$24 for a bagel and two coffees feels like a ripoff
It seems that if you visit anywhere in New Zealand close to where tourists tread . . . food and accommodation prices shoot through the roof.
Thanks to a bit of out-of-town work and a short break, I have been up north for a while. It’s nice to be in a place where 25 degrees is a cool day, not a heatwave. Though it’s not the peak domestic tourism season, our resorts and beaches are still busy as it’s the preferred time of year for many international visitors to come here.
Yes, the coronavirus has certainly reduced visitors from China but there are still a lot of tourists from other parts of the world. At the places I’ve been visiting, many of them have been on bicycles.
Some cyclists are Kiwis from the big smoke – apparently men from Auckland in their 40s and 50s is the biggest demographic – but judging by accents and languages spoken in cafes and information centres, a large number are from overseas.
Thank you very much, John Key, for your investment in cycling infrastructure and thank you to this Government for its continuation. It’s been a fantastic financial investment, and long may it continue.
Cycling tourists don’t add to road traffic or emissions while here but certainly add to the economy, as they spend money on meals, accommodation and tourism experiences. I’d love to know the difference in spending between freedom campers and cyclists – I suspect the latter spend more.
However, despite the boom in tourism over the years, it’s not all good news. It seems that if you visit anywhere in New Zealand close to where tourists tread, Wellington included, food and accommodation prices shoot through the roof.
After visiting a steady stream of reasonably priced cafes and motels up north, when we came close to a tourist mecca the accommodation got worse and the prices rocketed. Market forces? Perhaps, but paying $10 for wi-fi at a shoddy hotel, when most motels offer it for free, sticks in the craw.
Cracked glass in a shower and no utensils would be good cause for complaint in most motels, but when the overseas hotel owners know they are booked out in advance and have a million-dollar view just seconds away, room maintenance is at the bottom of their list.
One small bagel and two coffees in a popular tourist town set us back $24 – expensive even by Wellington standards. Do local businesses watch tourists come in and see how high they can gouge prices? I’m pretty sure it’s not because of staff costs – who often only receive the minimum wage.
An Australian tourist told me they loved New Zealand but found prices here steep.
Then there is the service. In small-town New Zealand I’ve experienced some of the best service of anywhere in the world, with honest, friendly and efficient staff. But at some other places it leaves a lot to be desired. As we enjoyed a drink and a sunset in one of New Zealand’s most picturesque beaches, we could hear some overseas visitors loudly complain about their 11⁄2–hour wait for food.
The hapless waitress tried to explain that they had only two chefs servicing two different restaurants and a whole lot of customers, but it fell on deaf ears. I was reminded of the same arguments we have over shortages of bus drivers, GPs, tradies and other things. The staff on duty were working their guts out, so it wasn’t their fault. But when the barman brought out a printed, well-used, laminated sheet advising how long meals would take, I couldn’t help wondering if this was the sort of place that needed a Jamie Oliver type to come in and shake up the management.
I do have some sympathy for businesses in smaller places. It’s difficult to attract skilled staff as housing is often difficult to get in heavily touristed areas, and visitors are seasonal – so businesses find themselves understaffed in summer and overstaffed in winter.
Perhaps things will change when a host of tourist attractions funded by Ma¯ tua Shane’s Provincial Growth Fund come on stream? I have to admit to being somewhat agnostic on some of these projects.
We are told that they must have robust business cases to be funded, and I’ve heard from some applicants that the form-filling and application process is gruelling and thorough.
The trouble is that many of these projects get a one-off grant. Yes, they can be built, but what happens after that? The actual building of museums or visitor centres is sometimes only a fraction of the total cost of running them. And what happens if they need a cash injection in a few years? Are they told that they’ve had their money and are on their own from now on?
I hope that in 10 years’ time we won’t have a number of provincial institutions saying ‘‘we got a big grant to build this thing but running it is proving to be a real challenge’’.
Then again, perhaps it might lead to an exciting form of ecotourism where overseas visitors tour the country looking at various white elephants.