TURISMO CHILE UPDATE ON CHILE’S TOURISM INDUSTRY FOLLOWING EARTHQUAKE

Monday March 1, 2010 - Chile suffered an 8.8 quake in the early morning hours of Saturday February
27, 2010. The cities closest to the epicenter, including Concepcion, Talcahuano and Temuco as well as a
number of small towns along Chile’s central coast were most affected by the quake.
The five different tourism regions promoted by Turismo Chile are reporting the following updates:
Desert – The north of Chile was not affected by the quake and has not reported any damage.
Easter Island – Easter Island, which lies 2,300 miles off the cost of mainland Chile, a 5.5 hour flight from
Santiago, was not affected by the quake. Initial tsunami warnings have been lifted and all operations are
normal.
Santiago and Central Region - Santiago’s airport suffered structural damage to the passenger terminal,
however no damage was reported to the runways and the airport is expected to reopen later this week.
Electricity and phone lines have been restored in Santiago and the city’s public transportation including its
metro is fully operational. Valparaiso and Viña del Mar have also reported damage. The annual Viña del
Mar International Music festival which was underway has been suspended.
Lakes and Volcanoes – The northern part of the Lakes and Volcanoes region, around the city of
Concepcion and the Bio Bio River, was most affected by the quake. Authorities are still working on
assessing the full damage. Basic essential services including water, electricity and telecommunications
are gradually being restored. The southern part of the Lakes and Volcanoes region was not affected by
the quake. Operations in popular tourist towns including Pucon, Puerto Varas and Puerto Montt are
normal.
Patagonia – The far south of the country was not affected by the quake and has not reported any
damage.
Chile is a country with a history of seismic activity. The country’s preparedness, including its strict antiseismic
building codes, the rapid emergency response from the government as well as the help from a
number of organizations can be credited for managing the situation and help minimize the damage. The
country’s tourism infrastructure has, overall, fared well, reporting little damage.
“Our thoughts and sentiments go out to the families who have lost loved ones,” said Pablo Moll, executive
director of Turismo Chile. “Chileans are a resilient people and we are hard at work to get the country back
on its feet quickly. We look forward to continuing to welcome travelers and are making every effort to
making them feel safe and secure.”

TANTALISING TREATS ON OFFER AT TASMANIA’S TASTINGS AT THE TOP

Travellers with a passion for fine food and wine won’t want to miss Tasmania’s ‘Tastings at the Top’ gourmet extravaganza to be held over three days from 26 June to 28 June 2010, at Cradle Mountain Lodge in Tasmania.

Now in its 16^th year, the Tastings at the Top event is known as Tasmania’s premier culinary celebration and is rated as one of Australia’s finest cuisine experiences, showcasing the very best in Tasmanian produce.

Visitors can enjoy everything from degustation dinners and wine tastings to wilderness walks and decadent spa treatments at the famous Waldheim Alpine Spa. 

There will be a range of Tasmanian specialities on offer such as prime cheeses, fresh seafood, mouth-watering berries, premium beef, specialty honey, sweet treats and cool-climate wines.

Tastings at the Top has something for every palate and is the perfect escape for people interested in enjoying good food, wine and company in a stunningly picturesque setting.

For more information, booking details and flight timetables, please contact your local travel agent.

Cheeky Lily’s Big Adventure Key Dates

A New Zealand charity dedicated to improving the lives of Kiwi kids with Down Syndrome, will hit the road this week with a unique campaign aimed at generating funds and raising awareness of its nationwide educational programme.

The UpsideDowns Education Trust has today launched Cheeky Lily’s Big Adventure – the initiative will see a 1963 VW beach buggy driven the length of the country in a bid to create national interest in the charity and the work that it does.

Established in 2002, the Trust provides specialist early education assistance to New Zealand children with Down Syndrome to improve their learning development and help them integrate more fully into the community and mainstream school system.

Down Syndrome is the most common genetic disorder in New Zealand with around one child in every 800* born with the condition.

Cheeky Lily, a bright aqua beach buggy, is the creation of Auckland man Glenn Doodes whose cousin and Cheeky Lily’s namesake Lily Mae aged 6 is a recipient of the Trust’s education programme.

Doodes will guide Cheeky Lily from Kaitaia to Bluff over a six day period stopping in towns and visiting schools and families along the way.

“Given the challenges children with Down Syndrome have, by far the most effective thing they can receive to help them live a fulfilling and meaningful life is better education. I hope Cheeky Lily’s Big Adventure will help many more children have access to this,” says Doodes.

The UpsideDowns Education Trust chairperson Melanie Brabin says while research has shown that integrating students with Down Syndrome into mainstream education does improve their cognitive skills, more needs to be done to close the gap between them and their peers.

The Trust’s education scheme goes some way to addressing this with the provision of an in-home specialist programme which includes one-on-one training from a fully qualified speech therapist, she says.

“Early education programmes such as ours which focus specifically on the visual teaching methods of reading and picture prompts can lessen the impact of verbal processing difficulties. This means we can speed up speech, language and cognitive development and even the playing field for when they hit school,” she says.

In just a few years the UpsideDowns Education Trust has offered 50 families access to the programme, but there are currently nine families on the waiting list and a further 600 that could benefit from the same opportunity.

Brabin says funds raised during Cheeky Lily’s Big Adventure will mean those children waiting for the programme may now receive it.

“We hope that by generating greater awareness of the Trust and what we do, more children with Down Syndrome will be able to benefit from the early educational opportunities we can provide them,” she says.

Brabin says the annual cost of the Trust’s early intervention education programme is around $3,200 per year, per child. The Trust covers 80% of the costs of the education.

Children from six months old can be offered the programme and Brabin says the earlier a child starts the greater the chance and range of positive impact.

To make a donation or to find out when Cheeky Lily will be in your town visit www.upsidedowns.co.nz/donations.html

Cheeky Lily’s Big Adventure Key Dates

Day 1               Sun 28 Feb                   Kaitaia - Auckland

Day 2               Mon 1 Mar                    Auckland - Hamilton - Rotorua

Day 3               Tue 2 Mar                      Rotorua - Paraparaumu

Day 4               Wed 3 Mar                    Paraparaumu - Wellington - Picton - Christchurch

Day 5               Thu 4 Mar                      Christchurch - Dunedin

Day 6               Fri 5 Mar                       Dunedin – Bluff