Private Houses in New Zealand
Many people offer 5-star "private houses" here in New Zealand - but very rarely are they delivering what they are promising.
To make a private residence 5-star rather than 4-star requires service. Housekeeping, chef, concierge and transportation. To offer this much at a consistent luxury level requires management of a complex portfolio of specialists around the country. The luxury travel industry makes its money from commissions and quick client turnarounds - therefore making a custom private house service uneconomic to develop and uneconomic to operate. Looking under the surface at offerings on the internet, true 5-star lodges and service offered as "private homes" will be seen to be nothing more than cottages linked to existing lodges and tourism operations - for example the owners cottages at Huka and Kauri Cliffs. At the other end, it is possible to rent luxury homes but without service, and often with prohibitively long minimum stay periods.
The Rugby World Cup homes we are seeing advertised create another level of disinformation, with homeowners suddenly marketing themselves as providers of luxury concierge services. As the only real company in New Zealand to actually provide something approaching a nationwide luxury concierge service, we find this quite annoying. Of course, some amateurs may have a talent for hosting and providing a luxury service. But, as in every field of expertise, there is a large difference between amateurs and professionals. Professionals cannot afford to make silly mistakes, must delight every client every day of their stay, cannot afford to be unresponsive.
That is a long way round to start saying that we are putting together a true network of private houses with 5-star service for those luxury travellers who value their privacy. Working with carefully selected properties, concierge partners, transport operators, chefs and of course our signature activities and people - we can do this for you. With no mark-ups for special events such as the Rugby World Cup (we have been in business for ten years and expect to carry on for quite a while - we are not seeking to excessively profit from a single event, but to continue the growth of our referral network by creating satisfied clients).
We have some of these houses already set up in Auckland, Wanaka, Waiheke, Hawkes Bay and Queenstown. We have an island in the Bay of Islands. And we have the connections to find you a private home anywhere in this beautiful country. And then support it professionally.
And cost? A lot less than our currently overpriced luxury lodges.
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