NZ lure in stars' Oscar gift packs

By MONIQUE DEVEREUX

Forget Sunset Boulevard and the Viper Room. Rotorua Airport is about to become the hottest place to spot Hollywood celebrities.

Sandra Bullock, Julia Roberts, Jim Carey, Will Smith, Jude Law, Charlize Theron, Jack Black, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Colin Farrell and Renee Zellweger - to name but a few - could all be touching down in Rotorua over the next few months.

They will be en route to the exclusive Treetops Lodge and Estate for a free five-night holiday, a treat they will discover in their Academy Awards presenters' gift packs on Monday.

Inclusion in the official Oscars gift basket had taken several months to secure, said Raelene Cannan of Treetops Lodge, and all began with "a bit of good old word of mouth advertising".

"We'd had some celebrities stay at Treetops who'd basically gone back to Hollywood and talked about it. We talked about it a couple of years ago but weren't sure how to go about it.

"So this time it all sort of just fell into place. People were talking to the right people."

Gift packs will also be given to performers at Monday night's awards, including Elvis Costello, Annie Lennox and Sting, and all of the nominees in the Best Actor and Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Actress and Best Director categories.

That includes Sean Penn, Bill Murray, Alec Baldwin, Tom Robbins, Benicio del Toro, Clint Eastwood and Sophia Coppola - not to mention Peter Jackson and Keisha Castle-Hughes.

Each five-night stay for the celebrities and a partner is worth about $10,000.

The 1000ha bush sanctuary sits beneath the Horohoro Bluffs, 15km southwest of Rotorua.

Raelene Cannan says the lodge prides itself on its seclusion and privacy - a key reason it is already frequented by stars and US Senators.

It is the first time a New Zealand product has been chosen as an Oscars gift.