Elton John, Queen, Highlanders: Dunedin's big week puts crunch on accommodation

Tuesday, 21 January 2020

Adam Lambert speaks to us about what to expect from his upcoming album, Velvet, and if he'll ever record any songs with Queen.

A week-long sport and music extravaganza in Dunedin is putting the squeeze on accommodation, with some rooms priced at more than $1000 a night.

Forsyth Barr Stadium is facing of one its biggest tests as Elton John, Queen and the Highlanders take centre stage over the space of six days from February 4.

Nearly 80,000 punters are expected at the stadium. Adding that, about 5000 will be in the city for the New Zealand Masters Games from February 1 to 9.

Queen and Adam Lambert will be live in concert in Dunedin on February 10.

With many people coming from outside of Dunedin, the city's traditional accommodation sector was snapped up quickly.

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In 2018, the stadium hosted nine major events, including three concerts by Ed Sheeran, and performances by Pink, Kendrick Lamar, Roger Waters, Robbie Williams and Shania Twain, and an All Blacks' test.

* How did Dunedin lure Kendrick Lamar?

* Review: Ed Sheeran raises the roof at DunEDin's Forsyth Barr Stadium**

The Highlanders play their home match of the 2020 Super Rugby season, against the Sharks, three days after the Elton John concert.

People utilised Airbnb or booked accommodation out of the city, even travelling 200km away to Invercargill.

A check of available accommodation on Monday afternoon showed one Dunedin backpackers listing a triple room with shared bathroom for $1099 on the night of the Elton John concert. That room goes down to $159 the following week.

Forsyth Barr Stadium played host to Fleetwood Mac in 2019.

Airbnb had just two options available for the same night. Each could sleep up to six people, for $1000 a night.

Dunedin i-Site visitor centre manager Louise van de Vlierd said with students yet to return to the city, there were hundreds of rooms available at the halls of residences.

A single room with shared facilities could be booked for $120 for one night, including a continental breakfast, or $95 a night if the person stayed two or more nights.

'There is certainly no need to stay as far south as Invercargill,' van de Vlierd said.

While there was often a shortage of motel rooms, she had never known the town to be 'properly full'.

'There's always going to be a bed available.'

Dunedin Venues Management chief executive Terry Davies said the week was one of the stadium's biggest tests but they were 'ready for it'.

The week begins with Elton John kicking off the New Zealand leg of his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour.

After that show, 13,000 chairs ill be removed from the turf, signage removed and rugby goal posts erected in time for the first Highlanders home match of the 2020 Super Rugby season, against the Sharks, three days later.

And on February 10 – just three days after that rugby match – Queen and Adam Lambert will perform their only South Island show as part of the Rhapsody Tour.

'It is a good challenge for us,' Davies said.

Both concerts had experienced 'phenomenal' ticket sales, he said, with around 35,000 expected at Elton John, with Queen likely to be less than that.

About 15,000 people could be expected for the Highlanders.

Davies said while the rugby franchise was the venue's core tenant, if there was an opportunity to host a concert around those dates then the management company would do what was best for the city.

Securing large concerts, particularly for a city as small as Dunedin, was easier than planning the logistics, which had to taken into account the production, time management and staffing levels.

'But that is the business we are in, and we do it as well if not better than anyone else.'

THE IMPACT FOR DUNEDIN

The economic impact to the city was expected to be large, Davies said.

In 2018, it hosted nine major events, including three concerts by Ed Sheeran, and performances by Pink, Kendrick Lamar, Roger Waters, Robbie Williams and Shania Twain, and an All Blacks' test.

Those events, attended by 236,000 patrons, helped pump an estimated $77 million into the local economy.

Davies said the venue was well known with promoters, and was one of the top performing in terms of ticket sales.

He was hopeful of securing more acts to play at the end of this year, and into 2021, with announcements expected in the coming months.

He was not concerned about the impact of a possible stadium for Christchurch, but said he did 'watch with interest'.

A more pressing issue for the stadium is renegotiating the naming rights.

Many of the contracts signed a decade ago had greater commercial value, and 'there will be a premium they will have to pay', Davies said.