In previous years holiday-makers looking to secure a coastal getaway over the Christmas and New Year period across SA would have needed to have booked months ago, however the good news is if you haven’t yet secured your spot yet you still can – but you’ll need to act fast.
The algal bloom crisis has prompted a change in holiday-maker behaviour over the past nine months or so, with people holding off making bookings until they knew the coast was clear – pun not intended – and then making one a last minute.
It’s a change Harris Real Estate’s holiday rental manager Henry Mould has noticed.
Of the 264 properties his company oversees across the Fleurieu Peninsula, there are still about 20 still available for the Christmas and New Year period – something he said would not have happened in previous years.
Henry Mould at Knights Beach in Port Elliot. Picture: Brett Hartwig
“We’re getting bookings coming through and we’ve got over 30 of the Coast is Calling vouchers in so far, which is great,” he said.
“Looking forward into January it starts to quieten off, but I think people will make those last minute bookings to escape the heat and enjoy the water – which looks great.
“We haven’t seen dead fish down here for a few months, but it’s the unknown of the algae bloom that’s prompted them to hold off.
“Last year we would have been totally booked out three to four months ago and about five weeks ago we were at about 40 to 50 per cent of what we were at last year.”
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Belle Property Glenelg’s David Ferrari manages between 80 and 90 short-term holiday rentals from Brighton to West Lakes and said the Christmas and New Year period were fully booked, with buyers not put off by the algal bloom, despite it being reported as one of the areas to have been significantly impacted earlier in the year.
David Ferrari of Belle Property Glenelg
“The key dates get snapped up really quickly, with the most popular ones booking about six months out,” he said.
“Houses are the first to go – the sort of places you share with family or friends – and the one-bedroom apartments, they’re the ones you can secure closer to the date, but you still need to book them ahead of time.
“I haven’t had any guests complain about being sick and nobody reporting any illnesses because of the stay or reporting illnesses or requesting a refund at all.”
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Robe Holiday Rentals’ Letitia Bennett said holiday-makers looking to head to Robe were sadly out of luck, with all of their 78 properties fully booked since June or July.
“There are other operators here and I would say they are in the same boat as us and fully booked,” she said.
“There are probably some private owners who have vacancies, but most of our stuff has been booked up for ages by return visitors.
Booked out: Unnecessary – 20 McIntyre St, Robe.
“Those looking at next Christmas should call now and have a chat to us.”
Country Getaways SA business development manager Nicole Page, who oversees 183 properties across the Yorke Peninsula said they had received some cancellations in the wake of the algal bloom, but that people were picking them back up at the last minute.
She said they had about 10 vacancies for the Christmas period at places like Port Vincent, Port Hughes, Port Broughton and even Black Point, and more gaps throughout January.
“We have seen more last-minute bookings and if people are looking to secure a place for Christmas the quickest way to do this is do pick up the phone and call and we can try and get you in somewhere,” he said.
“We did see cancellations for beachfront properties as people like sitting out on the deck overlooking the water, and the concerns people had about the safety of that had impacted a couple of them, but there are plenty of things to do away from the beach.”
Booked out: Beach & Bubbles, Moonta Bay.
And those looking for an island getaway also look to be disappointed, with KI Tourism Alliance tourism manager Megan Harvie saying almost all of Kangaroo Island’s tourism accommodation was booked out, and the ones that were available holiday-makers might not even be able to get a last-minute ferry to visit them.
Booked out: Ecopia Villas, KI.
“They can probably fly over, but it’ll be tricky to get across on the ferry,” she said.
“The algal bloom has affected us in some spots, but the water is crystal clear in a lot of places.
“Most of our visitors during this period are from overseas, and they’re not coming for the beaches, they’re coming for the wildlife and the nature, so the algal bloom hasn’t affected their decision to not come.”
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