Lodge Manager / General Manager
Visa sponsorship
Hospitality · Invercargill, New Zealand · Full-Time · Discussed at interview · Visa: Employer sponsored
Run a luxury lodge at the bottom of the world. A boutique property beside a national park in New Zealand's far south needs a Lodge Manager / General Manager who is at home in the lounge and the back office.
The lodge has been fully restored and opens again on 1 December 2026. From opening day there are ten suites, two log cabins and a four-bedroom house for one group at a time. Nine more suites arrive in October 2027. The land is about 32 hectares.
No hiding in an office here. You shake hands at the door, pour at the fireside and back your crew through dinner, then sort out the budget, the roster and the land. You call the shots and talk straight to the owners.
Applicants from New Zealand, Australia and abroad, Mzansi included, are welcome. The owners will consider visa sponsorship for the right candidate.
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Key Responsibilities
- Meet guests, look after them and spend time with them while they stay
- Run the visit from booking to goodbye: pre-arrival, meals, guided trips and the exclusive-use house
- Set the service bar, keep it there and get stuck in with the crew where needed; shape how the place feels from welcome to farewell
- Open nine new suites and bed them in, taking the lodge from 12 keys to 21
- Build the kitchen and bar offer with the Lodge Head Chef
- Lead a crew of about eighteen all-rounders at reopening, with the Lodge Host, Maintenance & Grounds Supervisor, Executive Chef, Assistant Lodge Manager and Housekeeping Manager reporting to you; hire, train, roster and grow people for year-round work
- Answer for driveways, the lodge, vehicles, native bush, staff quarters, infrastructure, the exclusive-use house, cabins and grounds, and keep maintenance on a yearly estate plan for preventive work, presentation and compliance
- Own the yearly operating plan and profit, push rate, occupancy, guest spend and repeat and direct bookings with reservations and finance, review trading each week and report to the directors each month
Requirements & Eligibility
- Leadership in luxury hospitality, ideally at Lodge Manager, General Manager or senior operations level
- Strong leadership with guests, and a real love of looking after people
- A proven handle on financial and commercial management: budgets, forecasts and operating profit
- You have led teams across a range of hospitality disciplines
- You communicate clearly in writing and out loud
- The judgement to lead on your own in a remote spot when the road is closed or the weather packs up
- A Manager's Certificate, or eligibility to obtain one before certificated duties
- A clean, full driver licence
- Highly regarded: you have managed a luxury lodge, boutique hotel or exclusive-use property; worked on a hotel opening, refurbishment or major development; know New Zealand's luxury tourism market; and handled grounds, facilities and infrastructure at a remote property
- You must hold, or be able to obtain, the legal right to work in New Zealand
Apply: Apply by email · WhatsApp
Visa guide: AEWV Guide for South Africans