Easter in the Bay of Plenty: How the weekend went for businesses and events

Papamoa Unlimited's event and marketing manager Julia Manktelow at their Alice in Wonderland easter hunt. Photo / supplied

''Heartwarming'' and ''encouraging'' are how some Bay business owners have described the Easter weekend while one says they ''knocked it out of the park" as visitors flocked to the region.

Hospitality NZ accommodation sector Bay of Plenty chairman and 850 Cameron Motel owner Tony Bullot said "Tauranga was full" over the long weekend.

He said bookings tended to be more last-minute these days due to Covid-19 uncertainties, but there had still been a good number of people in the area.

"People are getting out and about - people are certainly less fearful of Covid than they were."

He said this weekend had reinforced the industry's confidence going forward.

Hospitality NZ accommodation sector Bay of Plenty chairman and 850 Cameron Road Motel owner Tony Bullot. Photo / George Novak

"People have shown themselves to be pretty resilient'' and were now travelling.

He said bookings for Anzac weekend were hard to predict as people left it to the last minute.

However, there was "no reason not to believe it will be busy".

Secret Spot Hot Tubs Rotorua co-owner Keith Kolver said it was the best Easter ever and they ''knocked it out of the park".

"We're the busiest that we've ever been."

On Easter Friday the business installed a new kitchen facility which was great timing for the long weekend.

"There seemed to be a lot of happy people coming through...there was a really good vibe to the place and a good atmosphere.

Secret Spot Hot Tubs Rotorua co-owner Keith Kolver. Photo / Laura Smith

"It shows that people are prepared to move and get around the place."

Tristan Webb, co-owner of and instructor at Skydive Tauranga, said the poor weather on Sunday and yesterday had stymied a well-booked weekend.

"We had a decent Friday/Saturday...we did have decent bookings for Sunday and Monday but obviously, given the weather, we weren't able to do those.

"But it was encouraging to see we still had decent demand coming through."

He said the business "didn't do anything" over the last two Easters, with Covid-19 disruptions getting in the way.

"If we compare it [this Easter] to pre-Covid, it was about on par, which is good...we are seeing sort of back-to-normal numbers for what we anticipate on weekends."

Hospitality New Zealand's chief executive officer Julie White said the business owners she had spoken to were reporting a "great" weekend.

"We've definitely seen an increase on previous weeks."

Hospitality New Zealand CEO Julie White. Photo / supplied

She said the cancellation of the Jazz Festival had led to a lower level of trading than previous Easters, but the orange light setting made the future "promising".

She said seeing good numbers over the weekend was "heartwarming, and so very welcome".

"Orange has definitely made a difference...there seems to be a greater sense of consumer confidence.

"It's really been hard the last two years not to be optimistic, but we think the future is bright."

The weekend's activities included the finale of the 2021/2022 Baypark Speedway season, as well as its 20th-anniversary celebration.

Baypark Speedway manager Melissa Webb said it was "a really good night of racing".

"It's been a really tough season with all the changes with Covid...it was awesome to see out the season with such a great night."

She said having special event nights on long weekends meant people were visiting the Bay on holiday, so the crowd was increased.

"We had the best crowd we've had all year...it was what I'd call our most successful night.

"It was a great way to send off a really hard season."

Friends of the Rotorua Library held a free book giveaway event in Kuirau Park on Saturday.

Secretary Patricia Moore said the day was "very successful".

"We had a very big crowd of people there...people took away a lot of books."

Patricia Moore, secretary of the Rotorua Friends of the Library. Photo / Andrew Warner

She said donations from the public had facilitated the giveaway.

"During lockdown, we received so many donations, we had to do something."

She said they gave away "a big number of boxes" of books.

"It gives people the opportunity to read books that perhaps they wouldn't be able to buy...it extends people's interests in other subjects."

Papamoa Unlimited hosted an Alice in Wonderland Easter hunt along the Papamoa stormwater reserve.

Papamoa Unlimited's event and marketing manager Julia Manktelow at their Alice in Wonderland easter hunt. Photo / supplied

The event was attended by 849 people, their biggest crowd in seven years, competing to find cutouts of Alice in Wonderland characters and win one of four Avanti bikes.

Papamoa Unlimited's event and marketing manager Julia Manktelow said "the best part [of the event] was seeing kids feel free to be kids again".

"They've all been so good through all the restrictions - it was a pleasure to see everyone looking out for one another and enjoying each other's smiles."