Accor’s Ibis Christchurch has become the first city centre hotel to reopen since the February 2011 earthquake, marking a significant stage in the city’s recovery.
General manager Tim Dearsley said today’s opening date was deliberately chosen as it marks the second anniversary of the first major quake to hit Christchurch.
He said he was hopeful the reopening would encourage tourists to return.
“Christchurch tourism has suffered enormously because of the perception that the city was closed following the earthquake,” he said. “This was never true, but the reopening of the Ibis will highlight that the city centre is now accessible to travellers.”
Some areas of the CBD remained cordoned off, he added. But the red zone has reduced from 387 hectares to 49 hectares, with the entire city expected to be open by the middle of 2013.
A major redevelopment of the city – described by city officials as a “re-imagining” – will soon begin and is due for completion in 2017.
The four-year-old Ibis, located on Hereford Street, has undergone $10 million of remedial work, including structural strengthening and the renovation of all 155 rooms and public areas.
