Luxury Queenstown hotel building for sale, offers over $35m considered

Nicole Mathewson Reporter from Otago News

From reporter Debbie Jamieson:L

A new five-star-plus Queenstown hotel building is for sale and the vendor will consider offers over $35 million.

Kevin Carlin built the seven-storey 14-suite Carlin Boutique Hotel and Oro restaurant near central Queenstown during the Covid-19 pandemic.

It opened in early 2022 and has since received several international awards including three Boutique Hotel Awards, such as the World's Best New Hotel in 2022.

Carlin operates the hotel and intends doing so for the next 30 years, but now wished to free up the capital involved in the building for other projects.

It was standard practice for hotels and other businesses to rent the buildings they operate from, he said.

”I was the rare person that’s a property developer and owned the building.

”I always intended to sell the real estate to get the cash back for another development,” he said.

He intended leasing the building back for 30 years and operating the hotel himself “if someone pays the price”.

“I’m not going anywhere. This is my retirement project.”

He declined to give details of other developments he sought capital for, though he is developing a five-star Radisson Hotel​ in Queenstown with Australia-based partner Centuria.

Despite a major staff shortage in Queenstown the Carlin Boutique Hotel was almost fully staffed with 38 employees on board.

Bookings were good going ahead, but he was looking forward to the return of European and wealthy Chinese travellers, he said.

Chinese visitors were struggling with visa issues in their own country while a lack of flights connecting Europe and New Zealand was deterring those visitors.

“I was there recently, and it took me four flights to get home to Queenstown,” he said.

Visitors to the hotel can book a room from $2219.50 a night, according to the website.

Each of the interconnected suites has views over central Queenstown and Lake Wakatipu, its own outdoor fire and spa pool, and a kitchen where private chefs can whip up a meal.

“We don’t expect our guests are ever going to buy eggs and cook,” Carlin told Stuff on a tour when it first opened.

The property is listed with Bayleys Real Estate and expressions of interest are sought.