Fiji, P-NG, W. Samoa may all benefit

in big hotel expansion scheme

Fiji will get a new hotel at Savusavu, Vanua Levu, and an enlarged hotel at Waiyevo, Taveuni, as a direct result of the recent agreement between Travelodge Australia Ltd., the Burns Philp group, Queensland Insurance Co. Ltd. and Trust Houses Ltd. of London ( PIM , July, p. 26).

The Burns Philp Hot Springs Hotel t Savusavu will be demolished and new hotel built nearby. The new otel will be on higher ground, giv ig visitors a better view of Savusavu arbour and nearby islands.

It will include up to 40 suites— big increase on the Hot Springs’ apacity of nine beds. Work is ex ected to start this year.

The Burns Philp 12-bed Garden >land Hotel on Taveuni will be lodernised and greatly enlarged. Here ork will start when the Savusavu reject is completed.

Both hotels will be managed and perated by Travelodge, and all arties to the agreement will take up luity capital in each. Plans include perating launch services between the vo hotels. There may also be a nallship service from the two hotels • the Travelodge Hotel, Suva, due ► be opened on October 15.

Total cost of the Suva hotel is ex acted to exceed £FI million, of hich BP (SS) Ltd. and Queensland isurance together will take up a le-third equity interest.

In late July, three weeks after the mouncement had been made to ustralian Stock Exchanges that BP id Queensland Insurance would join e hotel groups in a SA7 to SAB illion hotel-motel expansion, no Teements had been made on other )tels.

However, the consortium did ad it that there were other “pos )ilities.”

These include: • A new SAI million resort hotel i the site of the Casino Hotel, pia, Western Samoa. • A new 5A2.5 million 10-storey tel on the site of the Moresby >tel, Port Moresby (PIM, July, p. • A refurbished Papua Hotel, >rt Moresby, operated along inter tional-standard lines by Travelodge. • A smaller, Melanesian-style re rt hotel on Tanna, New Hebrides.

The hotel in Apia is currently very

much “in the air” because the Western Samoan Government, while not rejecting the Travelodge offer to build the hotel, is anxious to raise local capital to build a new hotel.

If the government cannot raise the money, the Travelodge proposal has a good chance of being accepted.

Each of these four projects is be ing considered separately by the con sortium and no decisions have yet been announced.

The Savusavu and Taveuni hotel construction details are currently in the late planning stages.

The consortium is quick to em phasise that every BP hotel in the Pacific Islands will not necessarily come under the new agreement.

However, many of them may— with the result that overseas visitors will stay at hotels, with a minority control from BP. operated exclusively along Travelodge lines.

Travelodge can bring international standards of service to the old BP hotels in NG and Fiji.