklin, Auckland

An audit of existing motor caravanning and camping infrastructure

New Zealand Tourism Research Institute, Auckland University of Technology April 2017 www.nztri.org

Table of Contents

Explanation of terms used in the audit ...... 2 Introduction ...... 3 Our approach ...... 4 Infrastructure Audit | Mapping of facilities ...... 4 Web Audit ...... 5 Infrastructure audit ...... 5 Visitor attractions ...... 5 Facilities for campers/MC visitors to Franklin ...... 6 TripAdvisor and Qualmark ratings ...... 8 Web audit ...... 9 Visibility on national tourism portals ...... 9 Regional level – Auckland ...... 10 Local tourism websites ...... 11 Social media ...... 12 MC Websites ...... 12 Benchmarking – examples of good practice ...... 12 Conclusions and recommendations ...... 14 Immediate opportunities ...... 14

Explanation of terms used in the audit

Accommodation: The focus is on camping options where campers and MC visitors can find campgrounds and camping sites to park their vehicles and stay the night, categorised as follows: Regional Park / Campground—campground is located within a regional park. Freedom Camping—not a designated campground. Typically, this means that the caravan or motorhome should be self-contained as there are rarely facilities available such as clean drinking water, toilets or waste disposal facilities. Holiday Park—these commercial campgrounds offer a wide variety of accommodation options, from camping sites, powered sites through to self-contained cabins. NZMCA—New Zealand Motor Caravan Association offers properties from residential sites to business premises for members to park overnight for little or no cost. CSC Vehicle—this type of campsite requires vehicles to have the Certified Self-Contained sticker on the front left window or rear window. The vehicle must have a fresh water supply, sink, toilet, holding tank, evacuation hose and a sealable refuse container with lid. The sites are basic and without many facilities. Park-Sleep—these are for self-contained vehicles to park for the night and sleep. Usually have basic facilities such as toilets, water and showers and are a fee-based service.

Laundromat: Automatic coin-operated public laundry found in town centres and campgrounds.

LPG Gas Bottle Refill: A facility to refill liquid petroleum gas (LPG), also referred to as propane or butane, used as fuel in heating appliances, cooking equipment, and vehicles.

Public Dump Station (PDS): An area designated as either a holiday park or publicly provided facility where motorhomes can pump raw sewage safely into a sanitary sewer system.

Public Toilets: A building with one or several toilets available either at campsites or in public areas available for use by both MC tourists and other visitors to the area. Most are Council assets.

Recycling: A facility where MC visitors can drop off all recyclable materials for processing.

Refuse Station: A building or processing site for the temporary deposition of waste.

Septic tank: A drainage system allowing rinse water from MCs to be pumped into a septic tank.

Service Centres: A retail station for motor vehicles, providing petrol, diesel and oil refill options.

Vehicle Servicing: A commercial establishment for repairs and replacement parts for motor vehicles (focus is on those that promote servicing of Motor Caravan/Campervans).

Water-Potable: Water that is safe to drink or to use for food preparation.

Water-Rinse: This water supply is only good for washing and/or cleaning and should not be consumed.

Introduction This report is in response to a request from Franklin Local Board (FLB) for research to inform forward planning and marketing activities for motor caravan (MC) and camping tourism in Franklin. Specifically, FLB would like to better understand existing motor caravanning and camping infrastructure (accommodation, attractions, facilities, visitor information) and look at ways to encourage campers who currently pass through on their way to other destinations, to slow down and spend more time (and money) in the Franklin area. To do this, NZTRI has completed the following research activities: • An audit of existing motor caravan and camping tourism infrastructure for campers and motor caravan visitors with a focus on MCs (e.g. location, distribution, sites and type/standard of facilities) to identify any gaps in available infrastructure. • A web audit of visitor information for MC/camping visitors to Franklin to understand the ‘visibility’ of the Franklin area as a destination for visitors and MCs. The web audit focusses on the availability of information online (websites, portals, review sites, blogs, social media etc.) about the businesses, community, and attractions associated with the visitor experience.

