How earthquake-hit Noah’s Hotel in Christchurch was reborn as Sheraton

The Sheraton Christchurch is set to open in mid-2027 after a hotel management agreement was signed with Marriott International by Mainland Capital and Russell Property Group.

As soon as Noah’s Hotel on the banks of the River Avon opened its doors in 1975, it became the place of choice for visiting superstars. Royalty, rock stars, visiting dignitaries, all stayed at the central city hotel – until February 22, 2011 when the deadly earthquake hit and shut its doors. Now, it is undergoing a $150m restoration, bringing it back to its former glory. Mike Thorpe reports.

In many ways, it is an unlikely hero of Christchurch’s inner-city skyline. Not celebrated with the same enthusiasm as the brutalist design of the city’s Town Hall, the Gothic revival architecture of Christ Church Cathedral, or the palazzo-style Old Government Building. It was almost forgotten about in the post-quake rush to preserve the city’s historical landmarks. Not old enough, not famous enough, and not religious enough. Perhaps.

But the “Hip Flask” building on the corner of Oxford Terrace and Worcester Boulevard has its own storied history.

It was Noah’s Hotel when it opened in 1975, regarded as the chicest in the South Island. A place where the famous laid their heads - and where the elite went for dinner. It was the Rydges Hotel when the earthquake closed its doors in 2011.

Dishevelled and defaced, it has waited years for redemption. Privately owned property locked in an at times public insurance scrap that played out through the courts.

It was about then that Ben Bridge happened upon it.

Noah's Hotel in Christchurch, which has housed many celebrities over the decades, including Princess Diana and Elton John (inset), was badly damaged in the 2011 earthquake but is being brought back to life with a $150m rebuild project. Images / Supplied / NZME

“I was walking past it with a colleague of mine and thinking, ‘What on earth is going on?’. Ten years after the earthquake to have that building sort of frozen in time,” says Bridge, from the boardroom of Mainland Capital, of which he is a director.

He managed to track down the owners.

“That’s really where the formal interests commenced,” Bridge says.

The attraction to the property was multi-faceted – beyond the architecture and history.

“It was a single title that ran all the way from the river back through to the cathedral. One of the largest sites, 4800 square metres, in Christchurch,” Bridge says.

Having spent a bit of time engaging with the offshore owners, Bridge’s Mainland Capital ramped up their interest when the insurance issues were resolved.

“We went back through the same channels and said we were interested in acquiring the land and buildings - and the company.”

Bridge says formal negotiations went on for six months.

“And just as we were getting near to the finish line, as often happens in good races, there was some interference from other people who suddenly became aware of the opportunity. But we managed to get it over the line.”

The spiral staircase, a feature in the original hotel, will be replicated in the new refurbishment. Photo / Supplied

The cost of that acquisition isn’t clear but the vision for the new chapter in “Noah’s” history is – Project Ark will deliver the Sheraton to Christchurch in mid-2027.

That involves a significant investment.

“We’re saying a rough project value of around $150m. But then we’ve also got the supplementary land which spans through to the cathedral - which is quite significant.”

The future of the site will look a lot like its past.

“In a really interesting mirroring of history, if you gave a leading developer that site today as a blank canvas, and you ask them what they would do. They would probably go ‘the site is suited for a 5-star hotel, a car park building, some high-end retail, some office, maybe some residential would be something that you’d incorporate today,” Bridge says.

“But by and large, the use of the site - because it’s such a prime site, would be almost exactly what it was 50 years ago when AMP developed it, which is quite unusual. You think times would change, but on the great sites, what they thought 50 years ago is what we’re thinking today.”

The mistake that kept it upright

One of many fascinating features of the building is its internal dimensions and its over-engineered structural strength. That came about as a result of an error. Perhaps.

“They breached the height limits at the time. The density rules for Christchurch did not allow a structure such as those to be built. So they went to the council and said, ‘Hey, we want to invest in the site’.”

Bridge says AMP had identified it as the “best site in Christchurch” at the time. He says the city council agreed to grant permission on the 14-storey height – with a proviso.

“The condition of building to that height and breaching those height limits was that it was built to what effectively would be today called an IL4 [Importance Level 4], building standards. So what you’d use for a hospital or a government building. It was built to enable that if the [Christchurch] hospital went down, it could be converted into a temporary hospital.”

Christchurch's former Noah's Hotel under construction in the early 1970s. The former Midland Club building to the right is still standing. Photo / Supplied

“A lot of the doors were double-width to allow stretchers and things to go through it. And it was built to a strength that would allow it to become the emergency response centre for Civil Defence.”

Bridge says in the lead-up to the 1974 Commonwealth Games, authorities were mindful of the potential for a terror threat - similar to that of the 1972 Munich Olympics.

“Very sensitive to athlete safety, but also kind of wider - not just terrorism, but flood, fire, etc.”

AMP agreed to the council’s conditions and construction continued. The building’s first role was to house Commonwealth Games officials more than 50 years ago.

