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Love Taupo Trail Festival

Love Taupō Trail Festival: Bringing people together in the heart of nature

The Love Taupō Trail Festival made its debut in April 2024, bringing together trail enthusiasts, families, and nature lovers for a weekend of outdoor adventure and community connection.

Organised by Aaron Carter and his team at Total Sport, the festival expands on the company’s existing events by combining multiple trail-based activities into one immersive three-day experience.

“The Taupō region is a beautiful part of New Zealand so it’s a dream location for a festival that’s about bringing people together to celebrate and embrace the benefits of getting outdoors,” Aaron says.

Setting up a festival is an ambitious undertaking, and one that Aaron freely admits might not have happened without the crucial support of the Thermal Explorer Regional Events Fund.

Despite years of planning, the risks of setting up an entirely new multi-day event from scratch had initially seemed too high, he says.

But something unexpected happened. In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic the Government established the Regional Events Fund to help stimulate domestic tourism across New Zealand, including the Thermal Explorer region of Waikato, Rotorua, Taupō and Ruapehu.

“When the fund was announced, it felt like the right time to dust off the concept and give it a go,” Aaron says. “Without that funding, we wouldn’t have done the event.”

On its first ever outing, the Love Taupō Trail Festival attracted around 2,000 people, with an impressive 82% coming from outside the Thermal Explorer Region. It also brought around $500,000 in spending to the Taupō region, providing a timely economic boost.

Aaron says this success happened despite a late date change due to a clash with the Supercars Championship, resulting in the new festival being held on the final weekend of the school holidays when families were returning home to prepare for the new school term.

The highlight of the inaugural Love Taupō Trail Festival and what truly set it apart was its emphasis on community and connection, Aaron says.

Beyond the physical activities – mountain bike rides, trail adventures, rogaines and a night run by torchlight – the festival featured a range of wellness and community-building events. These included yoga, stretching sessions, and a unique storytelling event called ‘Tales from the Trails’, where outdoor enthusiasts shared their adventures in a casual fireside-chat setting.

The festival’s focus on giving back to the community was another highlight, with more than $20,000 raised for local causes, he says. This included funding support for Bike Taupō to support its trail maintenance efforts, and a partnership with Greening Taupō and Kids Greening Taupō to plant 2,000 trees as part of an Earth Day initiative, in collaboration with the Supercars event.

“We’re proud to support these charities that align with our values of promoting outdoor activities and environmental stewardship.”

Aaron says the lessons learned from the first festival have paved the way to strive for an even more successful event in 2025. Scheduled for mid-March, the next Love Taupō Trail Festival will benefit from better timing, avoiding the challenges of the final weekend of the school holiday period.

The team is already hard at work adjusting the schedule and refining the event format based on participant feedback. As the festival grows and evolves, Aaron says it will continue to contribute to the vibrancy and appeal of the Taupō area, drawing visitors from across New Zealand and beyond.

As well as grant funding, the Thermal Explorer Regional Events Fund initiative also included a series of capability building workshops, held in Taupō, Ruapehu, Rotorua, and Waikato.

Aaron is quick to acknowledge the value of the workshops, which he says provided precious insights for him and his team, as well as opportunities to network.

“The workshops were a great way to connect with other event organisers and share ideas.

“It’s been a huge help in navigating the challenges of the events industry, especially post-Covid.”

Financial sustainability is a key focus for the future, as Aaron acknowledges the importance of securing more sponsorships and growing the participant base to ensure the festival’s longevity beyond the final year of Thermal Explorer funding.

Thanks to the support of the Thermal Explorer Regional Events Fund, the Love Taupō Trail Festival dream has become a reality, with an even brighter future ahead.

About the Thermal Explorer Regional Events Fund

The $3.75 million Thermal Explorer Regional Events Fund was established by the New Zealand Government in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic to help stimulate domestic tourism and travel to the Waikato, Rotorua, Taupō and Ruapehu regions by supporting events.

Forty-nine events have been offered funding since the fund was created, attracting an estimated 370,000 people to the Thermal Explorer region.

The fund is now in its final year. It is managed collectively through the Event Investment Panel, which is made up of a representative from each of the regional tourism organisations in the Thermal Explorer area – Hamilton & Waikato Tourism (Lead Entity), RotoruaNZ, Destination Great Lake Taupō, and Visit Ruapehu – and one local council representative from each of the four regions.