MCs are those visitors who combine transport, accommodation and travel e.g. in a motorhome, campervan, 5th wheeler, car towing caravan, recreational vehicle (RV) or other form of self-contained motorised transport and accommodation. The geographic area covered by this research incorporates the Waiuku, Pukekohe, and Wairoa subdivisions (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Franklin Local Board and Subdivisions

Acknowledged source: Auckland Council

The report summarises findings from the audits and should be read in conjunction with Appendix 1 Inventory of facilities for camper/MC visitors to Franklin.xls. Data is transferred to, and plotted on, the Google Map of facilities for camper/MC visitors to Franklin. We commence with a review of the research approach and then present an overview of results of the local infrastructure and web audits. We then identify any obvious gaps in existing facilities and visitor information, and recommend several immediate actionable outcomes that highlight opportunities to attract camping/MC visitors to Franklin.

Our approach A team of three auditors (‘Mystery Visitors’) used desk-based online approaches to collect data for the infrastructure and web audits. Team members included a visitor from Canada with a young family, who enjoys camping and the outdoors, and a visitor from the UK aged 25 years (part of the ‘Youth’ free and independent traveller market) who enjoys interacting with people from different cultures, and exploring new places both on and off the beaten track. The third member of the audit team is a resident of central Auckland who enjoys short stay holidays with visiting friends and family from overseas and weekends away with her partner, exploring New Zealand’s natural environment.

Taking a visitor centred approach, searching for information online for ‘Franklin’ yielded results not necessarily within the Franklin Local Board boundary. In some cases items outside of, but close to the boundary have been included, for example being an essential motor caravan facility or a not to miss attraction which would draw visitors to the region. Infrastructure Audit | Mapping of facilities Auditors conducted an online search to identify existing facilities for motor caravan and camping visitors to Franklin. The infrastructure audit prioritised the following: • Camping and parking sites - mostly commercial accommodation including holiday parks; regional campgrounds, freedom camping, CSC Vehicle and DOC campsites, and facilities for other niche MC visitors. • Dump stations – the location of facilities designed to ensure the proper disposal of wastewater from recreational vehicles e.g. motorhomes, campervans, and boats as well as access ‘approved’ rubbish and recycling bins. • Other facilities for motor caravanners e.g. access to fresh water, toilets, and laundry facilities etc. • Visitor attractors and retail opportunities.

A simple inventory (Appendix 1) was prepared to record facilities found online associated with motor caravan and camping tourism in Franklin. Database categories include information on location, sites and facilities, type/standard of facilities (using TripAdvisor and Qualmark ratings where available), Geodata was added to the inventory for mapping purposes. A Google Map was used to ‘plot’ facilities and visitor attractions from the database. The Google Map provides an online resource that can be linked to from any website, social media etc. The map can be easily updated with local content. The following layers and categories were used to create the map:

Toilets/Water/ Laundry Accommodation Public Toilets Regional Park Water - rinse & potable drinking water Freedom Camping Laundromat Holiday Park

NZMCA CSC Vehicle Large vehicle Access Park-Sleep Medical, Post office, Supermarkets, iSite Dump stations, Septic tanks New Zealand Post Medical Facilities Supermarkets

Attractions/Activities/Parks Service Stations/Vehicle Servicing Activities Vehicle servicing Parks and natural areas LPG Gas bottle refill / exchange Attractions Service Stations Walks Cycle Trails Town Centres, iSites Town Centre iSite Recycling/Refuse Community halls, Marae, Sports Clubs Sports Clubs (facilities) Marae Community halls

Web Audit NZTRI conducted a detailed audit of the web presence of Franklin and focused on the availability of information online (websites, portals, review sites, blogs, social media etc.) about the businesses, community, and attractions associated with the visitor experience. The audit team reviewed the quality and range of visitor information available online (places to go, things to do etc.) to attract campers/MCs to Franklin and highlighted gaps in currently available visitor information.

