Uncertainty remains over how new travel rules will be enforced once the Auckland-Northland border reopens on December 15. Photo / Tania Whyte
Uncertainty remains over how new travel rules will be enforced once the Auckland-Northland border reopens on December 15. Photo / Tania Whyte
Northland hotels and motels say bookings increased within hours of the Government announcing an opening date for Auckland's borders.
On Wednesday Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced the country would shift to a new ''traffic light system'' shortly after November 29, and that people would be able to cross Auckland's boundariesfor any reason from December 15.
The only condition is that they will need to show a vaccination certificate or proof of a negative Covid test in the previous 72 hours.
It's not yet clear how the rules will be enforced but it's expected police will carry out spot checks rather than stopping every car due to the high volume of traffic expected.
Northland District Commander Superintendent Tony Hill said police would have operational discretion when it came to applying the new rules.
Police had started discussions with iwi and other partners, and would provide more information about how the new system would work closer to the December 15 opening date.
The planned reopening comes as infections continue to track upwards in Northland with two new cases in Dargaville and one each in Whangārei, the Far North and Kaikohe.
All five are linked to known cases and bring the Northland total to 54, of which 24 have recovered.
News of Auckland's reopening has been welcomed by Northland hospitality and accommodation businesses, though some worry the influx of holidaymakers could help spread Covid-19.
The Heads Hokianga in Ōmāpere reported an increase in bookings almost as soon as the opening of Auckland's border was announced. Photo / Sue Shepherd
Shayne Matenga, reservations and revenue manager at The Heads Hokianga in Ōmāpere (formerly the Copthorne Hokianga), said several new reservations were waiting for her when she arrived at work on Thursday morning.
Most were from Aucklanders, with some booking three nights.
The hotel also still had bookings people had made well in advance and held on to in case the borders reopened before Christmas.
''After the last couple of years we're hoping for a good summer,'' she said.
Penny Boles, co-owner of Admiral's View Motel in Paihia, said interest had picked up since Wednesday's announcement but mainly for the Christmas-New Year period, which was already fully booked.
She had received a flurry of emails from people who had booked in advance and had been crossing fingers travel would be possible.
''So they've been emailing us saying, 'Wahoo, we're coming!'''
While the Christmas period looked promising, it was hard to know what summer would bring.
''There's a lot of nervousness out there but I'm hoping people get out and travel. Northlanders have been marvellous — we've had farmers coming in for a wee break and a night on the town — but we can't keep looking to Northlanders. I think they're exhausted. We need to look to wider New Zealand, not just Auckland.''
Some hospitality businesses, however, are worried about the tough restrictions of the red traffic light setting, which Northland is likely to end up in due to its low vaccination rate.
Riki Kinnaird, co-owner of Russell's Duke of Marlborough Hotel, said Aucklanders could decide to head south for their summer holidays due to uncertainty over border checks and delays on what was already a slow drive north in summer.
Combined with strict restaurant seating limits under the red light setting, the Duke could miss out on the summer income it needed to survive the quiet winter months.
Hospitality NZ Northland representative John Maurice, of Kaikohe's Bank Bar, said he hoped the sector would benefit from the increased freedom to travel.
It was a difficult balance because some of his customers had told him they were concerned about visitors bringing the virus north over Christmas.
''We need to get back up and operating again. That may be one of the costs.''
Bachcare, a holiday home management firm, also reported an immediate lift in bookings after Wednesday's announcement.
The number of bookings within a 12-hour period was the highest since New Zealand moved to alert level 1 in June 2020, the company said.
