Dean Humphries, Hotels National Director at Colliers International, says the hotel is managed on behalf of its current owners by international hotel company Intercontinental Hotel Group (IHG) under its popular Holiday Inn brand.

“This substantial 13,000m² hotel is situated on more than 1 hectare of prime freehold land adjoining the Whakarewarewa Living Māori Village and geothermal park, which remains one of the region’s most popular tourist destinations,” he says.

“The hotel offers six generous function and meeting facilities that can host up to 1,000 delegates, as well as the popular Chapmans Restaurant and Bar, heated outdoor pool and spa facilities, extensive gym and parking for more than 120 vehicles.

“The hotel has recently undergone an extensive renovation, including a range of new plant and seismic upgrades, and refurbishment of many of the guest rooms and front of house amenities.”

Humphries says “this is also the first major hotel to be offered for sale in Rotorua since 2011 and, significantly, it is the first major hotel in New Zealand to publicly offered to the market in over 18 months; with the hotel assets currently being tightly retained due to the exceptional trading conditions in the marketplace”.

“the hotel has flourished since IHG took over management in 2011 and now boasts an established clientele of international, domestic and corporate guests.

“Holiday Inn has been one of the top performing hotels in the region and, with its recent upgrades, it is poised to continue its strong growth on the back of a booming tourism sector.”

“the hotel is also avaible with vacant possession which allows for a much broader range of buyers, including owner-operators and investors who could potentially rebrand or reposition the asset.” Notes Humphries

The Rotorua market remains one of New Zealand's leading tourism destinations, with hotel occupancy now close to 80 per cent and room rates having increased by nearly 30 percent in the past four years.

“Being only three hours’ drive from Auckland, New Zealand’s main gateway port of entry, and located on the international tourism route, Rotorua continues to be one of the most highly sought-after destinations in the country,” Humphries says.

“Rotorua has recently been nominated as one of the top 52 destinations in the world to visit in 2018 by the New York Times and features Rotorua at number 45 – the only New Zealand destination to make the list. 

Destination Rotorua chief executive Michelle Templer has recently been reported as saying “ it was fantastic to see the city make the list, reinforcing Rotorua's international reputation as a world-class destination”. With a daily readership of more than 9 million people, and more than 220,000 following theNew York Times Travel Facebook page, Templer said the exposure in the list was "phenomenal recognition for the solid work that has been undertaken by the industry, Destination Rotorua, Rotorua Lakes Council and others".

“Dean Humphries notes that with virtually no new hotel inventory likely to be built in the region over the short to medium term, with the exception of the new 130-room Pullman Hotel, the Rotorua hotel sector has one of the highest growth prospects in New Zealand.

“As the lucrative Chinese and American markets quickly move away from the lower-yielding tours and group travel options to more free independent travellers, we expect a significant uplift in room rates to regions like Rotorua.

“This will bring the region more closely in alignment with our other major tourist destination, Queenstown, which currently has average room rates more than $100 higher than those in Rotorua.”

Humphries says international tourists are now realising the many attributes and value for money that Rotorua offers, with more than 3.1 million tourists visiting in the past 12 months.

“Hotels of this scale and quality are rarely offered to the market,” Humphries says.

“Those investors wanting to take advantage of New Zealand’s booming tourism sector and exceptional hotel market should not overlook this rare opportunity.”

Click here to view the EOI close date and property listing on the Colliers International website.

Click here to view Dean Humphries' profile on The Hotel Conversation.

See also:

New Zealand's largest hotel coming in 2020

Naumi Auckland Airport officially opens

New Zealand's highest alpine hotel for sale