good news for the kiwis peoples, NO PASSPORT NEEDED!!! for less then $100

GOLD Coasters could soon be able to fly to New Zealand for less than $100 and without a passport, under a new agreement that treats our sheep-loving trans-Tasman neighbours as another domestic destination.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is expected to announce today that travel between both countries will be streamlined, possibly including the scrapping or reduction of departure taxes and the current strict border controls.

The Prime Minister's office was last night remaining tight-lipped about the announcement but New Zealand Prime Minister John Key was quoted as saying 'travel to Australia could be as simple as a domestic trip'.

It would effectively mean the end of long queues at customs or the need for a passport for citizens of both countries, making travel to New Zealand as simple and as cheap as skipping across to any other Australian city.

Flights as cheap as $128 between the Gold Coast and Auckland are already available, but a relaxation or scrapping of departure taxes could mean they are slashed even further.

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The expected news would be a huge boost to tourism on the Gold Coast, which already attracts more than 200,000 New Zealand visitors a year.

The new union could also mean Australia and New Zealand may band together in joint-international marketing campaigns, luring European, US and Asian travellers to experience our beaches and their ski slopes.

Convenor of the Tourism Futures national conference which is being held on the Gold Coast, Tony Charters, said given New Zealand's hugely successful '100% Pure' campaign, which sells the country as a nature paradise, combining the strength of Australia's offering would make travelling to the region irresistible to many.

"The northern hemisphere looks at Australia and New Zealand through a single lens. If they are going to get on a long-haul flight here, they are going to want to see both countries," said Mr Charters.

"We are both battling it out in the international market, yet there is a lot to gain by working jointly.

"We both offer different experiences: they have the high-altitude mountains with snow that we don't have, and we have the desert, the Great Barrier Reef and the beaches that they can't offer."

Mr Charters said an aviation report into trans-Tasman taxes showed that if they were removed, it could save passengers between $60 and $80 a flight.

Mr Rudd and Mr Key were expected to thrash out the issue during a visit this week. Under the plan, passengers leaving Australia for New Zealand could be exempt from the $47 movement fee.

Security, immigration and quarantine checks could also be recognised by each other, similar to travel throughout the European Union.

Gold Coast Tourism CEO Martin Winter told The Bulletin such an agreement would be huge for the city.

"New Zealand has, for a long time, been the Gold Coast's prime international market and we have up to 28 direct flights a week into Coolangatta," he said.

"We treat New Zealand more as a domestic market rather than an international one because it is in close proximity. There are fantastic affordable airfares and we have a very strong New Zealand expat community living on the Coast.

"We've been calling for relaxations on immigration and customs. It means that New Zealand passport holders would be treated the same as Australians."

Federal Opposition Tourism spokesman Steven Ciobo supported the move saying it would 'usher in a boom to key visitors to the Coast' and push airfares below $100.

"New Zealand visitors spend $222 million a year on the Gold Coast but the numbers have been going down, so hopefully this move will help turn that around."

Thats f***ed, im leaving next thursday :P I want a refund

got a link?

google a string from the OP

http://www.goldcoast.com.au/article/2009/08/20/110011_gold-coast-news.html

internet pro^

I could get a job at news dot com dot au as a journo

jim, you and your google. google this

http://www.printedclothing.com/contents/media/pc454 me your mum.jpg

next country: China, to bring the people of the Gold Coast closer to their families.

That article is friggin' terrible. "GOLD coasters..." - I didn't realise you were so different from other Australians.

However, awesome news if true.

Thats sweet as bro.

Edit, ara, that looks more like his dad ya big poof.

Because it is a gold coast site?

Also good news. The yearly visit to relatives just became twice as easy (hopefully).

Who was the guy on here a while ago that was totally against this? I think he also hated Asians and a few other bizarro rants.

http://www.google.com.au/#hl=en&safe=off&q=ara%27s+mum&meta=&fp=ff420072d669d8d

she has a fine coat.

lmfao

ahaha @ ara's mum

thats awesome

why don't they just hurry up and merge the two already. kiwis already get onto centrelink easy enough.

how about we merge tasmania into victoria first.

do you really think tasmanians are more australian than kiwis? they are pretty weird down there.

Oh God. Keep them out.

kiwis already get onto centrelink easy enough.

bulls***. my missus had so much bs qld red tape trying to get a teaching job here (even know theres a "shortage")

kiwis cant get the dole for 2years.

I'm Tasmanian.

And they ARE practically merged already. Tassie has (03) STD code, as does VIC.

bulls***. my missus had so much bs qld red tape trying to get a teaching job here (even know theres a "shortage")

She didn't lie hard enough then.

Although they could be lying, i was surrounded by some incredibly foul mouthed (the rotting teeth kind) nz'ers not many months ago who explained how they managed to get on the dole within 6 months. Their only reason of moving here were better centrelink conditions. Neither looked like they ever could get a job anyway.. /shudder

And they ARE practically merged already. Tassie has (03) STD code, as does VIC.

I am thinking along the lines of halving the bureaucracy

One more step in turning NZ into our eighth state/territory

Now we just need to adopt NZ's vehicle import scheme and we will be the best country on earth.

THey have airsoft in New Zealand. Can we play it too now?