SkyCity’s Horizon Hotel finally complete

Building works for the five star, 303-room Horizon Hotel, which is connected to the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC), have been completed by Fletcher Building, and Sky City now has control.

The Hobson Street hotel was originally due to open in 2019 but was pushed back following the convention centre fire, and has since faced further construction delays.

The hotel would open on 1 August.

SkyCity’s interim executive general manager for hospitality David Allott, said it was a huge moment for the precinct.

“This has been planned for some time and … this is our first step in opening that third block which is not just a game changer for SkyCity. It’s a game changer for Auckland and it’s a game changer for New Zealand,” he said.

Allott expected the hotel to draw visitors that would travel across the country.

The addition of Horizon brought the number of hotel rooms in the SkyCity Auckland precinct to nearly 1000 and marked a step forward in completing the entire International Convention Centre and hotel project.

Fletcher Building expected the International Convention Centre itself to be completed by the end of this year, but warned of risks.

“These include risks on time and cost to complete the construction works and commission the building, and the potential for disputes and wash-up claims against the company,” Fletcher Building said.

Allott expected to be holding events at the convention centre within the next 12-18 months and said demand was strong for bookings.

“The interests levels in the NZICC are genuinely quite phenomenal. If you try to book a multi-day conference in 2026 … you’d be struggling to find a date.”