Eden Park Bed & Breakfast News

New Zealand’s population concerns

Tony — Mon, 14 May 2012 05:33:31 +0000

The population of New Zealand has grown by less than one per cent in the last year – the lowest in 11 years.
There are 4,430,400 people in the country as of March 31, 27,700 or 0.6 per cent more than last year, Statistics New Zealand said today.
The population growth was the lowest since March 2001, when it only increased by 0.5 per cent.
An excess of 31,100 births over deaths caused population growth during the year to March, and there was a net migration loss of 3400.
The New Zealand population also continues to age, with people aged 65 years and over exceeding 600,000, up to 14 per cent from 12 per cent in the year to March. Within the older age group, those 80 years or older were the fastest growing group.
In the next 40 years, the number of people aged 80 years and over is expected to more than triple from 160,000 to exceed half a million.
There were less people aged 15 years or younger, falling from 22 to 20 per cent

The Joy of Painting

Tony — Thu, 10 May 2012 22:06:41 +0000

At Eden Park Bed and Breakfast we had an excellent March and April with guests needing accommodation. This is shown with the highest number of international guest nights in Auckland, up 6%. Auckland will always be the gateway but with the aftermath of the earthquakes in Christchurch we have found an increasing number of clients not even thinking of going to the South Island. They want to stay in Auckland and do day trips. I feel that this might be an increasing trend with International arrivals. We started our yearly maintenance schedule this month and I have been in the painting mode so we concentrated on getting the interior white paint done. I am a fan of using oil based high gloss white paint on the skirting,scotia and architraves. And it looks very good. Although the paint smell is still strong in the house. Marlene is in Christchurch visiting the grandchildren so I have the house to myself. It’s lonely being by one self again.
Total guest nights fell 0.8% to 3.1 million in March from the same month a year ago.
The bulk of the decline came from a 3.6% drop in international visitor guest nights to 1.3m, with a sharper fall in South Island accommodation.
That was offset by a 1.4% gain in guest nights from New Zealanders to 1.8m.
The figures come after the Ministry of Tourism data showed 2.62m foreign visitors spent $5.64 billion locally in the year ended March
International guest nights decreased in eight of the country’s 12 regions in last month, led by Northland, down 25% and Otago, which fell 8%.

Domestic guest nights also increased in six regions. Bay of Plenty led the fall, down 6.6%, followed by Northland on 13%.
Auckland had the largest rise of about 7%.
Holiday parks bore the brunt, down 5.6%, followed by backpacker accommodation, which slipped 2.7%, and motels, with a dip of 2.1%.

Bed and Breakfasts unwanted Visitor

Tony — Sun, 06 May 2012 06:56:50 +0000

Normally we welcome all guests who arrive at a Bed and Breakfast with open arms , although I have never experienced the arrival that another Property had the misfortune to experience.
The man who twice drove into a Napier bed and breakfast has pleaded guilty to reckless driving and being more than 2 ½ times over the legal breath alcohol limit.
The car sped over a centre island and smashed into the Sea Breeze Bed and Breakfast.
It then reversed out of the building at speed, back over the centre island and collided with a car driving south.
His car spun around and ran into another car. He then accelerated backwards over the centre island and smashed into the bed and breakfast again. The car stopped but Kershaw restarted it and drove off. He was stopped by a police officer a short distance away.
Now you have to admit that is one for the records !!!!!!!!

A Weekend in Rotorua

Tony — Sun, 06 May 2012 06:46:09 +0000

We finally got the opportunity to grab a little bit of R&R last weekend and went to Rotorua for the weekend. we have been busy at Eden Park Bed and Breakfast since Christmas 2010 and haven’t had a break. It wasn’t a major break ; just a teaser for a later one this August when the lure of the Pacific will come calling
We stayed at the Princess Gate Hotel .This is a bit of pure history in New Zealand.One kinda expects a ghost to be walking around. Although I hear room #29 has a history.
This is a real stunning old Hotel. Totally recommend it to anyone. The beds were comfortable and I was impressed with the feather topper pad on top of the mattress. Very nifty idea. I came home and copied the idea ! Went along to the Polynesian Pools and had the soak in the thermal pools. Soooooo good!
The old Bathhouse has been turned into a Museum and we found that a bit fascinating to walk around.
Had breakfast in the Fat Dog. People actually queue up to get inside. Unbelievable ! The owners have definitely tapped into a good thing there.
International Visitor Arrivals ending 22 April:
Total visitor arrivals are up by 2.3% compared to the same four week period last year.

Ups: , China 68%, Korea 16%, Canada 19%,
Japan 79%, USA 0.1%,
Downs: Singapore -3%, UK -23%, Australia -2%,

I personally would be happier if we could see more arrivals from our historical markets…. But that’s tourism !

