Too few beds for two events

WANAKA accommodation providers and Lake Wanaka Tourism are predicting there will be an accommodation crisis in March next year due to the Wanaka A&P Show and the Motatapu race both being held on the second weekend that month.

The Moorings coowner Peter Sutherland said that on the separate weekends the events were held this year, accommodation was booked out, and if they were held on the same weekend, ‘‘the town would grind to a halt’’.

A Lakeside Apartments spokeswoman said they had been fully booked both weekends and ‘‘there just wouldn’t be enough beds in the town’’.

Chris Randle, regional manager for Iron Man, the company contracted by the Wakatipu Trails Trust to run the Motatapu Race, said it agreed to push the 2018 date back to March 10 after receiving a request from NZ Golf Open via Queenstown Lakes Mayor Jim Boult to assess the feasibility of moving the date, as the race would have been on the same weekend as the tournament, March 14.

Mr Randle said Iron Man had assessed various date options and consulted stakeholders, including the QLDC Events team and the Wanaka A&P Show, and the only other option was the second weekend in March. He acknowledged the clash with the show was ‘‘less than ideal’’.

He said Iron Man spoke to several of the larger hotels and motels in Wanaka and received similar responses from all, that summer was busier than ever and they were full regardless of what weekend it was and what event was taking place.

Unfortunately, the date was now locked in and could not be changed, he said.

Lake Wanaka Tourism general manager James Helmore said he was not consulted about the shift in dates and was ‘‘frustrated’’ at the conflict. He had brought it to the attention of the QLDC via deputy mayor Calum McLeod and planned to continue the discussion.

Chairman of NZ Open in Queenstown John Hart said the date it used to hold the NZ Golf Open no longer fitted with the international PGA tour schedule, and because Queenstown was a member of the Australasian tour, it had to have a date that fitted with that.

There had always been an issue with events clashing due to the popularity of Queenstown and the NZ Golf Open had been held on the same weekend as the Wanaka A&P Show for the past three years, he said.

kerrie.waterworth@odt.co.nz