North Canterbury News: January 27, 2022

NEWS
10 The North Canterbury News, January 27, 2022
Positive despite the threat of Omicron
Kaikoura tourism operators are feeling
positive, amid the uncertainty of Covid­
19.
Destination Kaikoura chairperson
Lynette Buurman says operators
enjoyed aChristmas boost, as the
Omicron variant threatens to cause
disruption.
‘‘It’s not crazy busy, but we had agreat
peak holiday period,’’ she says. ‘‘It has
quietened off now to just ticking along,
but we expected that.’’
While New Zealand has been moved
into the red traffic light, Mrs Buurman
says operators will have taken some
relief from last week’s government
announcement, where it all but ruled
out lockdowns and regional borders.
Kaikoura’s tourism operators are able
to continue operating under the red
traffic light under the existing rules.
‘‘For us it’s about reducing the loading
on our vehicles, which is no biggie
because we have plenty of vehicles,
encouraging social distancing and it will
involve extra cleaning,’’ says Mrs
Buurman, who is also Encounter
Kaikoura business manager.
The big unknown is whether people
will be willing to travel with Omicron
looming.
‘‘This is new ground for all of us,’’ she
says.
‘‘The vaccine pass gives us the
opportunity to keep the doors open, but
the big question is how many people
realistically will be travelling around
when it’s red.
‘‘It’s about learning to live with the
risk of sickness, but as long as people
are careful and take precautions they
can still travel.’’
Being able to hire enough staff
remains the biggest challenging.
‘‘Staffing is an ongoing challenge and
we really do need to get abit more
support.’’
Kaikoura Deputy Mayor Julie Howden
wonders if domestic tourism has lost its
‘‘oomph’’.
She says Kaikoura, like other parts of
New Zealand, received alarge influx of
visitors following the first Covid­19
lockdown in 2020. ‘‘Kiwis have done
their domestic tourism and they seem to
be more hesitant to travel now.’’
But she says her bed and breakfast did
welcome several visitors from Auckland
and Wellington keen for an escape
during the Christmas holiday period.
‘‘We always get the Christmas rush,
but the operators are saying it’s like the
lights have gone out once everyone went
back to work,’’ Mrs Howden says.
Kaikoura’s White Morph Motor Inn
experienced abusy three weeks, but has
plenty of vacancies now that the
Christmas rush is over.
With the Kaikoura A&P Show
cancelled next month, Mrs Buurman
says the next busy period is likely to be
Easter and the April school holidays.
Out on the water ... Kaikoura tourism
operators are planning to keep their doors
open under the red traffic light Covid­19
framework.
PHOTO:ENCOUNTER KAIKOURA
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