Originally Posted by
SilverTP
Like most news it's partly true, partly not. I was watching only February, including the holiday period starting February 6. That start date was snapped up immediately but at least one slot re-opened when a purchase was not completer. Several other start dates stayed open for at least 45 minutes. By day's end it was all gone. That was Milford. I understand it would have looked like a faster sellout at a group size greater than 1.
Routeburn (on sale today) has plenty of slots still open. It seems to be only Milford that sells out immediately. But, as I wrote, this is not nearly as quick a sellout as other hot tickets like Burning Man. Those are essentially a lottery for everyone who clicks at the right time, and a loss if you are even slightly late. (Digression: this year's Burning Man was poorly implemented such that only the latecomers won, and nobody has stepped up to claim the blame.)
In short, I think if you are right on time and your group is small you WILL get your Milford dates.