By adopting a consumer perspective, the audit responds to questions such as: What information is available on the towns and settlements of Franklin? How well is the area linked to from global, national and regional tourism web portals? What might I do when I visit? What would the experience be like? Why is this destination interesting or attractive to me? Where are the campgrounds, services and facilities for MCs and are these easy to locate? What do online reviews say about camping in Franklin? What are others saying about the experience of visiting this place? What might I spend my money on?

Auditors considered the way the web presence for each location incorporates local content and how local knowledge of the destination is conveyed to the outside world. The audit also considers to what extent the web presence ‘inter-connects’ across the Franklin area (and beyond), and presents a compelling case to entice those considering a visit to the area, to actually do so. A review of links associated with the web presence for local areas in Franklin focused on the nature of linkages between existing sites, and the degree to which the web presence of each location is supporting intra and inter urban/regional connections.

Infrastructure audit There are approximately 340 records of facilities (dump stations, accommodation, vehicle servicing, access to water, gas bottle refill, etc.) as well as activities and attractions and other points of interest in the inventory (Appendix 1). Visitor attractions Franklin offers the visitor significant opportunities to enjoy a peaceful, rural environment while escaping the frenetic pace of the city. Figure 2 is a visual representation of the attractions on offer to entice camping/MC visitors to the Franklin area. Set in the southern hinterland of the Auckland region, the map on the left shows approximately 50 points of interest with plenty on offer for visitors who are interested in outdoor recreational and other activities, parks and natural areas, cultural and heritage attractions, arts/crafts, food and food producers, gardens, golf, walks, etc. The map on the right shows

approximately 21 town centres/retail areas where visitors can pick up supplies and go shopping. The maps also show the coastal areas that draw visitors to beaches and seaside communities in the Ward.

Figure 2: Franklin – Attractions (parks and natural areas, activities and walks) and town centres

[Left below: Visitor attractions Franklin Region] [Right below: Town Centres Franklin Region]

Acknowledged source: Map data @2017 Google – Data | Points of interest @NZTRI

From the facilities and web audits, NZTRI researchers identified six local iconic attractions: Awhitu Regional Park and the Manukau Heads Lighthouse, Glenbrook Vintage Railway, Karioitahi Beach, Pohutukawa Coast and the Clevedon markets (see Figure 3).

Figure 3: Franklin iconic attractions

Acknowledged source: Map data @2017 Google – Data | Points of interest @NZTRI Facilities for campers/MC visitors to Franklin

Accommodation options for campers/MCs were mostly found in Regional Parks/ Campgrounds (27%), Freedom Camping (19%), Holiday Parks (17%) and to a lesser extent in NZMCA sites (17%), CSC Vehicle (10%), and Park-Sleep (10%) (Figure 4).

Figure 4: Accommodation option (camping) for campers/MC visitors to Franklin (number/percentage)

Franklin: 41 Accommodation options (camping) (number; percentage) Park-Sleep, 4, 10% Regional CSC Vehicle, 4, Parks/Campgrounds; 11; 10% 27%

NZMCA, 7, 17%

Freedom Camping, 8, 19%

Holiday Parks; 7; 17%

The online search revealed 41 camping options (accommodation) with the vast majority (n=28) in the Wairoa subdivision. Waiuku has fewer options (n=11) and Pukekohe has the least (n=2). Table 1 shows the types of camping options by subdivision.

Table 1: Summary of camping options and number of sites in Franklin

Type of Campground Total Sites Waiuku Pukekohe Wairoa Regional 11 2 0 9 Parks/Campgrounds Freedom Camping 8 4 0 4 Holiday Parks 7 4 1 2 NZMCA 7 0 0 7 CSC Vehicle 4 0 1 3 Park-Sleep 4 1 0 3 Total 41 11 2 28

Facilities for campers/MC visitors in each sub-division are shown in Table 2. Dump Stations are located mainly in Wairoa (n=13) with approximately 75% fewer options to be found in Waiuku (n=4) and Pukekohe (n=3). Of the 20 Dump Stations in Franklin, 9 are Public Dump Stations. There are seven recycling centres available to campers/MCs across Franklin (outside of commercial accommodation options and those located in regional campgrounds) with the nearest Refuse Transfer Station located in Takanini (which is outside the Franklin Local Board area).

