Oriental’s Ohtel

Wellington’s latest accommodation option, the 10-room boutique Ohtel, is ‘Hotel of the Week’ in The Independent on Sunday. Situated on Oriental Parade, a wooden Victorian house was removed to give the Ohtel its central location; the house was recycled to the countryside; the new building, clad in wood and glass, claims eco-friendly credentials, with solar panels and a heat exchanger for hot water. Created by architect/owner Alan Blundell, Ohtel is furnished with mid-20th century furniture, including items designed by Arne Jacobsen and Charles Eames. “Much of my collection is Australasian-made by Danish craftsmen who left Europe during the 1950s to settle in New Zealand and Australia,” Blundell told Platinum magazine. He has been designing apartments and houses in Wellington for 22 years.