Entrepreneur Martyn Barnes has signed a management agreement to badge his new Yarra Valley property as voco™, InterContinental Hotels Group’s (IHG) new upscale hotel brand, which will form the second of its kind in all of Australia. The brand new 170-room hotel is set to open in 2021.
voco™ Yarra Valley will be the first globally-branded, upscale hotel in the Yarra Valley, creating a destination for guests to relax and enjoy the scenic surroundings that the region is famous for. The hotel will feature an on-site gin distillery, a lavender farm, mirrored maze, an amphitheatre cut from natural ground and a provedore that serves and sells local Yarra Valley produce. The building will also boast large conference and meeting facilities, a gym, bars that draw on the best of their surroundings, an onsite family restaurant and kids’ entertainment facilities.
IHG have stated that the building itself will feature a ‘quirky’ design that will stand out to anyone passing by, rising to six storeys at one end and tapering to one storey at the opposite end, in addition to featuring 20 cabins for a more intimate Yarra Valley experience.
“IHG launched voco in June with the first signing for the brand in Australia, and we are so pleased to see the brand momentum continue here with the second signing,” commented Abhijay Sandilya, IHG’s Senior Director of Development – Australasia.
“The signing of voco Yarra Valley continues IHG’s ambition to take our brands into regional markets, including suburban micro-markets close to Australian capital cities.”
Martyn Barnes, Managing Director at Barnes Capital said the Yarra Valley is one of Australia’s premier wine regions and the last thing people want when they arrive is a ‘vanilla experience’.
“That’s why voco is the perfect fit, giving business and leisure guests a great, globally-branded, upscale hotel that guests can depend on, but that’s different enough to be fun. I’m excited to work with IHG to open voco Yarra Valley, building on our partnership that will also see us opening Holiday Inn® Melbourne Coburg in 2020. Watch this space, because we have more to come,” he said.
More information on this project can be found here.