Action Hotels plc, the leading owner, developer and asset manager of branded three and four-star hotels in the Middle East and Australia, is delighted to announce the opening of Novotel Melbourne South Wharf hotel, ahead of schedule.

The 347-room flagship hotel owned by Action Hotels is built on a long-term, 92-year lease plot of land held by Action Hotels and operated under AccorHotels' 4-star Novotel brand. Situated in Melbourne's newly re-developed Conference & Exhibition Centre, it is perfectly located to service both business and leisure travellers with quality affordable accommodation.

The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre is the largest convention centre in the southern hemisphere and currently accommodates over 5,500 delegates, hosting over 1,030 events and attracting more than 680,000 attendees, with 220 events already confirmed for the new expansion space, commencing mid-2018.

Centrally positioned, the hotel will also benefit from its proximity to the growing Docklands precinct, Etihad Stadium, Melbourne Central Business District and Melbourne South Wharf, a highly sought-after leisure destination.

The hotel is already proving to be in high demand with better than expected advance bookings of over AUS$3.5m.

Sheikh Mubarak A.M. Al Sabah, Founder and Chairman of Action Hotels, commented, "The Novotel Melbourne South Wharf, Action's fourth hotel in Australia, is testament to Action Hotels vision and our strong portfolio in Australia. We are proud to add this hotel and this opening marks a key milestone in our relationship with AccorHotels."

"The advance bookings demonstrate the attractiveness of its location, the services offered, and will be integral to the success of the new Conference and Exhibition Centre. This new property signals a step change at Action Hotels and brings our total operating hotels to fourteen. We remain committed to growing our portfolio as we explore new hotel opportunities on both a freehold and leasehold basis."

Simon McGrath, Chief Operating Officer, AccorHotels Pacific said: "The opening of Novotel Melbourne South Wharf will further increase capacity for Melbourne to attract significant events.

Novotel Melbourne South Wharf is an outstanding new-build property and I congratulate Sheikh Mubarak Al Sabah and Action Hotels Group on delivering a world-class hotel to the city of Melbourne. With its location alongside Melbourne's Conference & Exhibition Centre, the hotel will help attract major events, conferences and exhibitions to the city and will support the city's strong events calendar and tourism industry.

Novotel Melbourne South Wharf will offer domestic and international guests a highly sought after, globally recognised brand and service standard and we are looking forward to showcasing the hotel and welcoming guests."

General Manager of Novotel Melbourne South Wharf, Glen Erickson, said: "The hotel would make an important contribution to the local hotel landscape, which was experiencing a resurgence with investment in new build hotels planned or underway.

This hotel's development, along with the MCEC expansion project, represents one of the largest and most significant infrastructure investments into Melbourne's tourism and convention industry. Novotel Melbourne South Wharf will contribute to the continued evolution of Melbourne as one of Asia Pacific's most desirable - and frequently visited - destinations for both business and leisure travel.

Click here to view the official Novotel Melbourne South Wharf website.

See also:

Melbourne’s latest CBD hotel development opportunity

Australian tourism spending soars above $40 billion

Holiday Inn Melbourne on Flinders’ refurbishment complete