The historic Kings Hotel in Ohakune is for sale by tender and potential buyers have a month to make their bids. Photo / Bayleys
The historic Kings Hotel in Ohakune is for sale by tender and potential buyers have a month to make their bids. Photo / Bayleys
Ruapehu’s historic landmark hotel Kings Ohakune is on the market.
Potential buyers have until March 15 to submit their bids for the oldest hotel in the region.
The business, which provides accommodation and runs a busy bar and restaurant, has been part-owned and managed by Stu Robinson and his wife Dee since March 2016.
“We’ve worked hard to develop a brand and build Kings into a good operating business,” Stu Robinson said.
“When we came in, Kings was not operating year-round like it does now. We’ve built a fantastic team and we have very much enjoyed being part of a great community in Ohakune.”
The property is listed for sale by tender, with Bayleys Realty providing the opportunity for potential buyers to make confidential written offers before the due date.
Bayleys Ruapehu agent Anthony Greenfield said he was expecting plenty of interest in the business that first opened as a hotel in 1913.
“It is the oldest hotel in the central North Island and it has been beautifully kept by the current owners,” Greenfield said.
“It is always busy and a very popular destination for tour groups and cyclists. The restaurant and bar are always well supported by the local community as well as visitors.”
Greenfield said the hotel sat on a freehold section of around 3036sq m in Rimu St and the land had potential for development.
In the 1950s, the establishment was said to have a history “as chequered as the iconic dancefloor”.
It was a setting for seances during the early 20th century when it was fashionable for visiting mediums to assist those wishing to commune with the dead.
The hotel’s first owner was journalist Joseph Ivess, who named the establishment Kings Court and intended to attract customers travelling on the main trunk line who would step off at the Ohakune railway station, built in 1908.
Ivess hired experienced hotel manager A.E. Watts and a porter, who would meet the passengers and transport their luggage to the hotel. Guests paid a nightly tariff of 8 shillings.
The next owners, Ellen and Joseph Young, bought the premises in 1924 and ran it until 1963. An advertisement from the early days of their occupancy boasted that the hotel had “electric lights, three hot and cold baths - all modern conveniences”.
For a brief time in the early 1970s, the business was renamed “Snowline Hotel” before the next owners changed it back. In 1979, they installed the pillared kauri canopy on the east wing of the building.
“It came from an Auckland building of the same era so it looks like it has always been there,” Robinson said.
The Robinsons have had to weather the challenges of Covid-19 restrictions - then in August last year, there was a fire in the hotel’s boiler room.
“We were very glad that the renovations we had done with fire protection measures worked well,” Robinson said.
“It meant that we were able to reopen soon after.”
Guests at Kings Ohakune enjoy spectacular mountain scenery and warm hospitality.
Bayleys Whanganui director John Bartley said the hotel was highly visible and close to the Ohakune train station, a Northern Explorer rail line stop.
“Local festivals, including Mardi Gras, the Blues and Roots Festival, and Carrot Carnival, draw visitors throughout the year, in addition to a host of adventure events and seasonal sporting activities.
“In 2024, the 21km Te Ara Mangawhero ecotourism trail - one of 22 Great Rides across New Zealand and part of the Mountains to Sea hiking and cycling journey - is set to connect Tūroa and Ohakune, bringing even more tourists to the area.”
Bartley said the hotel had a three-star Qualmark silver rating and the business was in great shape.
“That offers a new operator an attractive opportunity to realise its full potential just as the local hospitality industry takes off.”
Liz Wylie is a multimedia journalist for the Whanganui Chronicle. She joined the editorial team in 2014 and regularly covers stories from Whanganui and the wider region. She also writes features and profile stories.
