It is the time of year when Dunedin residents flood out of the city to various holiday hotspots inland.
Despite widespread staffing shortages across the city, Vault, Prohibition and Catacombs restaurant and bar owner Andre Shi said his businesses would be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day, but would be open in between times.
"We’re especially keen to stay open this year because there are so many cruise ships in.
"They really help a lot. It’s a good opportunity to make money.
"And it’s very good for the city. During the Christmas holiday period, Dunedin can feel like a ghost town and it’s not a good look for cruise ship passengers."
Perc Cafe owner Sarah Hussey said her business would also stay open from Boxing Day onwards because the money would be too good to pass up.
"We’re only closed on Christmas Day.
"The week will be just so busy and it would be sad to be closed when all the tourists arrive in the city."
Best Cafe manager Jess Marks said the tourist hotspot would be open between Christmas and New Year because the sheer number of cruise passengers coming past, made staying open a no-brainer.
"We’re in a really good area where a lot of those tourists are coming through from the train station, so it’s worth opening.
"People come from all over the world to visit the fish and chip shop and we’re already getting loads of pre-bookings from the cruise ship companies."
Dunedin Hospitality Association branch president and Speight’s Ale House owner Mark Scully said the week following Christmas was a popular time for businesses to close because a lot of the student labourers and city residents left Dunedin for their holidays.
He felt fortunate to have enough staff to keep his business open during the holiday week.
So the restaurant would only be closed on Christmas Day and would remain open into the new year.
"We’re quite lucky that we’ve got enough staff that we can give them three or four days off at Christmas and three or four days off at the new year.
"I think it’s up to individuals and you’ve got to respect the rights of your staff."
He believed the cruise ships could bring millions of dollars to the city during the week.
The Port Otago cruise ship schedule shows the Crystal Symphony and Celebrity Edge (December 26), Ovation of the Seas (December 27), Silver Muse (December 28), Noordam and Seabourn Odyssey (December 29), Norwegian Spirit and Seven Seas Explorer (December 30), Coral Geographer and Star Breeze (December 31) and Majestic Princess and Royal Princess (January 1) will bring up to 22,105 tourists to the city during the week.