Auckland Restaurant of the Year

Tony — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 01:26:06 +0000

Auckland Chef, Al Brown has taken out the award for best New Zealand Restaurant and casual Bistro. His new eatery “Depot Eatery and Oyster Bar” , located in Federal Street, Auckland,New Zealand ,impressed the critics and professionals with it’s more casual approach to dining and its promotion of local produce and homemade-style food. This is one restaurant where pre booking a table is not allowed. (Even members of the toy boy band, One Direction were turned away last weekend. )
Restaurant of the year winners:

Supreme winner: Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar.

Best fine dining, Clooney. Runner-up, The French Cafe.

Best smart dining, Cibo. Runner-up, O’Connell St Bistro.

Best upmarket bistro, The Engine Room. Runners-up, Ponsonby Rd. Bistro, Pure.

Best casual bistro, Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar. Runner-up, Coco’s Cantina.

Best Asian, Cocoro. Runner-up, Ebisu.

Best Italian, Toto. Runner-up, Poderi Crisci.

Best rural, Poderi Crisci. Runner-up, Casita Miro.

restaurateur of the year, Al Brown, Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar. Runner-up, Sid Sahrawat (SIDART).

Best chef, Michael Meredith (Meredith’s).

Best service, The French Cafe. Runner-up, Coco’s Cantina.

Best dish, Fish soup at Roxy.

Best drinks list, The French Cafe. Runner-up, O’Connell St Bistro.

Best short drinks list, Cocoro. Runner-up, Molten

Restaurant personality of the year, Ganesh Raj, The Tasting Shed.

Best new restaurant, Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar.

We find that Eden Park Bed and Breakfast is ideally located to offer easy access to these restaurants and bars. The Bus and Train service is regular and a taxi will only cost (aprox)$20.00

Black Friday for the Blues……again!

Tony — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 22:31:31 +0000

Oh so close yet so far ! The Blues rugby team lose again to the South African Sharks. With a disjointed crown of aprox 10,000 watching ; the Black Friday curse struck again . We Lost !!!
There is going to be some serious blood letting within the coaching team and the Auckland Rugby Union Board over this malaise . It is now at the stage of being embarrassing to the public that support the team. Lost 6 games…..won 1.
At Eden Park Bed and Breakfast we had guests that watched and although most didn’t understand the rules they were enthusiastic . Shades of the RWC fever from last year. I even saw war paint on some of the supporters. Here’s oping that the ANZAC League Test next week between New Zealand and Australia goes better for us

International Visitor Arrivals to 01 April 2012
Total visitor arrivals are up by 14.1% compared to the same four week period last year.

Ups: Malaysia 49%, China 72%, Korea 12%,
Singapore 5%, Canada 19%, Australia 11%,
Japan 21%, USA 4%, Germany 21%,
UK 8%

Nice to see the increase from USA,Germany,Australia and Canada.

And let’s hope the Blues might win some !!

Sunny weather for Auckland

Tony — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 23:39:20 +0000

It has been a busy week at Eden Park Bed and Breakfast in Auckland,New Zealand. Still running good bed nights. Are full tonight with the Speedway Champs at Western Springs. We have a new head for the Tourism Industry Assn with Martin Snedden taking over the role.Mr Sneddens claim to fame was the successful management of the RWC 2011 in New Zealand.Our new Give Way road rules came into effect this week…. That was fun! Tourism numbers are still positive. personally we will see a drop off in International numbers mid April.
International Visitor Arrivals (week ending 18th March 2012)
Total visitor arrivals are up by 2.9% compared to the same four week period last year.

Ups: Malaysia 69%, China 78%, Korea 13%,
Singapore 18%, Canada 3%, Australia 0.2%,
Japan 6%,

Downs: UK -10% USA -6%, Germany -8%

See you all next time.
Anthony .

Has Trip Advisor Become Irrelevant ?

Tony — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 03:05:35 +0000

Eden Park Bed and Breakfast received an untrue Trip Advisor review the other day! Only problem is that it’s not our client. My concern is that Trip Advisor seems to be receiving more spam reviews that deliberately set out to damage the reputation of an establishment. And you cannot do anything about it…. That’s social media. You are dammed if you do and you are dammed if you don’t! You go through this emotional roller coaster …depression,sadness,anger. Unbelievable rubbish due to some nutter amusing himself. And then you have to write a reply , or else everyone reading the review thinks its true! And then the algorithm procedure that TA enforce as to who’s is top of the ladder degrades you to a lower status. And all the time you didn’t do anything wrong!
I suggest that if TA doesn’t figure out a method to filter the spam; it will eventually become irrelevant in social media as establishments weigh up the benefits/losses of being listed with them. Seriously ; we can all die trying to please others!
Anyway…. Here’s the latest Tourism Arrival figures for New Zealand:

Total visitor arrivals are down by -0.5% compared to the same four week period last year. Good growth from Malaysia. But this will collapse in May with the cancellation of Air Asia going into Christchurch. China is still a Group Tour percentage so there is minimal expenditure as an FIT market.

