Big Weekend

Bed space tight for big weekend 10 March 2006
By ROCHELLE WESTBeds are at an absolute premium in Taranaki this weekend, as top-billing entertainment draws in the crowds from out of town.
Venture Taranaki is urging all accommodation providers around Taranaki to register their room availability to ensure no visitor is left without a bed.
Visitors with tickets to Phantom of the Opera superstar Michael Crawford, who will perform at the TSB Bowl of Brooklands on Saturday night, are staying in motels in central and south Taranaki, as beds run out in New Plymouth.
Tourism project manager Brad Monaghan, of Venture Taranaki, said a bus service from south and central Taranaki to the Crawford concert was expected to slightly ease congestion in New Plymouth, and visitors should consider the option of staying in Stratford and Hawera.
But accommodation in those centres is also getting tight.
Trish Dent, Stratford I-Site manager, said central Taranaki was very busy.
"The motels have mainly all gone. There is still the odd bed around. At Dawson Falls there are some units available and dots around with bed and breakfasts.

"We can definitely squeeze a few more in," she said.
In Hawera, South Taranaki District Council tourism and events manager, Fiona Greenhill, said her patch was also very busy.
"At least four of the motels are full on Saturday night. Others only have one or two rooms left. It is busy, but certainly people will find somewhere to stay," she said.
According to the information centre in New Plymouth, every motel and hotel room in the city is booked for Saturday night, although there were still rooms available at homestays.
A list of 260 private homestays were being contacted to see if any could help with accommodating the spill-over from commercial providers.
Other options people could consider included tent, caravan and campervan sites, which were still available in New Plymouth, an I-Site representative said.
Organisers of the Crawford concert are anticipating a crowd in excess of 10,000, with many fans travelling long distances to see the entertainer in his only New Zealand performance.
In addition, the inaugural Parihaka Peace Festival is running from today until Sunday, with renowned New Zealand artists such as Fat Freddy's Drop, Katchafire and Anika Moa set to pull more visitors into Taranaki, placing even greater pressure on Taranaki's commercial accommodation sector.
A shuttle service will be operating from the New Plymouth bus centre today, tomorrow and Sunday, and from the South Taranaki Information Centre today, to take people to Parihaka.
Adding to the accommodation availability squeeze was the usual increase in visitor numbers for Taranaki Anniversary Weekend, Mr Monaghan said.
"There will be large numbers of people coming from around New Zealand and even from Australia, so it is extremely important that anyone offering accommodation – from large hotels through to small B&Bs and homestays – is registered so that any extra demand can be forwarded to those who can help," he said.