Quest New Zealand will unveil its latest apartment style hotel in Palmerston North on August 12. Replacing the city’s existing Quest hotel, the brand-new, 40-apartment building is a joint venture between local iwi, Rangitāne o Manawatū and Wallace Development.
The new hotel includes studios, one and two-bedroom apartments and features suitable for long term and short term guests. Unlike typical hotel rooms, each studio features a fully-equipped kitchenette, making them a more functional and affordable accommodation alternative.
The developers say the one and two-bedroom apartments are perfect for families, colleagues or larger groups looking for a ‘home away from home’ experience, as each offers amenities including kitchens, laundry facilities, and internet access on-demand. Guests also experience Quest-only services like local restaurant chargeback arrangements and a pantry shopping service. “Along with gymnasium access, babysitting booking services, and more, Quest offers accommodations for both short and long visiting guests.”
“The city warmly welcomes Quest’s newest hotel, that’s well located to meet the market of visitors attracted to Palmerston North for business, study and pleasure. The city is on a trajectory for significant economic growth and is gaining momentum as the country’s leading food agrihub and logisitic and distribution hub,” says Palmerston North City Mayor, Grant Smith.
Ruma Karaitiana, Chair for Rangitāne o Manawatū Investment Trust said, “The new Quest Palmerston North will be the first project completed by Rangitāne o Manawatū following its Treaty Settlement. It becomes the foundation of a new economic future for the Iwi in Manawatū and as such we look forward to a long and productive partnership with Quest Apartment Hotels New Zealand.”
Exciting opportunity
“The new Quest Hotel in Palmerston North is a boon for the whole community – we expect it to attract more business and leisure travellers to the area, and the serviced apartments we offer encourage guests to patronise local businesses for groceries, meals and to experience local attractions – so it’s an exciting development for the whole area around Palmerston North,” says Stephen Mansfield, CEO of Quest New Zealand.
“Of course, a busy hotel also means jobs, and hiring locals helps our guests have the best possible experience with us – they get the inside information on what to do in their free time while they’re staying at the property.”
That ‘inside information’ at Quest Palmerston North begins with the Franchise Directors for the new hotel, Delia and Ben Goodall. Both started their journeys with Quest as Front Office Team Members and are currently managers at the existing Quest Palmerston North, meaning they’re more than prepared to take on ownership of the new hotel – following a model of success travelled by many Quest NZ employees on their path to becoming franchise owners.
“We’ve just celebrated our 21st year in New Zealand, and we’re proud to be the leading apartment hotel provider in every region where we operate – when you book a stay at any Quest property, you know you can expect us to fulfil our promise to provide the very best in serviced apartments, and the new Quest Palmerston North will be no exception,” says Mansfield.
“Seeing outstanding employees like the Goodalls become franchise owners is not surprising, because Quest has always offered incredible opportunities for our star performers, but it is exciting – our guests at Palmerston North will benefit from their local knowledge and experience, and their passion for the business. It’s a model that saw the Quest NZ group host 560,000 guests for 750,000 total room nights last year – and this new hotel is proof that there’s still plenty of room for us to grow.”
