Marokopa Holiday Park owners Waitomo District Council (WDC) are disappointed about misrepresentation of a community asset as portrayed in the King Country News (KCN) this week.

KCN took comments about the park from a Facebook group and published them.

Tony Hale, general manager, infrastructure service says, “Many of the comments and issues raised are historic. It is concerning that KCN did not seek to test for factual accuracy before choosing to publish.” 

Despite reports to the contrary, visitor numbers to the park continue to increase.  Last financial year the park ran at a loss of $1600.  “In a year where we experienced COVID-19 lockdowns and no international visitors, a small loss was a better outcome than industry forecasts. During these uncertain times, we should be remaining positive and working together to attract visitors to our District,” says Tony.

Recent upgrades have included painting of the toilet block, additional lighting, signage, and sealing the entrance.

Since late 2018 the park has used KiwiCash technology to ensure that access is delivered at the lowest cost to ratepayers.  

“Initially there were some teething issues which were quickly ironed out and the park runs smoothly. There is always a balance between providing a service to visitors that meets their expectations and minimising costs to ratepayers.  The KiwiCash system is becoming increasingly popular throughout New Zealand and is a cost-effective way for visitors to holiday.”

Tony adds, “As you’d expect a remote site that isn’t staffed on a full-time basis is going to have some challenges.  What is acceptable to one camper, may not be to another. Like any Council facility or service when we receive feedback or suggestions we will investigate.  A recent example is installing new signage after receiving visitors’ feedback.

The parks facilities include toilets, showers, BBQ’s, and laundry, which are all cleaned daily.  There is also a phone on site and visitors can contact WDC any time of the day. 

WDC’s draft 10 Year Plan (2021-2031) proposes investigating options for the park in Year 1. 

-ENDS-

Some recent reviews of the park -

“Five stars. Awesome campground, our first time using the KiwiCash system by KiwiCamp. Really easy to use, toilets and showers were spotless (wasn’t expecting that).”

“What a treasure of a camp, clean, lovely showers and lots of happy campers.”

“Stayed for 3 days had a blast. Really good for price.”