Marque Hotel Christchurch to Open 18 March 2010

The Marque Hotel Christchurch, located in the heart of the central business district, will open its doors on Thursday, 18 March 2010. The hotel, which occupies 15 floors, is the tallest building on the South Island.

 The first of The Marque Hotels brand in New Zealand, the hotel has 171 guest rooms and suites, as well as a bar and restaurant.

“The Marque Hotel Christchurch is a contemporary, vibrant and stylish business hotel, where guests will receive hassle-free service and value for money,” said Brad Watts, the hotel’s general manager.

Free wireless internet is available in all the public areas and in the Biz business centre. Every room has easy-to-use free high-speed broadband access for up to a specified limit, iPod docking stations as well as a desk and a comfortable ergonomic chair. Laptop-sized room safes are also provided.

The Marque Hotel Christchurch offers guests the option of a virtual concierge service, being a 32” LCD touch screen in the lobby where guests can search for local attractions, shopping, transport and entertainment. It’s interactive and allows guests to book online with instantaneous confirmation.

The hotel’s space-saving car stacker is a first for Christchurch. Built to take 93 vehicles, the car stacker is designed to maximise car parking space in the hotel and lessen the impact hotel guests’ vehicles will have on the environment by cutting down the amount of driving they need to do to find a parking space. The result will be fewer emissions than in a conventional car parking building.

The hotel has a tram stop right at its doorstep and is just a minute’s walk from Cathedral Square.

The distinctly styled restaurant, simply called Fresh, will showcase fresh seasonal produce. The hotel’s talented Executive Chef Adrian Lowrey designed the menu to complement New Zealand’s superb quality produce and wine.

Wet, the hotel’s ground-floor hip bar, offers a fine selection of international beers, wine, spirits and non-alcoholic beverages as well as an innovative snacks menu.

Careful attention has been paid to mitigating the impact of the hotel on its environment. The facade is completely double-glazed throughout and high-grade insulation has been used to reduce the energy costs during the life of the building. The latest energy saving systems have also been incorporated wherever possible as part of property manager Ernest Duval’s commitment to reducing the environmental footprint of the building.

Trees have been planted on the two roof terraces to provide guests with a pleasant outdoor area to relax and help improve the air quality in the city.

The Marque Hotel Christchurch is operated by the Rendezvous Hospitality Group (RHG), which is based in Singapore. RHG, and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Straits Trading Company Limited, was formed last year to combine the hospitality assets of The Straits Trading Company, together with its hospitality management arm, Rendezvous Hotels and Resorts International.

RHG currently operates 13 hotels across the Rendezvous Hotels and The Marque Hotels brands in the Asia Pacific region. It employs more than 2,500 people and manages more than 2,600 hotel rooms. The company aims to establish itself at the forefront of the hotel industry in Asia Pacific and the Middle East, in particular with business travellers, and has plans to expand to over 12,000 rooms by 2020.

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