The Bay of Plenty is becoming an increasingly desirable destination for business and educational conferences, says the region's official tourism and marketing organisation.

Tourism BOP's head of marketing Kath Low says it's an exciting opportunity for the region to play host to a number of high-profile events, like this week's National Māori Housing Conference.

Tourism Bay of Plenty says the number of high-profile business and educational conferences being held in the region is on the rise. File Photo.

'With new residents and businesses comes increased interest in creating opportunities for conferences such as this to be held in the Bay of Plenty.

'[The National Māori Housing Conference] tackles a hugely important subject and the outcomes of which are to be highly beneficial for not just Tauranga Moana, but the region and nation as a whole.”

Kath says Tauranga specifically is becoming a hot spot for business conferences, with the city recently hosting the 2016 Franchise Association of New Zealand Annual Conference at Trinity Wharf Hotel.

More than 120 of New Zealand's leading franchise minds and businesses were in attendance for the two-day event, with helped promote Tauranga and its exceptional conference facilities.

While in October, the 2016 Road Transport Forum Annual Conference will take place in Tauranga and focus on how communities can manage the impacts of future growth whilst delivering a safe and efficient transport system that's well balanced to meet the needs of those communities.

Along with guest speakers Transport Minister Simon Bridges, Tesla co-founder Ian Wright and NZ Transport Association's Jeff Fleury, the conference will also feature a demonstration involving a self-driving car – making Tauranga the first city in New Zealand to see an autonomous vehicle in action.