Luxury hotel emerges in major Art Deco revamp

What had been the Tennyson Inn in central Napier is about a month away from re-emerging as the four star-plus Viceroy Hotel - part of the Heritage Boutique Collection chain.

Over the past months, the hotel has been undergoing a multimillion-dollar makeover aimed at making it a prime destination for tourists as well as the corporate and conference market.

Heritage Boutique Collection general manager Ronnie Ronalde said the group was delighted to welcome the Viceroy to what he called its "exclusive collection".

"It is wonderful to have a hotel with completely new, fresh facilities in such an appealing beach-side city as Napier," Mr Ronalde said.

"With our collection reaching double digits, we are even closer to our objective of having a luxury portfolio of properties in easy driving distance of each other."

He said the ultimate aim was to create the country's most comprehensive network of exceptional properties that offered the ultimate in hospitality, superior facilities and professional standards."

The collection also features locations in the Bay of Islands, Auckland, Rotorua, Taupo, Wellington, Marlborough and Akaroa.

The refurbishment targeted 40 rooms and suites which had been furnished with an Art Deco theme, as well as creating an 80-seat restaurant and a conference facility for up to 50 people. The Viceroy's new Mediterranean-influenced restaurant will be called Delmonico's Bistro and Wine Bar, with former Shed Five, Logan Brown and Bouquet Garni chef Pip Andrews at the helm.

The hotel is set to begin taking bookings from December 10.