From the editor: 28 April 2022

Let it snow

Here’s wishing all the wonderful mums out there a Happy Mother’s Day on 8 May. Mothers deserve to be looked after every day, but once a year works for me.

We’re heading into the last month of autumn and being greeted by the smell of wood fires in the morning and early evening, there’s already been a sprinkling of snow, and the winter woollies have made it to the front of wardrobes.

This month marked the end of my first year as editor at Metropol, and 12 months exploring and finding my way around Christchurch. I continue to be amazed – although not surprised – at the tenacity, creativity and hard work that makes this gorgeous city pump.

Ongoing build projects, revitalised businesses and the return of tourists to the Garden City add up to a bright future. New Zealand’s border opening came at the right time for the Australian school holidays, bringing a flock of Ockers back to our shores, and an injection of much needed capital into the region’s economy.

Pre-pandemic, around 160,000 Australians visited in winter 2019. From June to August 2019, Australian visitors spent more than $211 million, around 40 percent of all spending by international tourists.

Part and parcel of that is snow tourism which comes with flow-on effects across Canterbury and further south. So dig out the skis and boards, polish them up and join the Aussies hitting our slopes. Bring on the snow.