I'm one of two crazy people behind building the LiveLocal website - a husband and wife team in Wellington, New Zealand.  Back in March, when New Zealand went into lockdown, we were worried about what it might do to the local tourism industry. So we decided we'd try to do something to help!

We began renting the spare space in our home to travellers in 2018 and haven't looked back. Since then our (slightly uncontrollable) need to share what we have learned has gained a loyal following online.  But, like all creative types, my wife and I found ourselves wanting to help Kiwi hosts and travellers with a grass roots initiative, so we can be ready together when local tourism returns. We are thinking “big picture” too. If we can find a way to make travel accommodation more affordable for Kiwis, then local businesses who rely on visitors (including cafes, restaurants and tour operators) may have a chance at bouncing back when the time comes.

Thus, we hereby invite you to support our initiative by either subscribing as a Member to LiveLocal (this is for Hosts), or buying us a one-off coffee by clicking Support (this is for everyone!).

The initiative startup costs (excluding accounting and marketing) are $6.4k and the goal of this fundraiser is to raise $2.5k of that.  I'm also working for free, as are so many of the 100+ host volunteers involved, but hey unemployment from a lack of guests gives me plenty of time!  So, the goal of this fundraiser is to pay for the initiatives direct costs, not wages. We are all in this together.

If you are a Host who has just joined our marketplace, and you want to get access to post Listings on our new site, please use the Membership to grab yourself a Host subscription. If you have a lot of listings to make, you can choose to pay more than $5 per month if you want to. You’ll be asked to choose what you pay, so make up your own price.