November 28, 2022 | By Bronwen Largier | Image: The JW Marriott brand will debut in Auckland in 2024
Auckland is set to be the home of New Zealand’s first JW Marriott hotel, construction has begun on a new Hilton Garden Inn in Brisbane’s inner city suburb of Spring Hill and the proposed Darwin Convention Centre hotel has major international hotel brands considering the opportunity in Australia’s top end.
JW Marriott bound for Auckland in 2024
Marriott International will convert the current Stamford Plaza in Auckland’s city centre into New Zealand’s first luxury JW Marriott by mid-2024.
The property is located less than 10 minutes’ walk from the under-construction New Zealand International Convention Centre which is due to be complete in 2025.
Following a $20 million renovation, under the Marriott brand the hotel will have 286 rooms, a main 320m2 event space alongside four other meeting rooms.
Marriott International’s area vice president for Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Sean Hunt said New Zealand was one of Marriott’s top priorities for growing the footprint of their luxury brands.
“The introduction of the JW Marriott brand in New Zealand reflects our confidence in the Australian, New Zealand and Pacific luxury market, and follows the success of the JW Marriott Gold Coast, as well as the forthcoming openings of W Sydney, The Ritz-Carlton Melbourne and the St Regis Gold Coast,” he said.
Hilton Garden Inn set for Brisbane’s Spring Hill
Ground has been broken on the $50 million Hilton Garden Inn Brisbane City Centre North, located in Spring Hill.
The 129-room hotel on the north side of Brisbane River is expected to open in the final quarter of 2024 – already slightly behind the initial anticipated opening date in early 2024.
The hotel will include some event space and is close to venues earmarked for Olympic events in 2032, including the Gabba, which will host the opening and closing ceremonies, and Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre.
International players line up for Darwin Convention Centre hotel
Expressions of interest for a developer and operator of a hotel located adjacent to Darwin Convention Centre in the city’s waterfront precinct have opened with six international hotel brands already indicating interest in the project.
With managers of the EOI process, CBRE Hotels, sounding out the market over the last month, Accor, EVT, IHG Hotels and Resorts, Marriott International, Radisson Hotel Group and TFE Hotels have all already flagged their interest in operating the hotel.
“The international interest showcases the unique opportunity the Darwin waterfront hotel provides, the chance to be part of a thriving and exciting precinct,” said the Northern Territory’s minister for tourism and hospitalit, Nicole Manison.
“This project is great for tourism, especially in the area of conference travel, creating an extra 200-250 beds in Darwin.”
The NT’s chief minister Natasha Fyles said the new hotel would be a “much welcomed addition” to Darwin, with existing hotels in the city stretched to capacity over this year’s dry season.
