Creatives in Tourism - Workshop with Brad Rowe (Wānaka)

Turn your creative practice into an experience visitors will pay for.

With around three million visitors coming to the Queenstown Lakes region each year, there’s a huge opportunity for local creatives to connect with the visitor market. But where do you start?

Whether you’re an artist, designer, maker, performer or creative business owner, this free workshop will help you explore how your skills, knowledge and creative practice could become an experience that visitors want to be part of.

Led by Brad Rowe, founder of Tourism x Design, this practical, hands-on session will guide you through the process of developing, pricing and selling a visitor experience, with real examples and insights from local people who have already made it happen.

Building on Brad’s popular Business in Creativity workshops at the 2025 and 2026 Te Muka Toi Te Muka Tākata Creative and Culture Hui, these sessions offer an opportunity to take your ideas further.

What you’ll learn

Together, we’ll explore:

• Getting found by visitors: How to get your business found and put your experience in front of the right customers.

• Finding your audience: Identify your ideal visitor and design an experience they’ll pay for.

• Pricing and packaging: Learn how to price, package and sell your offer.

• The practical tools: Get to know the essential tools you’ll need, including booking systems, sales distribution and more.

You’ll leave with practical next steps, fresh ideas and inspiration from local creatives and businesses already working in this space.

And the learning doesn’t have to stop there!

Attendees will also have the opportunity to access one-on-one follow-up sessions with Brad to explore their ideas further and get support putting them into action.

Who should attend?

This workshop is for creative practitioners, collectives and small creative businesses across the Queenstown Lakes District.

Whether you’re just starting to think about connecting with the tourism market or already offering visitor experiences and looking to develop them further, this session will offer practical insights and guidance.

You don’t need a fully formed idea or previous tourism experience to take part.

Meet your facilitator: Brad Rowe

Brad is the founder of Tourism x Design, a Queenstown-based consultancy helping tourism operators and destinations turn ideas into experiences visitors will pay for.

With more than 15 years of experience in the Queenstown visitor economy, Brad brings expertise in product development, experience design and destination management.

He also co-founded Good Finds, a curated marketplace connecting visitors with local, host-led experiences, is a Trustee of the Queenstown Trails Trust and sits on the Tourism Central Otago Destination Advisory Board.

Workshop dates and locations

Tāhuna Queenstown (RSVP via this link)

Thursday 12 November 2026
9:30am to 11:30am
Venue: To be confirmed

Wānaka (RSVP below)

Saturday 14 November 2026
9:30am to 11:30am
Venue: To be confirmed

Cost and registration

FREE to attend, with registration - all thanks to the support of Queenstown Lakes District Council Economic Futures.

To help us tailor the workshop to those attending, we’ll ask you to complete a short expression of interest questionnaire as part of your registration.

Spaces are limited, so we encourage you to register early.

Come along, explore what’s possible and discover how your creativity could become part of someone’s Queenstown Lakes experience.

Presented by Three Lakes Cultural Trust, with support from Queenstown Lakes District Council Economic Futures.