The Scenic Hotel Group has announced it will close four of its hotels on the West Coast.
The Scenic Hotel in Franz Josef. Photo: Supplied / Scenic Hotel Group
The Te Waonui Forest Retreat and Scenic Hotel in Franz Josef and the Heartland Hotel and Heartland Glacier Country in Fox Glacier will close at the end of the season in May.
Scenic Hotel Group managing director Brendan Taylor said despite investment from people in the region and a reimagined price point, the volume and appetite from domestic tourists was simply not there.
"Over the past year, the Group has exhausted all avenues to stimulate domestic tourism to the region in an effort to make up for the loss of international tourism and ongoing uncertainty around an Australian travel bubble.
"Consideration and consultation are currently underway with staff and General Managers of affected properties with the Group undertaking its best endeavours to redeploy staff where they can," he said.
He estimates it will be a year to 18 months before the company would open up operations in the region again.
"This will be largely dependent on the ability to welcome back the high yielding North American and European markets together with mainstay tourism from Australia.
"It is, however, unlikely that enabling just a single market will facilitate the type of market regeneration needed for this region. What the region needs is certainty of when, where and how international tourism will return to the West Coast."
Taylor hopes the decision to close will enable smaller operators on the coast to benefit from the remaining tourism dollars.
"We'll continue to promote the region where they can through redirecting online searches directly to other operators."
Westland District Mayor Bruce Smith said there has been a massive oversupply of beds since March so the closure will greatly help smaller operators.
"I want to express my personal thanks to the Scenic Hotel Group for taking what is a strategic move to reduce bed numbers thereby assisting every other accommodation provider in the Fox and Franz area.
"This is a wonderful gesture from Scenic Circle which will help every business and ensure Scenic Circle will be in a position to reopen when the markets change, our thoughts are with those staff that may be impacted by the closures," Mr Smith said.