The majority of public toilets (Council assets) are also located in Wairoa (n=21); there are significantly fewer public toilets in Waiuku (n=14) and Pukekohe (n=12). There are few places where MCs/campers are permitted to access septic tanks, or showers and these are predominantly located within commercial Holiday and Caravan parks. Access to water (Water-Potable/Rinse) can be found in Wairoa (n=7), Pukekohe (n=2) and Waiuku (n=3). Only one LPG Gas Bottle Refill point could be found via the online search and this is located in East Tamaki (outside the Franklin area). Auditors could not find (online) any options for MCs to have a motor caravan vehicle serviced in Wairoa.

Table 2: Summary of facilities for MCs in Waiuku, Pukekohe and Wairoa

Services and facilities Waiuku Pukekohe Wairoa

Accommodation (camping) 11 2 28 Dump Stations (all – public and 4 3 13 other) Public Toilets 14 12 21 Refuse Station 0 0 0 Recycling 2 2 3 Service Centres 2 6 7 Vehicle Servicing 1 2 0 LPG Gas Bottle Refill 0 0 0 Laundromat 2 2 4 Water-Potable/Rinse 3 2 7 Septic Tank 1 1 2 Showers 1 1 2 NB: For further details please refer to the Inventory of Facilities (Appendix 1) and Google Map TripAdvisor and Qualmark ratings

A Qualmark rating was found for only one of the holiday parks within Franklin (Table 3). Auditors were not familiar with the Qualmark quality rating system and had a strong preference to refer to Trip Advisor for peer reviews about quality of facilities etc.

Table 3: Holiday Park Ratings by TripAdvisor and Qualmark

Holiday Park Trip Advisor: Traveller rating and reviews Qualmark Rating Big Bay Holiday Park 4/5. 32 Reviews, #146 of 263 Specialty Not rated lodging in Auckland Region Orere Point Top 10 Holiday 3.5/5. 35 Reviews, #98 of 263 Speciality 4 stars Park lodging in Auckland Region Clarks Beach Holiday Park 4/5. 25 reviews, #1 of 1 in Clarks Beach Not rated Orua Bay Beach Motor Camp 4/5. 20 Reviews, #128 of 263 Speciality Not rated lodging in Auckland Region Sandspit Motor Camp 3.5/5. 44 Reviews #131 of 263 Speciality Not rated lodging in Auckland Region

Other reviews by TripAdvisor included regional parks in the Franklin district, giving Duder Regional Park, Awhitu Regional Park and Clevedon Scenic Reserve top ratings and Manakau Heads Lighthouse a certificate of excellence for consistent outstanding reviews.

Web audit When searching for visitor information about a destination (i.e. a specific place, region, or sub-region), the online visitor often finds a Wikipedia entry at the top of search results or on the first page. This was the case when searching for information on ‘Franklin, Auckland’ using the Google search engine. The first result was the Auckland Council link to Franklin Ward – this simply lists the three subdivisions and provides a map of the Ward (no details on where Franklin is, nor how to get there). The second search result was for a ‘Franklin District’ page on Wikipedia. While a brief page exists, this simply describes the restructure of the District into Auckland Council. There is also a page for ‘Franklin Ward’ but this is virtually empty except for a brief description of Franklin Local Board as part of Auckland Council and a link to an elected Councillor (Figure 5). Figure 5: Wikipedia page for Franklin Ward

Pages for Clevedon, Beachlands, Waiuku, Clarks Beach, Karaka and Pukekohe have some information but are often described as being part of Auckland, and no longer Franklin. This may be true but our auditors found this very confusing. Wikitravel does have a page for ‘Franklin District’ with two places to ‘eat’ and links to three things ‘to do’ (Spookers Haunted Attraction, Asylum Paintball, and Pukekohe Park). There is no other information about this sub-region of Auckland - the ‘how to get there’, ‘what to buy’, ‘where to sleep’ categories have no content. Visibility on national tourism portals A search for information about Franklin and the towns and settlements of the Ward on national portals used newzealand.com, tourism.net.nz, nzmca.org.nz, jasons.co.nz and doc.govt.nz.

