Re - granding of Chateau starts soon

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 10, Issue 449, 18 August 1992, Page 3

Re - granding of Chateau starts soon

By

Marnie

woodd

The Grand Chateau Hotel's $4.8 million facelift is due to begin this winter, depending on Conservation Board approval. Hotel management must put forward a detailed proposal to the Tongariro Taupo Conservation Board's next meeting, to be held in October, because the Chateau occupies land within Tongariro National Park. Grand Chateau general manager Chris Griffin said the proposed changes will bring the present facilities up to scratch. "We're looking at recarpeting, r e - upholstering and replacing the drapes by Christmas if we get approval from the Board." The upgrade is long overdue. In the hotel's public lounge bar, the. first room seen by guests after checking in, the sofas are visibly tatty, the carpet is worn and buckled and the curtains are of a very loud and dated print. A Whangarei interior decorator is organising the interior changes, altering the colour scheme but not the character of the rooms. The exterior of the hotel is to be repainted in the existing colours. Money for the upgrade was a condition of the . purchase when Kah N.Z. Ltd. bought the Chateau from the Southem Pacific Hotel Corporation in September 1991. "The condition was that Kah would invest not less than 50 per cent of the purchase price in upgrading the facilities over a five year period," Mr Griffin said. Kah NZ Ltd bought the Chateau and Wairakei Hotels for about $10 million. Over $3 million is being spent on improv-

ing the Wairakei Hotel. An indoor ice skating rink is planned for the brick buildings across the road from the hotel which presently house a service station. A 150-seat restaurant and lounge bar addition to the Whakapapa tavern down the road is also ,being proposed. Main courses at the restaurant are expected to cost on average $12 each. Mr Griffin said they were still looking at the possibility of covering the tennis courts near the tavern. Conference facilities at the hotel are also on the hit list. Four new conference rooms are planned for the back of the hotel nearest the road, the largest of which will cater for 150-200 people. What is now the conference room will be an indoor heated swimming pool with windows on three sides, one side looking out towards Mt Ngaruhoe. Most of these projects are expected to be completed by next winter. The service area at the back of the hotel is to be revamped and the existing T-Bar watering hole is going to be transformed into a fitness complex with a gym, sauna and spa pool. The biggest visible change to the hotel will be the proposed addition of a 40-room wing. When facing the front of the hotel from the golf course the new wing will be at the left to the rear. No firm date for completion has been set yet for this part of the project. DoC has strict policies about alterations to buildings situated in its parks, but Mr Griffin said he believed they had the ability to build this wing under a particular act of Parliament. Groundwork for the

plan was done when owner Madame Loh, Svho bought the hotel sight unseen, visited in December last year. If the proposal is approved it will result in more jobs and the opportunity for local people to

tender for the work, said Mr Griffin. The clientele won't change dramatically if the proposal goes ahead. One of the reasons for the changes was to expand the hotel's overseas market. At present New

Zealanders make up 85 per cent of the Grand Chateau's business. When the new wing goes ahead the balance is expected to change but Mr Griffin didn't think there would be a big drop-off in Kiwis staying at the ho-

tel. Madame Loh and her entourage recently spent five nights at the hotel on holiday from Singapore. She attended a luncheon held to introduce Kah NZ Ltd to the

hotel and the local tourism industry, was given a tour of Whakapapa skifield on one of RAL's snow groomers, went skiing, and met both the Ruapehu and Taupo mayors.