B&B owners changing their ways to meet needs of Kiwi DIY travellers

The “DIY” Kiwi attitude to travel is challenging accommodation providers and Bed and Breakfast owners are changing their offering to suit our independent style.

With no international guests, bed and breakfast owners around Coromandel are among those nationwide now rejigging how they provide the service their guests want.

Donna Brooke owns Sunlover Retreat in Tairua, which won the Best of the Best on Tripadvisor award for 2020.

She is also president of the Bed and Breakfast Association of New Zealand, which has 180 members around the country.

“Yes there’s a lot of pain out there but I don’t think it’s all doom and gloom,” Donna says of the B&B accommodation offering.

Destination Coromandel is reporting an increase in $5m spend from domestic travellers to the Coromandel, which they say made an impressive start to the 2019/20 Financial Year.

Its Winter Wellness campaign aimed to challenge perceptions of Coromandel solely being a summer beach destination. Local food, art and retail therapy helped deliver on the #goodforyoursoul proposition.

Bach rentals were “still crazy” with Labour Weekend bookings more than 50 per cent up on previous years, says Bachcare.

Donna says she’s enjoying hosting Kiwis but urges B&B owners to think back to their own style of travel as they cater to more New Zealanders.

“Relax and refresh is the campaign nationally, and B&BS need to think about that. I used to do fully cooked breakfast with people sitting around the table for up to two hours, but now guests get a beautiful continental breakfast all provisioned for them in their room and eat it at their leisure.

“They still want the local knowledge, but they don’t want you in their space, whereas internationals do.” Donna Brooke, B&B Association of New Zealand

She said hosting New Zealanders was a nice change. “I’m enjoying meeting the locals. And i think most B&BS would say that too. They’re coming in groups, we’ll get four girlfriends staying and they want to sit around and enjoy it by themselves.”

Bachcare chief operating officer Shaun Fitzmaurice says a huge number of Kiwis were looking to explore their backyard since lockdown and baches were a preferred place for many families wanting to connect.

“We have around 2200 properties we look after throughout New Zealand and the Coromandel has been one of the great success stories since the domestic travel restrictions were removed.

“The two weeks of winter school holidays were nearly as busy as the two weeks over Christmas and New Year 2019. The second lockdown meant a little dip but nowhere near as pronounced as the first and bookings came back strongly once the Prime Minister announced Auckland was back to Level 2 and Labour Weekend is 46 per cent up on bookings vs last year.

“People want to stay in our properties because they want to connect with families, and just want their own space.

“We are also seeing guests looking to stay for a longer period than at the same time last year, perhaps due to a more flexible working environment after lockdown with families heading away early or coming back later because they can use the Wifi at the bach.

“On the Coromandel bookings are 28 per cent up year on year at the moment and we are expecting a very busy summer. Availability is starting to become tight. It’s been awesome to see so many guests travelling, it’s a part of Kiwi culture to visit the bach and so many are choosing to reconnect after a long lockdown by the beach in the Coromandel.”

Eddie Morrow of Waihi i-site and Gold Discovery Centre says Kiwis “tend to be a little DIY”, which meant i-sites weren’t as busy.

“There’s a sense that they can do things themselves. We can help people at i-sites and they won’t pay any more for the service. Within the i-site are local people with local knowledge.

“Kiwis try to be a bit more independent, but we are here to pass on that local knowledge.”

He said i-sites and information centres are the model around the country, and councils recognised these for their economic development function. “They [local government] spend money on them because it ultimately benefits the zone.”

The i-site reminds New Zealanders that accommodation providers had suffered due to lockdown and border closures: “Please don’t go bargain seeking or ‘screwing down prices’ as these businesses need to survive to next year and keep the same level of customer service and friendliness until the international borders open. “Almost everyone has lost out.” Another trend accommodation providers and i-sites are noticing is the last-minute nature of Kiwi holidaymakers.

Donna says her Sunlover Retreat would have been booked a year or more in advance. “The domestics don’t do that.

“But actually it’s just about rejigging your thinking as a B&B owner and imagining how I would like to holiday.”

She says some B&B owners were doing it tough but those close to major cities were overall doing well, and reviews were extremely positive.

“I think the Coromandel is in an enviable position having Auckland on our doorstep.”