A search for ‘Auckland camping’ on the Tourism New Zealand site www.newzealand.com has the Orua Bay Beach Motor Camp at the top of the list of 186 results but more listings like this are needed for maximum exposure to attract campers/MCs to Franklin. An Auckland-based adventure tourism operator does refer to some camping options in the Franklin Ward, in her article on ‘The best camping spots around Auckland’.

A search on newzealand.com for ‘Clevedon’ returns 25 results with links that give good information on the country markets, but limited information on accommodation options, transport and activities (tracks, parks etc.). Accommodation options are limited to country cottages and lodges. Searches for other places in Franklin (Awhitu Peninsula, Karaka, Ardmore, Whitford, Beachlands, Maraetai,

Kawakawa Bay and Orere Point, Pukekohe and Waiuku) returned fewer results and/or results that were not relevant to these local areas. It is important to note that the visitor must know these places exist in order to search for them. Accommodation options listed on the national tourism portal for these places are very limited with only a few camping options e.g. Waiuku. While a search for ‘Pohutukawa Coast’ on newzealand.com returns 67 results – most of these link to information about the Coromandel. There is no charge to tourism businesses to have a listing on this site; it is also free to upload an ‘article’.

The New Zealand Tourism Guide is a directory of online tourism industry related businesses and organisations. Owned by Yellow Pages NZ, www.tourism.net.nz site is another national tourism portal that features highly in Google search results when using keywords: Auckland camping, Auckland campervan campgrounds, and Auckland motorhome camping. There are some links to places in the Franklin area when searching for information on ‘Auckland’, albeit the information contained in the links is limited and in some cases, there is no content at all. Camping accommodation options in Franklin appear in the top list of results of ‘Accommodation>Campsites and Holiday Parks’. There is no charge to tourism businesses to have a listing on this site.

The New Zealand Motor Caravan Association (NCMZA) has an excellent website and App with comprehensive information for Motor Caravanners (places to stay, things to do, location of facilities, maps, visitor information etc.) but full access is limited to members only.

When searching for information on ‘Auckland campervan camping’, the Department of Conservation website www.doc.govt.nz features on the first page of results, however there is very little information about ‘Places to go’ and no information about ‘Camping’ in Franklin on the DOC site. There is also very little information (accommodation, activities, car rentals and campervans) in the Jasons online travel directory. There is a great article on the AA Travel site called, “Loved by the Locals: Franklin” which gives insight into what the locals love to do. However, two of the five listings are slightly outside of the Franklin Ward and finding the article would also mean knowing about Franklin.

Overall, of the top five national tourism portals that appear on searches for ‘Auckland Camping,’ ‘Auckland RV Camping’ or ‘Auckland Motorhome Camping’, very little relevant information is found for Franklin. Regional level – Auckland Auckland Council’s website does not seem an obvious place to retrieve information relevant to campers and motor caravanners. However, it comes up first when searching for ‘Auckland Camping’ and third for ‘Auckland Motorhome Camping.’ When linking from either of these searches, the Council website provides detailed information for the camping tourist. However, if the visitor goes to the website and then searches for information on camping etc. it is an entirely different experience and it is not easy to find useful information. The online visitor has to navigate their way to deeply embedded links in the site; specifically, the path to access camping information is Home > Parks and facilities > Regional parks > Bookable facilities > Camping. The clickable map offers excellent regional campsite information with a ‘read more’ button allowing the user to find detailed information about campsite location, facilities and activities. No dump stations are listed in the Regional Parks area of the website but overall, the Council site is one of the best for the MC visitor to Franklin. Dump stations are listed on the Council website but are very hard to find for a MC visitor, and are not connected to camping searches, specifically the path to access is Home>Licences and regulations>Bylaws>Freedom camping bylaw trial.

