The South Pacific Tourism Organisation says the new tourism exchange to be held in Auckland this year will be annual and may eventually be held back in the Pacific.
The Marketing Manager of the SPTO, Petero Manufolau, says the event is a response to the cancellation of the long-running Bula Fiji Tourism Exchange that was scheduled for May.
The Bula Tourism Trust called an end to its annual event after 18 years when Tourism Fiji announced it would stage the Fiji Tourism Expo in the same month, seeking participation from the same Fiji sellers and the same overseas buyers.
Petero Manufolau says he is confident the same sellers in the wider Pacific who were committed to Bula Fiji will be in Auckland in May.
"With Australian Tourism Exchange, it may be a case of us alternating between the two countries, as a hosting. There's also discussions of other options to consider, of taking it back into the region, but of course that will heavily depend on feedback that we receive from participants this year."
The Marketing Manager of the SPTO, Petero Manufolau.
