Silver travellers and their dollars are propping up the tourism industry
Semi-retired Alexandra lawyer Gordon Rayner is a prime example of the Kiwi “silver” travellers who are propping up the tourism industry.
His overseas itinerary for 2020 was supposed to include a sailing trip to Fiji, watching wildlife in the Australian outback, rafting in Russia and a road trip through the United States.
Instead, the 63-year-old and wife Mary Tritt visited Northland and the Marlborough Sounds, sailed the Hauraki gulf, made eight mountain biking and cycle trail trips, fished on charter boats in the Bay of Islands, and spent $24,000 on a bucket-list cruise to the subantarctic islands.
Have you switched your holiday plans due to the Covid-19 pandemic? Have you visited part of New Zealand you haven't been to before - or for a long time - or are you planning to? Read more about NZ's 'silver' travellers here and tell us about your experiences in the comments below.
What word sums up 2024, neighbours?
If 2020 was the year of lockdowns, banana bread, and WFH (work from home)....
In one word, how would you define 2024?
We're excited to see what you come up with!
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️