The regional tourism portal www.aucklandnz.com/ from Auckland Tourism Events & Economic Development (ATEED) covers the entire Auckland region. Places in the Franklin area do not feature highly on this site and the visitor is not easily offered information related to Franklin organically e.g. in lists of Top 10 things to do, places to eat, places to stay, etc. It is free for a business to list on the site and content is fed through to aucklandnz.com from registrations on the national portal i.e. on the Tourism New Zealand Operators Database on newzealand.com. A search for ‘camping’ on the site results in options that are predominantly in other parts of Auckland (e.g. Wenderholm, Waitakere, Rodney). There are some good links, particularly for Clevedon, but the visitor needs to know of places in Franklin in order to search for information. Local tourism websites The Franklin Country website www.franklincountry.com has by far the best information for locals and visitors, to encourage them to see more, do more, and spend more in the Franklin area. While there are only a few links specifically aimed at camper/MC visitors, there is a good level of content related to accommodation, activities, shopping and markets for different local areas.

There is very good local information about places and ‘local life’, and things to do in the area. As one of our auditors comments, “the look and feel of the site is a little dated but the content makes up for it!” and “the Franklin Country website makes me want to visit!” While the site is comprehensive, our auditors found it somewhat difficult to navigate their way through it to satisfy their information needs. They also comment, “Finding the website is a problem if you’re not told about it.” The web audit was conducted prior to April 1 2017 and unfortunately, this site is no longer active (Figure 6).

Figure 6: Home page www.franklincountry.com

The Waiuku and Clevedon Business Associations and the Pohutukawa Coast websites have some information for visitors with directory listings advertising places to stay, attractions and activities, etc. There is also information to tell the visitor a little of the local history. The Clevedon website www.clevedon.co.nz has an ‘Explore Clevedon’ page which links to aucklandnz.com. There is good content on the Clevedon site about the parks and outdoor areas, reserves and beaches and on the art/craft, equine, and food related activities and events in the Clevedon area. The only site that links to the broader Franklin area is Pohutukawa Coast that links to the Franklin Local Board. There are no other links to other places in Franklin or Auckland on any of these sites and this highlights a need to improve inter and intra-regional links on local websites.

An excellent list on The Urban List webpage of ’30 Things to Do in South Auckland’ is quite relevant to the Franklin Ward. It includes Peninsula campground as a highlight as well as a few hidden gems in more remote areas that would interest the MC visitor. That is the extent of its contribution but it provides a unique list that the auditors did not find anywhere else.

The best example of a local business website that promotes attractions and activities across the Franklin sub-region is Clarks Beach Holiday Park www.clarksbeachholidaypark.co.nz. Based in the Waiuku subdivision, this site has information that encourages visitors to see other parts of the broader Franklin area. Social media Auditors also reviewed social media ‘conversations’: Pukekohe is well represented on social networks (e.g. Facebook, Twitter). The local character and attractions of Clevedon, Beachlands/Maraetai and Awhitu Peninsula are well represented on YouTube, with videos featuring a variety of ‘fun’ activities around these areas – many with nature reserves or ‘beach’ themes.

Trip Advisor results for campgrounds in Franklin were limited. The same handful of holiday parks tend to be featured: Big Bay, Clarks Beach, Orere Beach, Sandspit and Orua Bay with a mixture of positive and negative reviews. Other reviews of cafes, attractions, dining, and accommodation were also reviewed for town searches. The challenge again is for the tourist to find the reviews if they do not know specifically what to search for on the web.

