The picturesque waterfront Steamer Wharf at Queenstown.
As Australians start dusting off their ski boots and poles, alternative asset manager Brookfield has bought the Sofitel Queenstown hotel in the heart of New Zealand’s adventure mecca, along with the Rydges Wellington in the nation’s capital.
The exact acquisition price of the two hotels was not divulged but Brookfield said it would invest about NZ$250m buying the properties. It is a long-term investor in the so-called “land of the long white cloud” and has NZ$1bn worth of assets under management.
The Sofitel Queenstown, which has changed hands as part of the NZ$250m deal.
The vendor was NZ Hotel Holdings, a joint venture between NZ Super Fund, the Russell Property Group and the Lockwood Property Group.
The 84-room Sofitel Queenstown on Duke St has a full-service spa, fitness and conference facilities, as well as a number of dining options.
The 280-room Rydges Wellington, has sweeping harbour and city views.
New Zealand’s capital is experiencing extreme economic difficulties which has led to public-sector lay-offs. Despite this, Brookfield said it was committed to expanding its hospitality platform across the Asia Pacific region and foresaw significant potential to enhance both hotels’ performance through active asset management and targeted capital investment.
The popular Steamer Wharf, in the Queenstown CBD near the Sofitel.
The asset manager said it was seeking other opportunities to invest in New Zealand.
The transaction to purchase the two New Zealand hotels was negotiated by CBRE Hotels’ Michael Simpson, Peter Hamilton and Nick Hill. Mr Simpson said there was an appetite for high-quality hotel assets in prime New Zealand locations.
“Both Wellington and Queenstown remain highly sought-after markets, supported by strong domestic and international tourism demand. Throughout the process it was apparent that the vendors were going to be able to develop a superior outcome for their investors through a sale of the two hotels, rather than including it in a larger portfolio sale.”
Meanwhile, CBRE’s 2026 Hotel Overview and Outlook report reveals offshore investors accounted for 78 per cent of total transaction activity in 2025 – up from 27 per cent in 2024 – and dominated by buyers from Asian countries such as Singapore, Thailand, China and Taiwan.
The presidential suite of the Park Hyatt Melbourne.
One of the biggest deals was the more than $100m sales of the Hilton Adelaide and Park Hyatt Melbourne.
The local hotel sector’s transaction volumes hit a record high of $2.7bn (across 34 deals) and foreign investment was a key driver last year.
Despite the strong activity the report noted that the local hotel sector was entering a phase of undersupply.
“CBRE analysis shows forecast hotel supply is expected to be 41 per cent below historic delivery levels for the remainder of the decade, and approximately 35 per cent below forecast demand growth,” CBRE head of hotels research Ally Gibson said.