OIAD-1205
06 August 2021
Amanda Hutchinson
[FYI request #16018 email]
Tēnā koe Amanda
Thank you for your Official Information Act request to the Department of Conservation,
received on 09 July 2021 in which you asked for:
I would like to know how many bunks and which huts, where booked by concessionary tourism
companies on the opening day of each Great Walk for the 2021/22 Great walk seasons.
Context
The Department of Conservation (DOC) provides concessionaire agreements for operators to
conduct commercial activities in our national parks. The concession agreement and the terms
of the booking system limit the number of bookings a concessionaire can make and prohibit
concessionaires from making speculative bookings. This year 4.1% of bookings made on
opening days were made by concessionaires. This equates to 1.5% of DOC’s total Great Walks
hut capacity and 0.6 % of our campsite capacity booked by concessionaires on the opening
days.
Concessionaires provide a value-added service which a proportion of our customers (both
domestic and international) desire. Services include pre and post Great Walk transfers and
accommodation and guiding services on the walk, which provide an enhanced experience that
some customers may prefer.
Our response to your question is provided below:
Number of Bed
Great Walk
Total Sold
Percentage
Nights Sold
Abel Tasman Coast
1,515
30,903
4.9%
Track
Heaphy Track
2,272
20,477
11.1%
Kepler Track
0
10,231
0.0%
Lake Waikaremoana
613
10,321
6.0%
Track
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Milford Track
0
22,179
0.0%
Paparoa Track
595
12,741
4.7%
Rakiura Track
826
8,380
9.9%
Routeburn Track
0
20,839
0.0%
Tongariro Northern
90
6,901
1.3%
Circuit
Whanganui Journey
692
7,963
8.7%
Total
6,603
161,985
4.1%
Nāku noa, nā
Vicki Connor
Director Customer Engagement Unit
Department of Conservation
Te Papa Atawhai
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