Hotels

Confidence among hotel operators has plummeted, according to a new survey.

Hotel operators have pushed out a raft of offers and packages following yesterday’s confirmation that regional travel is set to resume under Covid-19 alert level two.

For the third week in a row, Auckland occupancy has crept up from a low of 32% a month ago to 44.33% last week, according to figures from STR.

The value of building consents for hotels, motels and other short-term accommodation increased 25% in March 2020 compared to the same month last year, according to Statistics New Zealand.

Wellington occupancy appears to have plateaued, falling to 8.6% last week, according to figures from STR.

New Zealand’s second main gateway, Christchurch, saw RevPAR fall to $10.62 last week, down 91.1% on the same period last year, according to figures from STR.  

The new luxury hotel part of the $330 million Adelaide Casino expansion has been named – Eos by SkyCity.

Auckland Council is being asked to go further than putting a hold on the Auckland Provider Targeted Rate until March 2021.

However, it plans to resume the charge once investment in visitor attraction is needed.

A third of New Zealand hotels are currently closed with more expected to shut their doors in the coming weeks as the Covid-19 crisis continues to bite, according to new research from Colliers.

Arrivals forced into self-isolation and departing tourists appear to be propping up the Auckland market, albeit at an unnaturally low level, as the country neared the end of the third week of lockdown, according to figures from STR.

The New Zealand market, sustained now only by self-isolating arrivals and essential workers, saw occupancy fall to 28% for the week ending September, according to figures from STR.

Queenstown hotel occupancy has dropped to a level possibly unheard of before – 11.1% – down 86.5% compared to the same week last year, according to figures from STR.

The value of building consents issued for hotels, motels and other short term accommodation for the year to February 2020 was $616m.

The former site of the SilverOaks Hotel Geyserland in Rotorua is for sale.

Colliers is marketing the sale of the County Hotel in New Zealand’s Art Deco capital of Napier.

Occupancy and RevPAR across the country fell by levels possibly never seen before at a national level following the Government’s closure of the border to non-residents, according to figures from STR.

Millennium & Copthorne Hotels says it is now almost certain that its hotel operations for the first and second half of 2020 will trade at a loss.

Arrivals required to stand down are providing “a reasonable amount of business” for some companies.

Another tough week for the hotel industry with sharp falls across the country, according to figures from STR.

The group is predicting a revenue loss of $24m for H1 2020, says MD BK Chiu.

Hotel operator Millennium & Copthorne Hotels New Zealand has also announced a share trading halt to the NZX.

After a slightly surprising positive first half of February for Auckland, the city’s hotel market has suffered double-digit falls across all three metrics, according to figures from STR.

Doran Whaite has been named the new general manager for QT Auckland, opening mid-2020.

In the year ended January 2020, the number of new consented hotels, motels and other accommodation consented rose in value 25% to $586m.

A negative week for all regions and all metrics compared to this time last year, save only for ADR at Christchurch, which ticked up for the week, according to figures from STR.

Hospitality New Zealand has welcomed the appeal of the High Court decision to support the Accommodation Provider Targeted Rate, saying it is “unfair, inequitable and very poor public policy”.

Auckland bucked falling markets across the rest of New Zealand with a slightly surprising – because of the China travel ban – positive week across all three of the major hotel metrics, according to figures from STR.

The Government’s travel ban from China, which started on Monday 3 February, as well as the later starting of Chinese New Year in 2019, combined to push most markets down last week, compared to the same period last year, according to figures from STR.

Cloud-based hospitality technology solution provider, STAAH, has struck a partnership with accommodation software provider, ResBook.

Queenstown’s hotel sector last week fared significantly worse than the same period a year earlier, according to figures from STR, probably due to a combination of coronavirus cancellations and the later starting of Chinese New Year in 2019.

The hotel group says it expects to miss out on more revenue because of the outbreak.

Hotel owners “disappointed” and considering appealing the decision.

A positive week across New Zealand for the seven days to Saturday 1 February but there are signs the effects of the coronavirus outbreak are being felt in the country’s hotel sector, according to figures from STR.

Hotel operators are taking a flexible approach to the refund of deposits due to coronavirus cancellations, with a long-term view on the Chinese market often prevailing.

Double-digit dips in both occupancy and RevPAR added to a relatively subdued summer for Wellington, according to figures from STR.

AccorHotels has appointed Prasheel Churi general manager of ibis Wellington.

Scenic Hotel Franz Josef Glacier’s GM on dealing with extreme weather, building infrastructure, and solving skilled staff shortages.

Queenstown reported rare weekly growth this summer across all three metrics with RevPAR leading the way, according to figures from STR.

The town is hoping the $30m hotel will help win it recognition as a new conference destination.

Scenic Hotel Franz Josef Glacier is giving away a holiday package for two in an effort to raise funds for the measles epidemic in Samoa.

Ian Charlton is the new hotel manager for QT Wellington.

International and domestic visitor growth, a weak NZ dollar and strong economy will help drive occupancy, says the agent.

A positive Xmas and New Year period has led into a relatively decent start to 2020 for Auckland’s hotel market, in sharp contrast to the country’s other major visitor destinations, according to figures from STR.

The number of consents for hotels, motels and other short-term accommodation grew by 20.7% to reach 519 for year to November 2019, compared to the same period last year.

The sovereign wealth fund has increased its exposure to NZ tourism with the purchase of the Holiday Inn.

Wellington’s hotel market has tracked below 2018’s results since the spring and that trend looks set to continue into the new year, according to figures from STR.

Another solid week for Auckland’s hotel market has helped drive growth in all three metrics in a rare, positive week across all of New Zealand, according to STR.

Scenic has appointed Brad McGlynn GM of its Franz Josef Glacier property.

Building consents for new hotels, motels and other short-term accommodation including alterations or additions grew to 533 for the year to October 2019, up 29% on the previous 12 months.