“All of that structural comment about the history of the building is the reason why it’s still really sound today,” says Bridge.

The visitors’ book

Like its former neighbour (The Clarendon Hotel) before it, Noah’s was the accommodation of choice for big-name visitors to the city. From royal family to rock royalty.

“Being the number one hotel in the South Island originally, inevitably it got those sort of dignitaries there [to stay at the hotel]. It’s had the Queen, the Shah of Persia, Elton John. It’s had various heads of state. My father, who was a diplomat, used to bring people to stay here,” recalls Bridge.

Queen Elizabeth II with then Christchurch Mayor Sir Hamish Hay at Noah's Hotel. Photo / Supplied

King Charles and the late Princess Diana were also guests at the hotel.

Whether or not they signed the official guest book can’t be verified – because the guest book disappeared after the earthquake.

Bridge is appealing for it to be returned to where it belongs.

“That in itself would be an interesting public campaign to see if in the corner of someone’s garage is sitting that original Noah’s Hotel guest book, because that would make for some interesting reading.”

TOGO

In 14 years since the 2011 earthquake, the building has been targeted by graffiti artists. Undoubtedly, the most famous tag is the “TOGO” artwork that faces east on the highest part of the 14-story building. It’s unclear exactly when the enormous tag was spray-painted or how. Google Maps puts it somewhere between August 2015 and May 2017.

How it was done is even more vague. Bridge knows almost everything about this property – but the TOGO tag is a mystery.

“I’m not quite sure what Togo means. I don’t know who did it, but it’s been up there for a hell of a long time, and it’s kind of become part of the quilt work of Cathedral Square, hasn’t it?”

The east side of the building - with the giant and mysterious TOGO tag. Photo / Supplied

He says it’ll be replaced with a 157sq m presidential suite.

“I’m not sure if we’ll call it the Togo suite. It’ll be a shame when it’s covered up.”

The street artist behind the tag (who goes by the name TOGO) has previously said in a 2020 interview with Cityscape “these hard-to-reach places are often challenging and difficult. They require a lot of planning and preparation but because of this, will increase an artist’s notoriety.

“I was more attracted to these dangerous spots and found pleasure in the risk and reward aspect. How far are you willing to go?” said TOGO.

In terms of what’s involved – he gave little away.

“There’s not much to it. Just hold on tight!”

Noah’s 2.0 and the Sheraton

TOGO may not have naming rights for the new presidential suite but there are plans to honour much of the hotel’s past in its future.

The “lid” of the “hip flask” will become a rooftop bar.

“And that bar has a 250-person capacity. It’s largely enclosed, so that means on a cold southerly day, you can still be up there and take advantage of the views,” Bridge says.

The hotel as it is today. The original facade is being removed to make way for a new heavily glazed frontage that will showcase the building's trademark curve. Photo / George Heard

“On a sunny day, it’s got two terraces, one to the north end, which would look over Hagley Park and towards the mountains, and one to the south end, which will look over the city to the Port Hills - depending on which way the wind’s blowing, or alternatively, if there is no wind it is an outdoor experience.”

Bridge says the ideal name for the rooftop bar was obvious.

“Very late in our negotiations with Marriott, the day before we were due to sign the deal, I rang up the president for Asia Pacific, Richard Crawford, and said, ‘We’ve got one last request’. You could almost feel his eyes rolling back in his head. But he’s a good bloke, Richard.

“I said, ‘We want to call the rooftop bar Noah’s’, and he went, ‘Done, that’s a great idea’. They’ve been really supportive of that connection to history and they understand it,” Bridge says.

There will be physical tributes as well. While the original facade has been removed and won’t be restored, the new look is strongly derived from the original.

“The new facade will be about 66% glass and 33% concrete-looking. So there’ll be more light and more view from the rooms. We’re getting it to look as close as we can to the original facade.”

A suite at Noah's from the mid 1970's. The new decor will take some inspiration from that decade. Photo / Supplied

There will also be some internal similarities. The famous Waitangi Room (restaurant) won’t be recreated, but there will be some 1970s-inspired design.

“Sheraton, again, have been really great in terms of coming along for that ride,” Bridge says.

“They’ve got their own particular style that is great and we want to get the benefit of that. But equally, they understand the sort of X factor of connecting to the ’70s in terms of the interior design.”

The Waitangi Room was home to a silver service experience at the peak of the hotel's popularity. Photo / Supplied

Bridge is glowing in his praise for his heavy-hitting project partners.

“Obviously, financial business comes first, but ultimately, I think Marriott - just like ourselves and the Russell Property Group and investors - are very passionate about doing something which helps in the regeneration of Christchurch and the South Island,” Bridge says.

They hope the building that stood through thousands of earthquakes will be bowling guests over in less than two years.

Mike Thorpe is a senior journalist for the Herald, based in Christchurch. He has been a broadcast journalist across television and radio for 20 years and joined the Herald in August 2024.