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Three floors are in operation, as well as the bar and restaurant, as the remarkable transformation of an old Government building into a 150-room Distinction Hotel is now a reality.

On August 1, the new Invercargill hotel welcomed its first tour group.

The hotel has now taken the next step and, from last Wednesday, started to take its first online bookings.

Distinction Hotel General Manager Dean Nicol said they had received good feedback from the Pounamu Tourism Group’s Sir Edmund Hilary Explorer, who were the first guests at the hotel on August 1.

Nicol said it takes a bit for a new hotel to settle when it opens, and the tour group was understanding that it was night one for the hotel.

“I think they quite liked that they were the first to stay at the hotel.”

There was another first for the tour group, given that their bus was the first tour bus to go through the new Wachner Place bus lane from Dee St.

Bollards in Wachner Place can be operated remotely from the hotel to allow the buses through.

Three of the seven floors are now open at the hotel, with floors four and five scheduled to be completed and operational by the end of the month.

The remaining two floors are expected to be finished soon after that.

There are 26 rooms on each of the three floors, which are open now, with 18 rooms on the remaining four floors.

Work is still being completed on the building adjacent to the hotel, which will be home to about 120 car parks.

Nicol said there had been plenty of interest from Invercargill locals now that the doors are open to the hotel, with many venturing in to have a look at the hotel’s bar and restaurant.

The old Menzies Building in Esk St West, which was once home to hundreds of Government staff, is almost unrecognisable as a sleek new 4.5-star hotel.

Hotelier Geoff Thomson has undertaken the impressive transformation and has been very hands-on throughout the development.

Thomson owns Distinction establishments throughout New Zealand, but the opening of his latest hotel has added significance for him, given that Invercargill is Thomson’s hometown.

Distinction Hotels is looking to attract some of the guests who visit its Te Anau and Dunedin hotels to Invercargill.

Nicol said they do have some tour groups lined up to come to Invercargill that had not previously visited the city.

“That’s really exciting,” Nicol said.

At this point, Invercargill’s Distinction Hotel has about 50 staff employed at the hotel, although that is likely to increase to about 80 when the hotel is fully operational.

A staff induction day was held on July 21, and the next day, it was all hands on deck, unpacking boxes and getting rooms set up for the first guests on August 1.

Nicol said it was rewarding being part of the hotel setup and then seeing it open to the public.

Nicol was previously the General Manager of Distinction Hotel in Palmerston North before moving to Invercargill to take on Executive Manager position at the Ascot Park Hotel.

In April, he rejoined Distinction Hotels to take charge of its new Invercargill offering.