Record-breaking InterContinental Auckland sale

AUCKLAND, New Zealand – In the largest single hotel asset sale ever in New Zealand, Ong Beng Seng’s Singapore-based Hotel Properties Ltd. has acquired for $138.5 million from New Zealand’s Precinct Properties the 139-key InterContinental Hotel Auckland. It marks HPL’s first hotel asset in the country and second InterContinental after the InterContinental Maldives Maamunagau Resort.

Located in the heart of the city and overlooking the harbor, the InterContinental Auckland opened in 2024 with HPL suggesting that there is an opportunity to convert existing office space to bring the key count to 196.

Last year, HPL opened The Boathouse Tioman in Malaysia and Four Seasons Hotel Osaka to give it interests in 41 hotels under brands ranging from Como to Marriott and Four Seasons. In fact, Singapore’s New Strait Times reported that the new Four Seasons in Japan was HPL’s 15th from that brand, making it the largest owner of Four Seasons hotels worldwide.

Deal advisor JLL’s Asia Pacific Hotels & Hospitality Group said this historic transaction reaffirms a maturing cross-border theme of Asian capital flowing to hospitality assets in the Southern Hemisphere.

“Asia-based capital has been extremely active in the Oceania hotel space and with this landmark transaction, it is clear that New Zealand stands as one of the most attractive hotel markets regionally for investors diversifying into non-traditional markets,” said JLL’s Nihat Ercan.

Auckland’s tourism sector grew 13.9% in the year ending October 2024, with the city welcoming more than 2.2 million international visitors. Further growth is expected as the New Zealand government actively promotes the city as a world-class destination for leisure and business.