Travelscoop

Getting off the beaten track in New Zealand has just become easier with a new interactive travel website aimed at helping backpackers and international students get out of town and onto the road less travelled. GOOT (Get Out Of Town) online guide offers travellers information to help plan a unique Kiwi road-trip, taking in lesser known destinations.

The website and GOOT Passport booklet provide destination suggestions, driving routes and itineraries for one-day and longer trips. It also offers special deals for discounted accommodation and activities from tourism operators throughout the country. Co-creator Joe Fagan says the inspiration for the website wasconnecting foreign students with real Kiwis and exposing them to the “hidden gems” that the locals know about. www.goot.co.nz

The GOOT Game

The GOOT Passport contains another incentive to get out and go. The GOOT Game, which is currently under test, pits international students against each other in a challenge to locate 100 places, icons, people or objects around New Zealand. Teams are awarded points based on the difficulty of finding and photographing each thing, and the team or individual who collects the most points each month wins prizes.

Fagan says the idea for the GOOT Game came one day when he was thinking about what makes New Zealand unique and how experiencing the “real New Zealand” is not always just about the major tourist attractions. ‘Team Two Sheeps' from Norway have played for two months in a row and are the most successful team so far, having amassed 287 points.

Kristine and Karina, who make up ‘Team Two Sheeps', say the game has made travelling in New Zealand an even more amazing experience for them.

Reflecting the trial period's success, a new GOOT Game website is currently in the works and the game will be expanded to allow backpackers and adventurous families wanting to get out there to play as well.

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