BreakFree on Cashel hotel set to open
A MAJOR South Island hotel is to reopen after refurbishment in April.
Christchurch’s former All Seasons Hotel, on Cashel St, will become BreakFree on Cashel and be managed by the hospitality chain Mantra Group.
The hotel, which has a prime location in the central city, closed after the February 2011 earthquakes.
Before the quakes it was run by Accor and had previously been developer Dave Henderson’s Hotel So, based on the pod hotel concept.
An extensive refurbishment of the 263-room complex has been under way since it was bought by Auckland-based Russell Property Group in January last year. The company has expanded the ground-floor caferestaurant and the top-floor executive level.
Russell managing director Brett Russell said the company had committed $30 million to the project and the hotel now met the Grade A seismic rating.
‘‘This will undoubtedly revive what arguably was the city’s most popular hotel,’’ he said.
Mantra, the Australian-based hotel operator, said BreakFree on Cashel was important to the development of its New Zealand network.
Chief executive Bob East said Christchurch was returning to a thriving tourism market.
‘‘We are pleased to have a significant presence in the city’s resurgence by filling a gap in the accommodation market,’’ he said.
Christchurch & Canterbury Tourism chief executive Tim Hunter said the tourism market in the city was on the rise again. Ninety per cent of pre-quake tourism activities were up and running.
‘‘More than 35 new restaurants, bars and cafes have opened in the inner city in the past six months . . . Christchurch is again becoming a focal point for tourism in the South Island.’’
The hotel also has a conference room with capacity for 80 people, two smaller meeting rooms for up to 20 and ‘‘a contemporary and funky cafe/restaurant and bar’’.
Mantra operates 10 hotels in New Zealand, but this will be the first traditional hotel under its BreakFree brand – it already has two BreakFree serviced apartment complexes in Queenstown.