Owners of V8 Trike Tours NZ, Nigel and Kathryn Busbridge, are preparing for their first summer without cruise ship visitors and international tourists.
"It's obviously going to be a totally different season for us," Nigel Busbridge said.
"We probably 85 per cent down on what we were doing this time last year, maybe more.
"The summer season is when tourism operators make their money and in winter they batten down the hatches. This year there will be a lot of tourism operators that aren't making anything."
Boosted by the arrival of hundreds of cruise ship passengers each year, the business had pivoted to focus on the domestic market.
"We're doing a lot of corporate work at the moment because people have come to realise it's not just a tourist thing," Busbridge said.
"It's something a bit different. If you want to go somewhere it's a way to turn up in style."
Busbridge said they had also moved one of their trikes to Rotorua.
"We'll see how it goes. We've got to go where the work is and if Rotorua is the place then that's the place to be."
The company had been allocated a parking space downtown the Mount and one in Tauranga, he said.
"I miss the vibe of the cruise ships coming in. It was always cool to see everyone come down to the harbour and watch the cruise ships leave.
"We look forward to having them come back."
To help Tauranga tourism businesses in the meantime, the Busbridges had launched a new website promoting local activities, which was gaining traction.
"Things to do in Tauranga has been one of the top Google searches, so we set up a website called Things To Do In Tauranga.
"We've done this so we can help. It cost us a lot of money. We funded it all ourselves but hopefully, everyone will benefit from it."
Pepi Toot owner Lesley Smith said she had been operating only on weekends post-lockdown but she was planning to up her hours to six days a week from Boxing Day.
"Without the cruise ships, employing somebody else is not viable for me at the moment. I need to do all the driving."
Smith said she operated hour-long tours during the cruise ship season but without them this year she has had to adapt to shorter local trips.
"We still need to be out there and offering this because there will be visitors.
"The Mount always gets busy over the summer. We still have to keep ticking over and make sure we're still here for when the cruise ships come back."
Kewpie Cruises owner Amy Neale said she was hoping for a busy summer.
"We're getting bookings coming in but I think Kiwis don't book as far ahead as international visitors do.
"The Mount is always going to be a popular place this summer. It's important the locals come out and support us all."
Pāpāmoa Holiday Resort owner David Aflallo last week said bookings were filling up fast for the Christmas and New Year period.
"Forward bookings are looking solid, so that's good," he said.
He said the desire of Kiwis to explore their backyard was helping to offset the lack of international guests, with most coming from a "four-hour drive radius".
"It's basically the same as last year, it was fully booked and we anticipate it being that way again. It's people from Auckland, Hamilton and Bay of Plenty as well.
"It has been steady in recent months, the weekends are good but the weekdays are busy. Historically, November is an up-and-down month, after school holidays and prior to Christmas. Basically, from Christmas Day and onwards, we are just all-go.
"It's good for us, it's good for the region, it's good for economy. It's really good to see the domestic tourists have accepted the challenge of discovering their backyard. It's really, really great."
Mount Maunganui Beachside Holiday Park manager Mark Hales said the park was fully booked for Christmas and New Year's, which was similar to previous years, but demand had been up since coming out of lockdown earlier this year.
He said demand during the period of July, August and September was up 59 per cent on last year.
"It's been excellent, ever since level 2 it's been huge. It's just been amazing, it's been fantastic.
"Our main areas are Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty but we've noticed there's a lot of Kiwis travelling up from the South Island. I think part of that is thanks to Maui [Motorhome Hire] for dropping their rates on motorhomes.
"That has been amazing for us and holiday parks all over the country. There are a lot more Kiwis travelling around."
Tourism Bay of Plenty chief executive Kristin Dunne said after the impacts of a challenging year, many of the region's tourism operators were holding out for what they hope will be a busy summer season.
"We've spoken with several tourism operators that have hired more staff and are extending their operating hours for the busy season.
"Many of Tauranga's activity operators have been targeting Christmas functions and have been grateful for the support from the local business community."
Dunne said domestic visitors were the region's most significant market and summer was
"undeniably" the region's busiest season.
Domestic visitor spend reached $870 million to the year ending January 2020, she said.
According to Tourism New Zealand, international visitors spend an average of $232 per day versus a domestic visitor's average spend of $155 per day.
"We will be relying on the strength of our domestic market and it is vital to our economy.
"Without international manuhiri, there is a significant gap that tourism businesses are struggling to fill ...
"The coming summer will hopefully provide a much-needed economic boost for the tourism industry."
