It’s not just houses that are in short supply in Auckland: the demand for hotel accommodation in the City of Sails – especially four and five star properties – has never been higher, and developers are struggling to keep up. A recent New Zealand Trade and Enterprise report projects that Auckland will require up to 4,000 new rooms by 2025 in order to keep up with current demand.[1]
Sudima Hotels intends to build a new four and a half star hotel in the heart of Auckland’s hospitality and events precinct, opposite the highly anticipated New Zealand International Convention Centre (which is expected to attract around 33,000 delegates a year). The new hotel on the corner of Nelson and Wellesley Streets will feature 180-200 rooms pending final design, a gym, a rooftop bar, and a separate restaurant and bar. The hotel is scheduled for opening in the summer of 2019/2020.
The new Auckland CBD hotel is Sudima Hotel’s seventh investment in New Zealand hotels and infrastructure, adding to the hotel brand’s nationwide presence with properties at Auckland Airport, Hamilton, Rotorua, and Christchurch Airport along with the in-development $40m Christchurch CBD hotel due to open in early 2019 and recently announced $30m Kaikoura hotel scheduled to open in the summer of 2019/2020. Sudima Hotels’ current hotels in-development represent an investment of $135m across the country, adding approximately 400 rooms to the national accommodation stock, and around 190 additional jobs.
The Auckland based founder and CEO of Sudima Hotels, Sudesh Jhunjhnuwala, says all three new hotel developments represent the expansion of Sudima Hotels New Zealand-wide portfolio in the leisure, corporate and transit traveller markets.
“This Auckland CBD development is a significant addition to our portfolio in a sought-after location. The area around our site has been extensively developed in recent years and is now a hub for hospitality, entertainment, events and major conferences, so we are looking forward to introducing a new accommodation choice for leisure and corporate travellers who want a high level of service and comfort in a hotel with a focus on sustainability and social responsibility.
“With the volume of properties under development for Sudima Hotels across the country, we have welcomed a new project manager into the team, Taryn Murray, who brings with her a wealth of project management experience in the property sector, to oversee all developments and refurbishments going forward.”
The new Auckland CBD hotel will be single-use plastic free upon its opening in alignment with the companies goal to be single use plastic free across its entire portfolio by 2020. Sudima Hotels undertakes a range of environmental, social change and community support initiatives around the country, such as supporting Make-A-Wish Foundation, free breakfasts for school children in Rotorua, and the Sudima Hotels at Auckland and Christchurch airports are the first, and only, carboNZero hotels in the country. Each of its hotels are also accessible and have been rated Bronze to Gold for their accessibility features.
Before the hotel opens, Sudima Hotels will have unveiled a comprehensive rebrand across its properties. The new brand will reposition this iconic Kiwi hotel group in the market with a modern, contemporary and guest centric identity; details of the rebrand will be announced later this year.
[1]www.colliers.co.nz/news/2018/new%20hotel%20supply%20putting%20the%20brakes%20on%20tourism%20boom/
