Desert Road closure brings boom to Ohakune’s cafes and shops

Olive Henare (from left), Helen Brown and Marie Hawira at Utopia Cafe in Ohakune say business is thriving with the two-month closure of State Highway 1 from Tūrangi and Waiōuru – including the Desert Road. Photo / Teresa Tsao

• Businesses in Ohakune are thriving after the closure of the Desert Road for reconstruction.
• Helen Brown from Utopia Cafe reported a significant increase in customers and sales.
• Ruapehu District Council Mayor Weston Kirton said the closure boosts local tourism and business.

By Pretoria Gordon, RNZ

Businesses in the small town of Ohakune are thriving after the closure of Desert Rd.

SH1 between Tūrangi and Waiōuru – including the Desert Rd – will remain closed for approximately two months from January 13 while 16km of road lane is reconstructed, drainage is improved, and about 15km of road shoulder is cleared.

The deck of the Mangatoetoenui Bridge will also be replaced.

A detour is in place via SH41, SH47, SH4, and SH49.

At the southern end of Tongariro National Park lives the town of Ohakune, with SH49 – or Clyde St – as the main road.

It has been less than two weeks, but Helen Brown from Utopia Cafe said the closure had been “freaking amazing” for business so far.

Utopia Cafe even put up a sign that read: “Yes! We know the Desert Rd is closed. Yes! We are a lot busier! Yes! We love the business!”

Brown said it was so the staff did not have to repeat themselves.

“If anyone talks about Desert Rd, I just point at the sign,” she told RNZ.

The slip repair site near Tree Trunk Gorge on the Desert Road. Photo / NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi

Utopia Cafe was known for its eggs bene, she said, selling around 90 meals each day since the closure.

“Yeah, it’s really bloody busy.”

Across the road, The Mountain Rocks owner Karl Christensen said it had been “an absolute boon”.

While the licensed cafe had got increasingly busier since the New Zealand border reopened in 2022, Christensen said the traffic flow from SH1 had increased the turnover dramatically.

He said the scones – date, cheese, and savoury – made by head baker Joy, better known as Joyalicious, were “flying out the door”.

It was not just his business that was thriving, he added, but the entire town of Ohakune.

“The whole area’s on a buzz at the moment. It’s really good to see. It’s really good for business. And everyone is just prospering. It’s fantastic.”

“And I think people are learning that this route is a viable option, you know, it’s not just the Desert Rd.”

In November, Ruapehu District Council Mayor Weston Kirton told RNZ the closure of a section of the Desert Rd would provide a welcome boost to Ruapehu businesses hit with indifferent ski seasons and the mothballing of the Tongariro Chateau.

Kirton now believed that tourism would be the future of Ruapehu, with towns like Ohakune humming over the last two weeks.

“People haven’t really taken much notice in the past, they’ve gone to the usual route of SH1 and not really considered the options of SH4 and the like.”

Kirton said he had spoken to an Ohakune local who said some cafes were staying open longer, enjoying the traffic flow and breaking “all sorts of records”.

One notable example was The Chocolate Eclair Shop.

While the owner declined an interview with RNZ, a customer who visited the bakery earlier this week was told it had sold 1100 eclairs in one day.