Brian Megaw's business offers rafting tours and accommodation on the Rangitīkei River. Photo / Supplied
Brian Megaw's business offers rafting tours and accommodation on the Rangitīkei River. Photo / Supplied
The young backpackers that were the "bread and butter" of a Rangitīkei adventure and accommodation business are just not there this year.
Last financial year guests spent nearly 11,000 nights in Brian Megaw's 80-bed River Valley Lodge at Pukeokahu, in remote hill country near Taihape. It was busy, and sometimesstressful.
This year Megaw predicts there will be about 2000 bed nights spent at the lodge.
Now the River Valley Ventures owner is looking to change the shape of his business in response to the lack of international visitors.
Other operators less reliant on overseas tourists are less affected.
"I often joke to everybody that we are not making any money, but it's a lot more fun," he said.
Last winter, as the impact of border closures and Covid-19 bit, Megaw got a consultant in for some strategic planning. As a result the business cut some costs.
It more than halved its staff, from 25 down to 11 - including family. That reduction caused other problems, Megaw said.
"Whether you have three or 30 people, you still need a chef working. But there's not enough work for two chefs so we are having to not do meals some nights, to give people time off."
The business used to have three people leading horse riding trips. It's now down to one, full-time, Megaw's wife Nicola.
There used to be eight full-time river rafting guides and the most popular trips were grade 5 whitewater rafting ones, "the hardest and most exciting".
This year people have wanted a lot of gentler grade 2 trips, and there are two full-time river guides and some part-timers.
The lodge used to have a full-time receptionist. That job is now done by its digital marketing manager, working out of reception.
River Valley Lodge is in the remote headwaters of the Rangitīkei River. Photo / Supplied
As a tourism asset the lodge and its businesses were worth several million dollars.
"Is it still worth that, in the current climate? I doubt it. The value as a functioning business has certainly dropped," Megaw said.
"If we were carrying the debt we had 10 to 15 years ago I wouldn't be sleeping too well at night."
He's not expecting vaccinations to drastically change the Covid situation, and is thinking about the future.
New Zealand tourism will have to move away from the "shallow, short, sharp tourist experience" to something deeper and "a little bit more real", he said.
He wants to aim for regenerative tourism - and is asking himself how a tourism business can benefit its community and the environment.
River Valley could reduce its energy consumption, by putting solar panels on roofs and using an electric vehicle.
In future the business may put less emphasis on adventure. It could host more weddings and artist, health-related and learning retreats instead.
Other Rangitīkei tourist operations rely less on international visitors. One owner, who didn't want her business named, said a lot of its business was domestic tourism, and it has still had a really good season.
Meanwhile at Flat Hills Cafe and Tourist Park, owner Henry Brown said cafe business was about 30 per cent down on the previous year.
The accommodation side of the business was less even. There have still been plenty of Kiwi families using the cabins, but many fewer international tourists pulling up in campervans.