While there are links to Facebook pages for the Pukekohe, Clevedon and Waiuku business associations or local pages, the level of conversation and interaction overall on Facebook is limited. There are some postings about local events but many ‘postings’ focus on advertising current promotions and may not be of interest to visitors including the MC market. Many experts argue that social media content should be no more than 30% about the organisation, its special offers, or other ‘advertising’. Social media puts the emphasis on the word ‘social’ and it is engagement and conversation that draws people to interact and grow a relationship with a place, or organisation. MC Websites There are websites specifically aimed at the MC traveller e.g. Rankers.co.nz, campermate.co.nz, rvexplorere.co.nz, park-sleep.co.nz. Some have excellent ‘clickable’ maps, but would benefit from further content. These sites usually offer locations of places where freedom campers are permitted to stay however none of these provide a comprehensive list of campsites or basic services in Franklin. The reviews are helpful and some of the freedom campsites or park-sleep sites are easier to find on these sites. However, it is necessary to rely on more than one of these websites to find the information the MC visitor needs and a broader search across many portals and sites is necessary. Auditors found the Campermate App to be a good source of information to locate basic services such as campsites, public toilets and dump stations, but good cellular coverage is needed for the visitor looking for information while travelling through the Franklin area. Overall, these sites and the apps are not easy to find.

Benchmarking – examples of good practice Trends in destination web-based marketing are moving away from simple directories advertising local businesses towards destination websites that are sources of comprehensive visitor information, with inspirational and interactive resident, business, community and user-generated content. Digital technologies are driving demand for highly immersive and engaging online experiences. A focus on the user experience requires website design that encompasses a modern modular layout, intuitive navigation, impactful visuals, and effective story telling across multiple devices (mobile, notepad, and laptop, desktop). To encourage conversion (from website visit to ‘actual’ visit) simplicity in design and intuitive navigation is achieved by selecting and prioritising the most relevant elements, and integrating them with standard design principles. Some examples are:

National Geographic Geotourism website: Scenic, Wild Delaware http://delawareriver.natgeotourism.com/

This NatGeo site is chosen as an example of good practice given the large number of entries written by local businesses and residents to promote ‘their place’. There is also a large section under ‘Outdoor Adventure’ that presents the visitor with a myriad of opportunities to enjoy the natural environment while engaging in outdoor activities.

Geotourism is a content marketing program that provides a platform for destinations to inventory and promote the places that locals most respect and recommend, in partnership with National Geographic (see more on http://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/geotourism/start-geotourism- destination/). Geotourism is defined as "tourism that sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place - its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage, and the well-being of its residents." [National Geographic]. Geotourism benefits residents by promoting local services and employment. It benefits visitors by informing residents about their needs and expectations, and helps travellers discover a myriad of lesser known attractions and destinations - bringing regionally dispersed sustainable tourism-led growth.

The NatGeo Geotourism programme provides travellers seeking unspoiled places, and culturally authentic experiences with a valuable resource—a comprehensive online Geotourism MapGuide. MapGuides are interactive online platforms that promote the natural, historic, and cultural assets unique to a destination, as identified by local stakeholders. National Geographic experts collaborate with locals to develop travel resources to help visitors plan more enriching journeys through interactive online maps, guides, and virtual tours.

Go See Australia - https://www.goseeaustralia.com.au/

The site allows the MC traveller to research, compare and book over 500 caravan parks and holiday destinations to visit and stay.

Pitchup.com - https://www.pitchup.com/en-nz/about/linking/

A web search for campsites in the Clevedon area resulted in a website result for Clevedon, UK. Upon further exploration, auditors discovered the extensive campground information that this site included for Europe, UK and the Americas. This is an excellent example of a ‘one-stop shop’ for MCs looking to book and find information about campsites in a particular town, region or city of New Zealand. The entire camping industry in New Zealand could benefit in becoming part of the Pitchup.com network. Franklin could lead the way—it is free for campsites to register.

Go Camping Iceland - http://tjalda.is/en/camping-sites/

Gocamping.is is an information website covering campsites in Iceland. Visitors can find a location; see photos, descriptions and much more. There are aspects of the site that could be adapted and used to strengthen information for camper/MC visitors to Franklin.

