To B&B Or Not – That’s The Question.

Travelling incites some wonderful sayings. One of my favourite quotes is this; “The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.”

I couldn’t agree more, and personally, I’d like to read all the pages and see the greenest of grass on the other side. But even though once retired we may have the time to travel, there is the sordid question of means.

When one grows up, intrepid travel does seem less romantic. Sleeping in a tent or in bunk beds in a dormitory loses its appeal for some of us and understandably so. There are the physical restrictions once the bones have gone weary.

The alternative of travelling in comfort can be an expensive affair. Maybe this is why so many ends up investing in an RV – a roaming home on wheels. But there are other less expensive options to visit our backyard.

Some are lucky enough to have an extended whanau who are there to welcome us for a few nights in a cosy guestroom, but I think I hear some of you say; Yeah, right!

Times are a-changing – time is money and everyone seems to cherish their privacy. The old fashioned home hospitality isn’t as easy to come by and even the Maori principle of manakitanga – hospitality to strangers – is not as evident everywhere as it may have been in the old days.

But you may have noticed that the phenomenon of the home hosting is still around and organisations like Airbnb, Look after me or the B&B Association are in fashion it seems.

I grew up in Europe where we have the traditional bed and breakfast in the UK. In France, you have the Gites and in Italy, it was called Agrituismo aka farm stays. During our family vacations, we usually would spend one or two nights at one of those places driving to or from our holiday destinations.

I remember a room next to the hay shed with a real Santa sledge smelling of aged leather in the corner, exciting but a bit scary as well. And in Ireland my mum and I stayed at a B&B managed by a couple who could have entered an ugliness competition with a great chance of winning; one had a pock face and the other a hunchback. They were the ultimate hosts, as we discovered over a meal and in the lamplight watching them share their stories, their features acquired the beauty of a van Gogh painting. (Vincent; now I understand what you tried to say to me…)

Airbnb or Look after me
You may have heard of one of the biggest internet start-up companies of recent years; Airbnb has over one million listings of homeowners who rent out rooms. These are in thousands of cities all over the world. It is advertised as a website for people to rent out lodging and was started by two friends and young internet entrepreneurs.

On a much smaller scale New Zealand has something similar but with a difference; Look after me. You can read the story of Julia Charity here; Founder of NZ-owned accommodation market place – you can read about how to become a host.

The beauty of Julia’s website is that in addition to making it easy to find affordable home hosted accommodation, she also matches up hosts and travellers who have similar interests. Another difference is that the accommodation is not necessarily in urban centres.

We have sampled a few of the Look after me places for GrownUps to wet your appetite and to start you putting on your travelling shoes.

• Christchurch Country in the City is a homestay in the heart of the Port Hills and yet close to downtown Christchurch, close to Lincoln University is a favourite with professors and visitors to AgResearch. It is simply called Christchurch accommodation and Look after me Founder Julia Charity has fond memories of staying there when she was still Dr Charity, a scientist for SCION

• Close to Dunedin is your chance to stay in a ‘castle’ by the sea and be the sleeping beauty in the tower at Aramoana castle.

• In the North Island, you can have some unique experiences like staying close to the Maori village Ohinemutu on Lake Rotorua. This used to be the classic stop for travellers in the days of the Pink and White terraces. You can still make your hangi in the garden as you look out over the lake and the traditional village with a church that is worth visiting to see the carved glass windows

• Near places like Rotorua and Taupo, there is plenty of choice for cyclists who want to stay the night but the rural cycle trails of Nga Haerenga are in areas where you have to drive 30k to find a shop, a meal or a bed.

• Further north near Whangarei
  you can stay at a Buddhist Retreat Centre with rates starting at $30 per night for a bed with linen provided.

• One of the special interests for Look after me is providing accommodation for the rural NZ Cycle Trails. Close to the Timber Trail you can stay self-contained at the lovely Waione River Homestead or opt for a fully catered package at the Timber Trail Sleep-out

By Monica Louis