Operators fear hike will deter visitors

The two main operators that transport visitors to Stewart Island are questioning a proposal to raise the Stewart Island Visitor Levy to $15.

At a council meeting on Tuesday, Southland District councillors approved a draft version of the Stewart Island Visitor Levy Policy for public consultation.

A key change is to increase the visitor levy from $5 to $15.

Stewart Island Flights director Bill Moffat wondered how the councillors came up with the idea to triple the figure, when initial feedback was to keep it at $5.

The business built the visitor levy into the cost of its flights.

Council staff had consulted island residents as well as tourism operators, including Moffat, who indicated they wanted the levy to stay the same.

‘‘How much notice are they going to take of the consultation if they don’t even take notice of the previous consultation.’’

The increased levy would make the company’s airfares more expensive and could put people off flying altogether, he said.

When the visitor levy was first proposed, Moffat was opposed to it.

One of the main reservations he had when they first settled on the figure of $5 was that the council could increase it when the policy came up for review.

Moffat believed the proposed hike to $15 could be the first of many. If the levy increase came into effect, the council would be required to give the company 18 months notice but Moffat said that still wasn’t enough time.

The company had to provide its airfare pricing to overseas travel agents two years ahead, he said.

Real Journeys chief executive Richard Lauder said tripling the levy would be a significant increase for the company to pass on to its ferry passengers, who were mostly New Zealanders.

Real Journeys operates the ferries under the Stewart Island Experience brand and collects the levy for he Southland District Council as part of ferry ticket prices.

Lauder said the $5 levy worked well and neither he nor his staff were aware of any concerns on the island that the levy was not delivering what it was set up to do.

‘‘It is a significant increase and we believe it could mean some people would choose to go elsewhere.’’

Lauder would like to know exactly what the additional $10 would be used for.

From October 1, the ferry will be $85 one way and $148 return.

The price increase this year was because of the company’s five-year plan to replace the ferries, which were a significant cost to the business, Lauder said.

‘‘Many ferry services are subsidised by their councils. Stewart Island Experience is a privately operated ferry service ... with no subsidy whatsoever. ‘‘

Earlier in the week, councillors were told they could address any issues raised through the consultation process on the draft levy policy, which runs from October 4 to November 9.

‘‘It could mean some people would choose to go elsewhere.’’ Real Journeys chief executive Richard Lauder