Pioneer in smoke-free luxury hotels targets Auckland

A large luxury five-star hotel is opening next winter in Auckland's Viaduct Basin and a United States-based hotel operator was yesterday named as its manager.

Westin Resorts & Hotels will manage the new four-level $90 million 173-room Lighter Quay hotel - tipped to push up room rates throughout the city - and tell its guests to stub out before walking in.

Auckland hotel developer Nigel McKenna of Melview Developments said the Westin would open next June and be one of this country's first smoke-free hotels.

This month, Westin marked six months since all its United States properties went smoke-free.

It installed projection equipment in lobbies to count the number of breaths taken by each Westin guest each day and spent US$3 million converting its rooms to no-smoking, replacing carpets, linen and draperies, and cleaned all hard surfaces. Guests had embraced the change, Westin said.

The chain's hotels in the US, Canada, the Caribbean, Australia, Fiji and Scotland banned smoking this year. Westin has 121 hotels and resorts in 31 countries and is owned by New York Stock Exchange-listed Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide.

Wellington-based Hospitality Association chief executive Bruce Robertson welcomed Westin's arrival.

"It's good to have an international presence. There are people who will only stay in certain chains so if that presence means more visitors for New Zealand, it's got to be positive."

But room rates would need to be at least $400 a night to justify the five-star rating, he said.

"They need to charge genuine five-star prices and that will drag prices up for all accommodation levels through New Zealand."

Quality assurance business Qualmark said Auckland had five other five-star hotels: Hilton Auckland, Langham Hotel Auckland, Quay West Suites, SkyCity Grand Hotel and Stamford Plaza.

The city has nine four-star hotels including the Carlton, Crowne Plaza, Heritage, Sebel Suites and Takapuna's Spencer on Byron.

Fletcher Construction is building the new Westin as part of a larger Lighter Quay project which has brought new apartment blocks North, Stratis, Halsey and Pavilions.

The new hotel will have a presidential suite, executive club lounge, all-day restaurant, nightclub, library, gift shop and health spa with 20m heated indoor pool, sauna and steam room.

Mr McKenna said he had 1800 hotel rooms planned or under construction on sites throughout New Zealand.

This year, he opened the 250-room Quadrant near the High Court in Auckland.

He is building Wellington's new 280-room Holiday Inn and is planning a series of hotels on land at Kawarau Falls near Queenstown.


HOW THEY RATE
Qualmark standards:

* Acceptable, meets customers' minimum requirements, basic, clean and comfortable.

* * Good, exceeds customers' minimum requirements with some additional facilities and services.

* * * Very good, provides a range of facilities and services and achieves good to very good standards.

* * * * Excellent, consistently achieves high-quality levels with a wide range of facilities and services.

* * * * * Exceptional, among the best available in New Zealand.