Crowne Plaza Auckland and Crowne Plaza Christchurch have reopened their doors to guests this month with a turbo-charged sustainability commitment.
From a bedding partnership that supports local communities impacted by poverty, homelessness, and domestic violence, to paperless check-in and electric car partnerships, the programmes pave the way for a new era for Crowne Plaza in New Zealand.
Tim Pollock, Area General Manager, IHG Hotels & Resorts New Zealand, said he was thrilled to reopen their doors with a renewed focus on sustainability.
“As international and domestic travel begins to ramp up, our team in New Zealand is considering our impact on the environment and community and delivering on our long-term commitments with our new partnerships and initiatives, reflecting our businesses’ continued focus on sustainability and how we can improve the lives of those in need.”
Bedding partnership
As part of Crowne Plaza Auckland’s reopening, over 500 hotel beds were replaced and upgraded to ensure a sensational sleep experience. In partnership with local charities, including Lifewise, CDA and Catholic Caring Foundation, Crowne Plaza donated each bed to support local communities in-need.
Crowne Plaza donated five queen sized beds to Mother of Divine Mercys Women Refuge, who provide safe accommodation, advocacy, counselling and a tailored range of support for women and children experiencing domestic violence.
“The five queen-sized beds kindly provided by Crowne Plaza Auckland to our organisation, were gratefully received, with four of the beds distributed to two families in our local community who, suffering from lack of financial resources and transport issues, were in dire need of these beds,” said Mother of Divine Mercys Women Refuge.
The beds meant that up to eight children had a quality bed to sleep in, and allowed us to add another bed to our refuge for women and children fleeing domestic violence.”
The bedding partnership further contributes to IHG’s long-term commitment to improve the lives of 30 million people in communities around the world by 2030.
Travelling with purpose
Electric car-charging stations are now fully installed at both hotels, including six stations at Crowne Plaza Auckland and two at Crowne Plaza Christchurch, available for guests and visitors to use on a complimentary basis.
Crowne Plaza Auckland has also reopened with a revived Cityhop Car Share partnership. The new partnership empowers guests with priority access to sustainable car rentals in the city, as well as exclusive benefits such as discounted hourly rates, complimentary sign-up, complimentary first hour, waived monthly subscription, easy access to two on-site Electric Vehicles, free charging stations and free parking in the heart of Auckland CBD, at Atrium Car park.
A greener check-in experience
Crowne Plaza Christchurch joins Auckland in its commitment to eliminate paper waste with a 100% paper-free check-in experience. Crowne Plaza Auckland pioneered paperless check-in in New Zealand in May 2019, moving away from paper and migrating to an electronic check-in system through iPads. The new system was projected to significantly reduce paper usage with an expected 500,000 sheets of A4 paper saved annually.
Beauty meets sustainability
Guests will now indulge in the Antipodes’ Premium Hotel Amenity Range in guest bathrooms across Crowne Plaza Auckland and Christchurch – joining the roll-out across the Australasia region. The eco-minded skincare uses pure New Zealand ingredients including raw super-fruit extracts, combined with science and innovation to produce high-tech certified organic and premium formulations. The green beauty formula strengthens IHG’s world-first environmental pledge to migrate the global estate of 6,000 hotels and 883,000 guest rooms to bulk-size bathroom amenities.
IHG’s global ‘A Greener Stay’ initiative has been a big win for the environment. Guests are incentivised to opt out of housekeeping in return for IHG One Rewards points for each night they stay. In 2019 in Australasia, 26,958 room nights had been activated during the offer, saving as many as 100,000 toiletries, including increased savings in energy and water from laundry services.
