His family had booked rides with the shuttle service, Wana Taxi, in the past and had no issues.
The shuttle was supposed to take them 15 minutes each way, which included being picked up about 1am. The price was particularly high, but Josh said the group was happy to pay it to make sure they would have transportation.
The week of the festival arrived and Josh tried to get in touch with the company to confirm pick up, only to discover the company’s phone number was no longer in service and emails were going unanswered.
After asking around other local taxi companies, Josh said nobody had heard from the owner of Wana Taxi in months. He has now laid a complaint with police.
The group had to fork out another $40 per person to get bus tickets to and from the festival instead.
“We’ve spent over a thousand dollars just on transport,” he said.
“It’s pretty frustrating … I made the booking and all my mates have lost their money.”
He said he felt “disbelief” it had happened and was feeling “just stressed out”.
The Herald has attempted to contact Wana Taxi, but the company’s phone number appears to be disconnected. A request for comment by email has not received a response.
The group had prepaid money so they could get to Rhythm and Alps in Cardrona Valley. Photo / Ray Tiddy
A reporter also visited two Wanaka addresses associated with the company, one linked to it via Google, and a separate property linked to it on the Companies Office website, but could not find the owner.
A police spokeswoman confirmed they had been contacted “regarding a report of an alleged offence of obtaining by deception in relation to a taxi company”.
She said police were “assessing the case” but could not offer any further information yet.
Josh’s case is not the only transport horror story to arise out of recent holiday festivals.
A group of Rhythm and Vines festival-goers were forced to trek through the night in deep mud and torrential rain because their pre-booked bus never showed up last week.
They claim the $70 bus pass didn’t provide service for the trips it advertised to and from the multiple-day festival, with no explanation.
An attendee, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Herald she and her friends were left feeling unsafe, out of pocket and disappointed.
The most recent festival, held from December 28-January 1, made headlines as “Rhythm and Rain” after severe weather turned the site into a mud pit.
The attendee said this was her third time at the festival and she had purchased a similar bus pass for trips to and from Makaraka previously, which was reliable.
“This year, however, the bus never arrived. We were left in an unsafe situation with no sober driver available to get us home,” she said.
She said they were forced to squeeze onto other bus services and walk the rest of the way each night. The only other option was a $200 taxi.
She and her friends walked the remaining 30-minute distance about 2.30am.
“We were tired, and it was the first night it was raining, and we were freezing.
“It was horrible,” she said.
Melissa Nightingale is a Wellington-based reporter who covers crime, justice and news in the capital. She joined the Herald in 2016 and has worked as a journalist for 12 years.