Victoria Railway Hotel

The Victoria Railway Hotel is a heritage hotel in central Invercargill, standing beside the Invercargill Railway Station. It is a small, owner-operated property rather than a large corporate hotel, and suits business travellers, heritage-minded leisure guests and small groups who want character accommodation in the middle of the city.

History

The hotel was built in 1896 to serve rail travellers arriving in Southland, and has accommodated guests ever since. An extensive three-storey addition was made to the northern end of the building in 1907. The Gerrard family ran it as a family business from 1967 to 2000. In June 2003 the hotel closed for an architecturally designed upgrade and refurbishment, reopening in May 2004. On 23 May 2007 it received the Invercargill City Council Environment Award in recognition of the conservation work carried out on the building.

The Victoria Railway Hotel holds a Category 1 registration with Heritage New Zealand (New Zealand Historic Places Trust) and is described as the only surviving hotel in Invercargill still operating for its original purpose.

Rooms

The hotel offers 11 restored rooms, all with ensuites, graded from Standard Studios through Executive Studios to VIP Suites. The refurbishment retained the building's period detailing while bringing bathrooms and services up to modern standard.

Food and drink

Gerrards Restaurant operates in-house, focused primarily on house guests, with traditional home-cooked evening dining supported by a range of New Zealand wines and local boutique beers. There is also a hotel bar and lounge.

Suitability

With 11 rooms and a restaurant geared to residents, the Victoria Railway Hotel is not a large-conference property, and no dedicated conference facilities are documented. Its MICE application is at the smaller end: executive stays, board-level or committee meetings, incentive and reward accommodation, and heritage-led group dinners or private functions for visiting delegations. For conferences held elsewhere in Invercargill it works well as a character accommodation option for speakers, sponsors and VIP guests, with the railway station and city centre immediately at hand.