Hotel accommodation is an important industry in Tasmania and the 3 and 4 star sector constitutes itsmajority. Nevertheless, their profitability is weak.Also, visitor satisfaction is at record low levels, which can lead to entire regions losing favour as destinations. More importantly,motels are notmeeting expectations in terms of safety and amenity as expressed by the contemporary Building Code of Australia. The reason is the cost of updating a buildingwhen its compliancewith the current legislation was required.Over one hundred 3-4 starmotels were assessed using a number of data sources. Including their assessed for layouts, construction type, materials and equipment. The results showthat large percentage of motels would require additional acoustic, fire detection and egressworks.Up to 30-70% of a typical renovation budget for property could go to meet the current requirements rather han improving visitor satisfaction levels.

Keywords: modernisation, building code, accommodation.