The Sebel Wellington Thorndon

A brand-new nine-storey tower on Thorndon Quay, four years in construction through Covid delays, opened in 2023 as Proximity Apartments before Accor and Sarin Hotels rebranded it The Sebel Wellington Thorndon that September. The 72-room serviced-apartment hotel sits beside Sky Stadium, within walking distance of Parliament.

The place

The hotel occupies a purpose-built nine-storey tower at 172 Thorndon Quay in Pipitea, next to Sky Stadium and within walking distance of Parliament, the Beehive and Wellington's embassy district.

The concept

The building was developed from the ground up by Wellington property investor Craig Stewart — his first hotel project — and took roughly four years to complete after Covid-19 construction delays. It opened in 2023 as a 72-room serviced-apartment hotel under the independent Proximity Apartments name, before Accor and operator Sarin Hotels announced within months that it would be rebranded as The Sebel Wellington Thorndon, opening under that flag in September 2023. It was the third New Zealand hotel partnership between Accor and the family-owned Sarin Hotels, and Wellington's second Sebel-branded property after Sarin's Lower Hutt opening earlier the same year. Because the building itself is new construction with no prior life as a hotel, the Sebel/Proximity changeover reads as a brand and management transition on a brand-new asset rather than the renovation of an established property — the physical hotel dates only to 2023.

Dining & wellness

Details to be confirmed. The tower includes onsite secure car parking and a mix of studio and one-bedroom serviced apartments; specific dining and wellness facilities have not been independently verified at time of writing.