Julie and Allan from Christchurch cannot exactly remember how long they have been camping at Kaiteriteri, but they reckon it's at least 40 years.
"It was early '80s, and we were coming to Motueka before that for seven years and we decided to come over here because we were getting in the car every day to go to Kaiteri, so we thought why not camp there?"
Since then, they've made the six-hour trip up from Christchurch with a caravan in tow every summer.
This year, they'll spend two months parked up in the camp at Kaiteriteri Beach, which has only got more popular.
"It's still as busy as ever, I think people are coming a bit earlier than normal, Boxing Day used to be a real big day ... 150 caravans would arrive, I don't know how they ever coped to be quite honest, I don't know how they are going to cope this year."
"For about two weeks of January it turns into Christchurch, it is probably 80 percent Cantabrians that turn up in those first couple of weeks."
The camp is fully booked from now until mid-February - and it's not that easy to nab a spot in the peak season.
Those like Allan and Julie who have been staying at the camp for decades have "rebook privileges" and get to stay in the same spot, each year.
"The apartments, cabins and other campsites are released early in the winter and sell out within 24 hours, people take days off work to try and book, so we are working on how we get more people here, but it is just so incredibly popular, it is hard to get in," Fitzgerald said.
The camp has changed over the years and a redevelopment in 2016 saw nine apartments built.
"It's certainly grown and there are many different opinions as to what it could or should look like from Surfers Paradise to having no one on the beach, so we just have to try and balance those things," Fitzgerald said.
The reserve is governed by a board appointed by the Minister of Conservation and does not receive any government funding so is reliant on visitor spend.
"So any time you go to the store or anytime you book an apartment, any time you invest in the reserve, we get to give back to the community, improve the area and keep it as special as it is for years to come."
The number of staff working at the reserve triples over the busy summer period to around 150 people.
One of those is barista Jess, who grew up in Motueka and is working at Kaiteriteri for the second summer, making hundreds of coffees a day.
"Every single summer I'd come out here so it is nice to get to work out here now and it is honestly just crazy in the middle of summer. We are just so overwhelmed every morning but it is heaps of fun and we have a really good team."
She said flat whites were by far and away the most popular coffee order among beachgoers.
"We usually start around 8am and all of the boats go out to the national park and that is the busiest part of the day, everyone trying to get their coffee before they get on the boat, so that is hundreds of people before 9am."
"I live in Motueka which is not that far away and my parents also worked here so I have spent a lot of time at Kaiteriteri. I love how sunny it is all the time and I can't imagine working anywhere else, especially on my breaks getting to enjoy the beach and the water."
The store sold 36,000 ice creams last January - with deliveries and staff ramping up considerably over Christmas and into January to ensure residents and visitors have milk, ice or sausages for the barbeque.
This summer, a floating waterpark has been set up at the beach for the first time and will operate from now until Waitangi weekend.
Waterworld managing director Kel Travers said it was the first time Waterworld Wipeout had operated in the South Island, with Kaiteriteri Beach a "world-class" offering for the park, which he described as a "massive floating pile of fun" for kids and adults alike.
