2011 – A year of Moving Goal Posts
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Some have called this year a "perfect storm" and when tallying up the number of local and global natural disasters that have taken place in a relatively short time, all impacting on hotels amongst others, it is an accurate description. The Queensland floods, the Christchurch earthquake and the Japan tsunami have all taken their toll on visitor numbers. The reduction in Japanese, Chinese and South Korean visitors was not unexpected given the level of risk aversion these markets have compared to others. More concerning however, is the continued decrease in Australian visitors who, with their strong Australian dollar, are being enticed to holiday further afield at bargain prices.
But the hotel sector is accustomed to challenges and everyone is looking ahead, trying to make the best of a difficult operating environment. Shortly after the Christchurch earthquake a working group called Christchurch Hospitality Inc was formed between the NZ Hotel Council, the Hospitality Association NZ and the Restaurant Association NZ with the aim of ensuring that the united hospitality and tourism voice for Christchurch was heard. The group's first priority was to gain access to the hotels that were within the cordon zone, retrieve guests' luggage and clear any food waste from the properties. This was successfully completed with 750 pieces of luggage returned to guests in 37 countries and several tonnes of food waste removed from the hotels within the CBD. The next priority is to ensure that this vital and not insignificant group in terms of size, employees and investment have a clear and coordinated voice regarding the future of Christchurch's hospitality sector. It is hoped that some properties may be able to re-open in time for the Christchurch Cup week in October adding more rooms to the current hotel room tally of just over 580 rooms (pre quake Christchurch NZHC rooms totalled 3772).
While all eyes have been on the welfare of Christchurch and the impact on other South Island centres, there has been plenty of activity going on elsewhere. Four new hotels have opened - Novotel Auckland Airport with 263 rooms and a suite of conference rooms is the first airport hotel in New Zealand to be located only metres from an international airport terminal. The Sudima Auckland Airport also opened in May with 163 rooms, and Queenstown's long awaited Kawarau Falls Station development is now home to the Hilton Queenstown and Kawarau Hotel, also managed by the Hilton, with 178 and 98 rooms respectively.
Additionally, the site for the New Zealand International Convention Centre in Auckland has been announced and once completed is anticipated to deliver another 100,000 visitor nights to the region and provide 800 new skilled jobs. Conference and Exhibition delegate room nights in Auckland in 2010 totalled over 118,000. Nationally this figure was over 358,000 in 2010 or 8 per cent of room sales. (NZHC Annual Operating Survey 2010).
As the country works together to rebuild our second largest city we all look towards the RWC 2011 as a shining light in an otherwise very difficult period for many in the industry. The first six months of 2011 have certainly been challenging, but the resilience of the hotel sector and its ability to adapt quickly to changing circumstances and opportunities, puts operators in good stead to reap the benefits that are to be gained from RWC 2011. With an anticipated 85,000 people visiting New Zealand in September and October it is very much hoped that the latter part of 2011 will be highly successful and profitable for all everyone, including the Hotel sector.
Rachel Shadbolt
NZHC