Ups: Malaysia 78%, China 55%, Korea 13%,
Singapore 26%, Canada 1%

Downs: Japan -3%, UK -12%, Australia -2%
USA -7%, Germany -9%

See you all next time.
Anthony McAnulty
Eden Park Bed and Breakfast
www.bedandbreakfastnz.com

NZ Arrivals until 5th February 2012

Tony — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 19:50:30 +0000

We are half way through February and we still have negative traveller arrivals into New Zealand. The weather in Auckland is great but the global downturn seems to have a major effect on our traditional markets. The new connection into Malaysia is creating good news on the Asia Front. We are starting to see some flow on from this at Eden Park Bed and Breakfast with more FIT travellers booking online direct with us. We did a Tourism Board marketing trip into Asia a few years ago and seeing some response from the connections made. Tourism is always a “Long Game” plan.
Total visitor arrivals are up by -0.6% compared to the same four week period last year.
Ups: China 29%, Australia 3%, Malaysia 58%,
USA 3%

Downs: Japan -25%, Canada -5%, UK -14%,
Korea -15%, Germany -6%, Singapore -5%

Tony — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 19:11:29 +0000

Education Next Article: Five schools targeted in crackdown
Disabled kids’ parents threaten lawsuit against schools
By Kate Shuttleworth
5:30 AM Sunday Feb 19, 2012
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Antonia Hannah and 7-year-old son Max. Photo / Chris Loufte
Angry parents are set to take groundbreaking legal action against schools that turn away their disabled children.

Disabled services provider IHC has collected statements from families to back up a case to go before the Human Rights Review Tribunal. Director of advocacy Trish Grant said court action would be the next step, if the complaint and mediation didn’t fix the problem.

Hamilton mum Maxine Jeffery tried to enrol her 6-year-old twins, Levi and Olivia, in two Hamilton primary schools before they were accepted by a third school. One said Levi, who is blind and autistic, would be better at another school. The next phoned up and said: “We’ve talked about it as a school and we’ve decided that if you bring your child to this school a lot of parents will remove their children.”

Antonia Hannah, whose 7-year-old son Max has Down syndrome, gave evidence that she was deterred by three East Auckland primary schools – St Thomas’s, Glen Taylor and Michael Park, a Steiner school.

“They are all very careful with words to protect themselves but they were dubious, pessimistic and made it clear it wasn’t going to work.

There was a generally unwelcome attitude and a pressure to agree to shortened school hours,” she said.

This week, the schools all said they were open to enrolments from disabled children.

St Thomas’s principal Janice Adamson said her school enrolled every child which resided in the school zone “regardless of ethnicity, religion, need or syndromes”.

The school had another student with Down syndrome and worked alongside Sunnydene Special School, Adamson said, adding that she “loved” having children with special needs in her school.

Michael Park principal Dee Whitby told Hannah in an email that another Down syndrome child had suffered difficulties “and it was not an easy decision to reach that he would be happier” in another school. But this week, she said all children were enrolled according to the same policy as long as parents supported the Steiner ethos.

Lin Avery, principal of Glen Taylor, did not believe her staff would have actively discouraged the family. “I do know that at that time we had a huge spurt in roll growth and [the acting principal] was under a lot of pressure dealing with unexpected numbers of children coming in, so I don’t know if that would have impacted on her response to that request.”

Colleen Brown of the Family and Parent Resource Centre – who faced the same problems enrolling her Down syndrome son when he was a child – said she had advocated for countless families trying to enrol their children.

“Nine times out of 10 parents will not come out and say categorically they had been discriminated against,” she said. “It’s a huge step for parents to take.”

Schools gave varying responses – from a flat “no”, to asking the parents for money to make up the funding shortfall, to accepting the student for part of a day or week then sending them home.

Unfair treatment
* Since beginning its investigations, the Herald on Sunday has been inundated with parents who say their children were effectively turned away from schools or treated unreasonably in class.

* Derek Reid tried to enrol his 5-year-old daughter Amelia, who has Prader-Willi syndrome, in two in-zone North Shore schools. One met with the family and cited reasons why it could not help them. Amelia now goes to Torbay Primary.

* Deborah McDougall’s son has an intellectual disability. She said he suffered discrimination at three schools and was now being home-schooled.

* Carmen Donaldson’s son Michael, 13, has autism and epilepsy and was told he couldn’t go to school camp. The family organised a parent to go with him and got a previous principal to vouch for him. The Epilepsy Foundation offered staff training, the Human Rights Commission contacted the school and his older brother delivered a petition signed by 300 people. He was still not allowed to go to camp.

* Luminita Sprague’s son, who has autism, had been attending a mainstream school for four years. When the family moved house they tried to enrol him at a Papakura school which seemed happy to take him “until the ‘A’ word popped up”. “I was handed a letter which was practically trying to intimidate me into cancelling my son’s enrolment at their school.”

By Kate Shuttleworth | Email Kate
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