​Shaun Monk says it took his friends, Island Hills Station owners Dan and Mandy Shand, “about three seconds” to give the green light to his idea for a hiking experience on their land.

He now runs tramps on the Northern Canterbury station, and says they attract people for all sorts of reasons.

“Once you cross that cattle stop you leave the rest of the world behind the boundary fence, you also get to meet cute farm animals, meet hearty people, and exercise in fresh scenery,” Monk said. 

​Agritourism is a growing industry worldwide. It's where agriculture and tourism meet, and gives people from both ends of the rural/urban divide the opportunity to connect and provides some much-needed tourism numbers back to rural areas of the country. Marijke Dunselman is the founder of Agritourism NZ and joined Dom for some insight into the ever-growing sectors return to form post-pandemic.

This article appeared in the Farmer's Weekly on the 20th of March 2023.

We have developed a new programme for farmers who are interested in starting or growing an agritourism business. This 6-month course will be run in regions around New Zealand from starting in May 2023. 
It starts with a full day course in each region followed by five webinars. 
Below are 2 new videos outlining what agritourism is with lots of examples and benefits, and about the new programme. Registrations are now open and new regions are still added, so do register your interest on this page: ​www.agritourism.nz/2023-regional-agritourism-accelerator.html