Praise for Hassle Free Tours

18/08/08

News Release

August 7, 2008

Praise for Hassle-Free Tours

Christchurch & Canterbury Tourism chief executive Christine Prince is praising the leadership shown by local tourism company Hassle-free Tours.

The company has only been operating for five years but has already won accolades for its commitment to the environment and to providing visitors to Canterbury with an exceptional service and visitor experience.

The company narrowly missed out on receiving a tourism award at the Tourism Industry Association's annual awards night in Christchurch this week but was a finalist in three categories and received several honorable mentions.

"Owners Nikki Marsh and Mark Gilbert have done a fantastic job of building up their business over the past few years and should be proud of what they have achieved. They're a young couple who clearly love what they do and feel passionately about looking after their visitors and about protecting the environment,'' says Ms Prince.

"They are leading by example and helping cement Canterbury as a great destination for eco-conscious visitors who want an experience of a life-time.''

Hassle-free Tours provides day trips into the high country of central Canterbury, including Mt Sunday, the filming location for Edoras in the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy.

Since the company launched five years ago Nikki and Mark have continually developed the business by modifying their product offerings and expanding their operations. They have increased their fleet of cross-country vehicles and modified them to suit customer needs.

The most significant development was in October 2007 when all their vehicles were converted to bio-diesel, which is made from recycled cooking oil. They are the only tour company in New Zealand running all their fleet on bio-diesel, which significantly reduces their CO2 admissions.

The company has applied for CarboNZero certification.

"This is a company that is going places and I'm sure we'll see them featuring again at next year's tourism awards,'' says Ms Prince.

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