Conclusions and recommendations The research reveals that there are significant attractors for camping/MC visitors to Franklin with a good deal of attractions, beautiful outdoor places including parks and natural areas, activities and walks, and town centres in the area. The audit of MC/camping infrastructure and the web audit highlight many strengths in the destination tourism offerings but the process has also highlighted a number of areas where opportunities are being lost and potential for economic gain and development is not being met.

Information is the lifeblood of the tourism industry. The obvious gap in infrastructure is to be found in the low level of visitor information about the ‘Franklin experience’ available to camper/MC visitors; but this needs to be seen in terms of a lack in information provision for all visitors and for residents of the Franklin Ward.

NZTRI auditors comment that there is little to give visitors the feeling that Franklin is a cohesive visitor destination. Auditors found that other than an overall impression that the Franklin area offers beautiful coastline and a natural, rural environment; there is little to tell the visitor about the character or vibrancy of the local areas on national, regional and local portals. There is little that describes the places of the Franklin Ward as being unique and distinctive to others parts of Auckland. More so, it is difficult for a tourist looking to find information, particularly if they are not familiar with various ‘places’ in Franklin or if they do not know the region exists.

There is little information available online to direct camping/MC visitors to local facilities. NZTRI auditors spent a significant amount of time trying to find locations of dump stations, access to water, and places to put refuse as well as recycling etc. A visitor will not spend as much time, nor will they search as intensively across a large number of different websites to satisfy their information needs. Immediate opportunities The key message from the research is to make more of what you have already: While it is good to come up with new ideas and create new experiences the best way to achieve an immediate impact is through the improved performance of stakeholders and partners through networking and collaboration. Suggestions include:

• Revamp the Franklin Country website: This website has great potential for being the ‘go-to’ site for Franklin. The local content on this site was significant and gave the visitor a very good sense of the type of experience they may have should they travel to Franklin. It would indeed be a shame if this content is lost. However, there is a need to upgrade the site to have a more contemporary look and feel and to move to a platform that allows for the hosting of rich media.

Action: Renew the hosting of the Franklin Country website and move the content to a contemporary platform and design that is easy to navigate. Upgrade the information on the location and type of facilities that exist for camper/MC visitors – link to the Google Map and encourage all local stakeholders to link to the Map on their own websites.

• Develop a NatGeo Franklin Geotourism MapGuide: An alternative to revamping the Franklin Country website is to find out more about creating a Franklin Geotourism MapGuide. Apply to the National Geographic Geotourism MapGuide initiative to Start a Geotourism Program similar to the Scenic Wild Delaware site. Work with local businesses, business associations, residents and community groups to create a NatGeo Franklin MapGuide with local content.

• Improve content on and linkages to national, regional and local portals: Work with local tourism and hospitality business owners/operators to build content on newzealand.com. Highlight Tourism New Zealand’s open content contribution model and the ability to list free of charge on the national tourism portal through the Operator Database. Encourage businesses to register on the Operator Database and write content about their businesses but also ‘articles’ about the places they enjoy in their local area. This will also strengthen the information to be found on aucklandnz.com. Discuss with the Business Associations the possibility of improving web links and visitor information on their websites. This could be a simple web link to www.franklincountry.com or the development of an ‘our place, our neighbours’ and ‘for campers’ sections on their website.

• Build on the six local iconic attractions as ‘hubs’ of the Franklin camper/MC’s visitor experience. Local iconic attractions are the anchors of the value proposition to residents and visitors. Extend to other attractions and tourism products as ‘tourism activity nodes’ in a network: create clusters of ‘nodes’ around the iconic attraction hubs.

• Create a decision-support system for tourism. In terms of identifying areas where infrastructure needs to be strengthened for camping/MC tourism in Franklin, there is a need to generate robust evidence and ask camping/MC visitors as well as local residents what is missing for them i.e. to establish gaps in infrastructure according to those who are actually using it. There is also a need to understand more about the current experience of MCs – specifically, where they are going, what they are doing, how long they are staying and how much they spend.

Action: Develop and implement business, and visitor online surveys to provide stakeholder and market data to underpin planning and marketing activities.