Operators hope to fill vacancies

South Canterbury accommodation operators are hopeful Christmas and New Year will bring some respite after months of uncertainty.

Operators are still reporting a drop in bookings following a punishing year in which some lost up to 90 per cent of business.

‘‘It’s much quieter this year,’’ Avenue Motor Lodge manager Bridgette Fitton said of the bookings going into Christmas and New Year.

‘‘I believe that people are still going on holiday, but I feel it’s going to be spontaneous.

‘‘When I talk to guests, I am told they are still not sure at this stage but 99 per cent of them are planning to get away.

‘‘I am noticing a lot of people are just stopping in on the way through Timaru and staying.’’

Bay City Motor Lodge owner/ operator Vivienne Edgar said Christmas and New Year bookings were probably on par with 2019.

‘‘It [bookings] does slip away to Christmas and then bookings come away prior to New Year.’’

Edgar said there had been an increase in domestic travellers.

‘‘New Zealanders are still spending money and it is good. I’m thinking a lot of people will get in their cars and just travel over the festive season.

‘‘They will do it a different way this year and I think it is good for us.

‘‘Timaru has also been lucky in that our customer base is mainly corporate.

‘‘It can be a bit up and down, but we go along with it,’’ Edgar said.

Aspen on King co-manager Cherie Hope said her business also relied on corporate visitors.

‘‘We have weathered Covid-19 well.

‘‘We have a lot of regulars and our bookings are pretty well similar to last year’s numbers going into the festive season,’’ Hope said.

Timaru Top 10 Holiday Park receptionist Dannielle Doyle-Watts said Christmas and New Year was looking ‘‘normal’’ for the business.

‘‘It’s looking pretty good. ‘‘New Zealanders are taking the opportunity to explore their own backyard.’’

Doyle-Watts said the business had benefited in 2020 from a deal with campervan companies.

‘‘[They] did a deal with us this year and more people wanted to stay with us because of the deals on offer.

‘‘It made a difference here as it was very popular.

In the Mackenzie, Mountain Chalets Motel office manager Micah Purton said the Twizel business had ‘‘definitely seen a big dip’’ in bookings, both in general and for the summer.

‘‘Usually by this time we’d have every room gone and now we’d be lucky to have half.’’

Purton said a rise in domestic tourism hadn’t been enough to offset the loss of the international tourists, who normally made up 85 per cent of their summer guests.

Twizel Bookings owner Amy Lamb said they were fully booked for Christmas and New Year.

‘‘Which is normal for us, but in 2020 it’s nice to be able to say that anything is normal.’’

Lamb said the only difference she’s seen in bookings over this holiday period, compared to a normal year, is the groups are bigger, with more friends going away together and sharing a house.

However, Lamb said the problem is the time outside the holiday period.

‘‘I think as an industry that we’ll all survive summer. It won’t be record-breaking, but we’ll tick along, and we’ll survive.

‘‘But, if we have to go through another winter period without borders open and international guests, there’s going to be a lot of businesses that will decide that’s not going to be feasible.’’