Outrigger plans
New Zealand expansion

The Hawaii-based company wants
to run up to six resorts there

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Associated Press

WELLINGTON, New Zealand >> Hawaii-based Outrigger Hotels & Resorts announced today it aims to operate up to six hotels and resorts in New Zealand within three years.

The move follows the group securing management rights to eight resorts in the Australian state of Queensland.

"Like Australia, New Zealand offers a potentially strong growth opportunity," Outrigger's Vice President for Business Development, Bill Henderson, said in a statement.

"New Zealand is considered by many travelers as a clean, safe destination, with many spectacular and unique activities and attractions, and we view the region as offering strong growth potential over the long term," he said.

While the company is linked with sun, surf and sand, Outrigger's move into New Zealand extends it into winter destinations like the popular skiing center of Queenstown in the mountains of the nation's South Island.

Outrigger's expansion into New Zealand also includes opening properties in the tourism centers of Rotorua, Christchurch and Auckland.

It also plans to be operating 20 hotels across Australia within three years.

Outrigger Hotels and Resorts and subsidiary Ohana Hotels and Resorts currently own or operate 46 hotels and resorts in the Pacific region, Henderson said.

The group released no financial details of the expansion program.