New apartment hotel, Quest Geelong Central, opens its doors – realestate.com.au

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Geelong’s newest apartment hotel, Quest Geelong Central, is ready to welcome its first guests after opening for business on Monday.

The 87-room apartment hotel is the key tenant of the $70m Pivot House building at 71-77 Gheringhap St.

Developer Pellicano’s mixed-use greenfields project also includes ground floor retail spaces and 67 built-to-rent apartments.

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Hotel guest will have a choice of studio, one, two and three-bedroom serviced apartments with balconies and Corio Bay views available.

As well as pet-friendly rooms for holidaying with fur babies, there’s also access to a rooftop gym, business lounge, 40-person conference room, barbecue areas and onsite parking.

The Grand Final week opening signals another significant investment in the city’s accommodation section, following the recent launch of the nearby Holiday Inn.

Tourism Greater Geelong and Bellarine acting executive director Brendan Sanders said it was a positive step that would help attract more visitors to the region.

“We’re thrilled to be welcoming this internationally branded hotel to Geelong’s accommodation mix, strengthening our region’s vision in becoming a regional hub for domestic and international travel,” Mr Sanders said.

“The addition of the 87 self-contained apartments will have more visitors staying longer and exploring more of the exceptional experiences we have on offer in the region.”

The Ascott Limited, which owns the Quest brand, partnered with Pellicano on the development with a view to capitalising on investments in major local tourism and health projects.

Ascott Australia growth and capital strategy general manager James Shields said Quest Geelong Central was in a prime position to attract both leisure and corporate travellers.

“Geelong has attractive short and long-term demand drivers in place for a second Quest property, particularly given the expanding local healthcare sector and upcoming Geelong Convention and Exhibition Centre precinct,” Mr Shields said.

Hospitality industry veteran Greg O’Shea and wife Linda Murray own Quest Geelong Central with existing franchisees Daniel and Jennifer Wilson and Mark and Ky O’Shea.

He said quality and consistency of customer service would be the cornerstone of guests’ experience.

“Local businesses are so supportive and we’re working together to add value for guests so they can live as local as they like it here in Geelong,” he said.

“It’s a city of opportunity at the moment, there is so much investment and a real buzz around the time.”

In a signal of its confidence in Geelong, Pellicano will retain ownership of the Pivot House building, which was designed by Peddle Thorp and RPC Architects and built by Ireland Brown.