Māori tourism company earns global award
10 Sep 2010
The owners of a New Zealand tour company specialising in unique Kiwi experiences will pick up an international award at a special ceremony in the US today (10.09.2010).
Auckland tour company TIME Unlimited - which specialises in Māori cultural tours as well as offering tours of Auckland, fishing, kayaking and wilderness walks - won the public vote section of the Indigenous Tourism and Biodiversity Website Awards 2010 in March.
TIME Unlimited owners Ceillhe and Neill Sperath and their baby daughter Danica will pick up their award during an official ceremony at the Ecotourism and Sustainable Tourism Conference (ESTC) in Portland, Oregon.
The awards are hosted by Planeta.com and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (SCBD). They are awarded to tourism websites that promote sustainable tourism practices and educate visitors on cultural protocols and biodiversity conservation.
"We are absolutely delighted to receive such an outstanding accolade for our company. It is very humbling for us that TIME Unlimited Tours was chosen by people from around the world with such an overwhelming majority for this prestigious global award."
The winner of the main jury award was Nutti Sami Siida, a Swedish company offering reindeer sled trips in Lapland.
New Zealand finalists
TIME Unlimited Tours won the public vote award by a high margin, achieving nearly 50% of the votes cast worldwide.
Te Urewera Treks - a New Zealand company offering eco-cultural wilderness treks into the Te Urewera and Whirinaki forests in the North Island - was also a finalist for the jury award.
Background: TIME Unlimited
TIME Unlimited is an Auckland-based tour company established in 2005 by bi-cultural couple Ceillhe and Neill Sperath.
Ceillhe is a New Zealand Māori and direct descendant of the famous chief Patuone, who was present during the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi - New Zealand’s founding document. Neill is a New Zealander of Irish and German origin.
Neill and Ceillhe are both passionate about New Zealand’s unique Māori culture and beautiful natural environment. TIME Unlimited was founded on the three pou or pillars of Māoritanga (Māori culture): manaakitanga (hospitality), kaitiakitanga (guardianship) and whakawhanaungatanga (relationships).
More information:
Kaitiakitanga - protecting New Zealand
Aotearoa - New Zealand's unique Māori culture
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