Sweeping in the Changes

Images supplied by Scenic Circle Hotels.

There’s no greater truism in tourism than the fact that nothing stays the same. This is especially so of hotels. I sometimes think they ‘change their clothes’ more often than I do – upgrading here, refurbishing there, extending, upscaling, modernising, revamping, re-imaging – it’s all part of hotel life; and as soon as one revamp is finished, it’s time to start another. And it’s pleasing to see New Zealand’s largest 100%-Kiwi owned hotel chain Scenic Circle, ringing in the changes and competing well with many bigger internationally-owned properties. They currently have sixteen hotels throughout the country – good, comfortable stays at very reasonable prices – and more are on the drawing board. As part of their expansion strategy, they’re also constantly re-vitalising their existing hotels. The Scenic Circle Bay of Islands Hotel is a case in point. They’ve recently added 56 new deluxe rooms here and refurbished the 38 existing standard rooms – with the fresh, bright colour schemes shown above. All four wings of the new deluxe rooms face into a lush subtropical garden, which features ambient up-lighting, water features and boardwalks. I think I’ll be more than happy curling up here. If you want to read about recent happenings at their flagship Dunedin property, click here or on Scenic Circle in the index line below this post. www.scenic-circle.co.nz