KEY POINTS:
Bach owners are raking in up to three times their usual rental rates as Kiwis scramble for accommodation over the holiday season.
But options are fast running out for holiday-makers chasing time out at our most desirable beaches, according to rental and bach-management companies.
People wanting to see
in the New Year on Waiheke Island, in the Bay of Islands, at the Coromandel's top beaches or in Queenstown will be hard-pressed to find anywhere to stay at this stage.
Even backpacker lodges on Waiheke are fully booked, with one owner saying he is turning away at least 10 people a day.
All 300 properties managed by Bachcare Holiday Home Rentals and Management were booked out for Christmas and New Year by July, said founder Leslie Preston.
The only properties available now belong to people who made last-minute decisions to rent out their homes or baches.
Preston said permanent residents living in popular summer spots were increasingly choosing to shift out over the holiday season, to take advantage of rents running into the thousands.
A four-bedroom beachfront house in Hahei, Coromandel, was fully booked for summer at $900 a night, while in Queenstown a four-bedroom luxury house on the slopes of Coronet Peak had no troubles attracting holiday-makers willing to pay $2250 a night.
One Auckland investor, who had just bought a cosy, three-bedroom 1980s style bungalow in Tairua, Coromandel, told the Herald on Sunday the real estate agent told him he could expect to rake in $2000 a week over the party season.
He'd have to settle for $1500 a week for the rest of January, and just $250 a week the rest of the year.
Preston said rising fuel costs and a desire to stay at popular spots such as the Coromandel's Cooks Beach, the Bay of Islands or Queenstown, meant group bookings were becoming the norm.
But as rents increased, so did visitors' expectations, with some owners installing DVD players and plasma screens.
"There is a far greater range of property types out there. The basic bach is still around and still appealing to some people, but, more and more, people are wanting all the mod-cons."
Locations close to cafes and shops were popular, because city folk found it hard to abandon urban trappings totally.
A 2005 Bachcare survey found holiday homes or baches were the preferred accommodation choice for 53 per cent of Kiwis.
"The Kiwi tradition of staying in a bach is certainly not dead. People just prefer the slightly more modern options."
Baches & Holiday Homes To Rent founder Mark Greening told the Herald on Sunday holiday-makers needed to book by April or May for the Christmas-New Year period.
He said the prices of baches had skyrocketed in the past five years. A weatherboard house in Tata Beach, Golden Bay, worth $300,000 then would now fetch over a million.
Price hikes had been passed on to some extent to the casual renter.
"When we started in '93, $100 a night would have been expensive. Now it's at the low end of the scale."
Nelson-based Greening said his family, and some of their friends, now rented out their own homes over the holiday season, when a property could fetch "double, maybe even triple" what it would during the winter.
Waiheke Holiday Homes' website founder Lynda Hall is taking to the water to make some extra money.
"We go and stay on our yacht, while somebody else enjoys our home as a holiday home."
She said islanders had been known to pop down to the local camping ground for a couple of weeks so they could rent out their houses.
SUMMER SITES WITH SOME HOLIDAY PLACES STILL AVAILABLE
Still not booked your dream holiday hideway? Don't despair - last-minute accommodation is still available around the country.
* Saltwater Lodge is only 50m from the beach in popular Paihia. This "flashpackers" was the first in the country to earn a Qualmark five-star rating for backpacker lodges.You won't find a room on New Year's Eve, but there's space until December 27 and from Jan 2. A family room can sleep up to five, has TV, ensuite and linen, and costs $130 a night for two people and $20 for each additional guest.
* Further south you can experience farm life at Coromandel's Te Kouma Harbour Cottages. Limited places are still available over Christmas and for the last two weeks of January. For $100 a night per couple and $25 for each extra adult, you get a fully-furnished, self-contained modern cottage. There is also a unit for groups of up to 15 with an extended bunkroom adjoining a separate double bedroom and large cooking/dining area. That costs $25 a person a night if you bring your own linen or $30 if you don't.
* You can go "luxury camping" at The Barn at Marahau at the gates of idyllic Abel Tasman National Park. New three-bedroom, carpeted tents with fully made-up beds are an innovation - and some are available for Christmas and New Year. It costs $52 a night for two. The deal includes use of hostel kitchen, bathrooms and lounge area.
* Queenstown's Lakeview Holiday Park boasts a top-class adventure playground and internet stations. Campsites over Christmas/New Year period cost $20 an adult and $8 a child.