“We couldn’t wish for a more iconic property to have marked the launch of our long and impressive history in Australia, and, while the Southern Cross Hotel may no longer be with us, its legacy lives on in the iconic properties we continue to open with our owners today, and we’re so very honoured to be celebrating this 60-year milestone with our colleagues, owners and guests”.
Bass Hotels & Resorts (which has an impressive heritage dating back to 1777) acquired the Holiday Inn and InterContinental brands in the 1980s and ’90s, respectively, and dramatically increased the presence of these world-class brands in Australia after it acquired Southern Pacific Hotels Corporation (SPHC) in 2000 and transitioned its Parkroyal and Centra brands.
There will also be a social media series with video messages from current colleagues and people who have worked for the group across the past 60 years – including Keith Barr, IHG’s current global CEO, who led the Australasia, NZ and Pacific region from 2006-2009, and Tony South, who led Bass Hotels in Australia following the acquisition of SPHC.
Leanne Harwood, SVP Managing Director for IHG Hotels & Resorts – Japan, Australasia & Pacific, said, “I am so proud to be celebrating an incredible milestone for a company that I love dearly and has such a special place in the hearts of the many people who have been part of the journey over the 60 amazing years. With 100 open or pipeline hotels across Australasia, we’re growing faster than ever and opening amazing hotels under new brands like Kimpton, Hotel Indigo, voco and Vignette Collection, as well as continuing to grow our beloved Holiday Inn band family, Crowne Plaza and InterContinental brands.”
Hotel teams across the estate will be celebrating this incredible milestone in their style with events and surprise and delight for guests – including a special edition 60th Anniversary IHG Tim Tam Slice that was created by the InterContinental Hayman Island team as a nod to another Aussie icon that was born around the same time.
IHG Hotels & Resorts is proud to be celebrating the Diamond anniversary of its brands in Australia, marking an impressive 60 years since a legendary InterContinental property became the first international hotel in the country.
“Now, as we honour the wonderful legacy of our brands here in Australia, we also look ahead to a very bright future. This pioneering spirit – which lives on in the IHG legacy – continued in the decades following the Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza brands arriving in the market.
“I’m very grateful to have the opportunity to lead IHG in this market today, but many have been a part of our deep heritage and continued our pioneering spirit to pave the way before me. Thank you to our colleagues, thank you to owners, thank you to our past leaders and thank you to our loyal guests, who have been with us on this exciting journey.
The Diamond celebration theme is particularly apt in 2022 as IHG launched its new global loyalty program in April – IHG One Rewards – which features an all-new Diamond Tier with exceptional benefits for its members. In the same year, Bass spun off its hotel business, known as Six Continents, before rebranding to InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) in 2003 and finally becoming IHG Hotels & Resorts – as we know it today – in 2021.
The legacy was launched in Australia by US airline Pan Am, founder of the InterContinental brand, with the opening of the renowned and much-loved InterContinental Southern Cross Hotel Melbourne, which opened on 14 August 1962 lauded as one of the most luxurious hotels of its time. These brands, along with InterContinental, which continued to attract the jet-setting era of well-heeled travellers, grew steadily across the country with hotels in destinations such as Cairns, Cable Beach, Hamilton Island, and Newcastle, Melbourne and Sydney. These prestigious beginnings and the impressive journey over the 60 years have paved the way for IHG’s current ‘Diamond Age’, which is enjoying its biggest ever period of organic growth.
Today it has 68 opened and signed hotels in Australia alone and 95 across the broader Australasia & Pacific region, spanning eight brands and three Collections: As the group in Australia continues to celebrate its biggest era of growth, its future is bright and delivering on its purpose of True Hospitality for Good continues to be wholly embraced by colleagues. To celebrate the milestone, IHG will hold a series of events and celebrations in August and continue through the year’s end.
As the first American-style hotel in town, it attracted celebrity guests, royalty and rockstars, including Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, Princes Charles and Princes Dianna, Rock Hudson and Marlene Dietrich. This is a wonderful time of celebration, reflection and excitement about the future as we enter our ‘Diamond Era’ for IHG.
InterContinental, Kimpton, Vignette Collection and Hotel Indigo in the Luxury & Lifestyle portfolio; voco and Crowne Plaza in the Premium portfolio; and Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express in the Essentials portfolio.
Written by: Matthew Thomas
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