New hotels to boost Tauranga tourism

Two upmarket hotels will be built in Tauranga over the next year, giving the Western Bay's tourism sector a major boost.

They include the international Novotel brand, which will have a $20 million hotel built on the old TV3 site.

On the waterfront, work has started on the $30 million, four-and-a-half star Trinity Wharf hotel, which will include 15 privately owned apartments.

Both hotels have 120 rooms, restaurants and bars, gymnasiums and conference facilities for about 300 people. When they are completed at the end of next year, the number of hotel choices for visitors to the area will leap from one to four.

The three-and-a-half star Armitage in Willow St - now for sale - had been Tauranga's only hotel for more than three years. The smaller Hotel on Devonport opened just before Christmas.

Trinity Wharf, which is being developed by Civenco Construction, will be privately managed and pitched at a higher end of the market than Novotel.

The Tauranga City Council has been negotiating for nine months to develop its prime 3600sq m Durham St block, which is now used as a carpark.

It chose the world's largest hotel group, Accor, to help attract more visitors and conferences to the Bay. Accor and Rotorua developer R&B Consultants have signed a conditional agreement to build the seven-storey Novotel.

Tourism Bay of Plenty chief executive Jim Little said the hotel would encourage international wholesalers and tour operators to book tour groups.

- NZPA