That trend has continued with his recent appointment as general manager of Larnach Castle, on the Otago Peninsula, having previously been operations manager for Real Journeys at Milford Sound.
Originally from Canada, and with a background as a chef, he worked throughout Canada and Switzerland before moving to New Zealand in 1983.
He worked at the renowned Banff Springs Hotel, in Alberta, which was styled after a Scottish baronial castle, and there were ''parallels'' to Larnach Castle, he said.
His first job in New Zealand was as a contract chef for the former Tourist Hotel Corporation (THC), based in Te Anau.
After working in places such as Walter Peak, on the shores of Lake Wakatipu, and as executive chef at Ascot Park Hotel, in Invercargill, he later moved into senior management roles and had been based at Milford Sound for the past seven years.
It was an ''easy decision'' to accept the position at Larnach Castle and he believed it would be a memorable experience.
He was attracted to the role by the combination of the castle's history, the ''fantastic'' product, and the incredible location, along with it being a family business.
Mr Phelan, who began work on Monday, described himself as ''not much of a city person'' so it was somewhat of a challenge coming from Milford Sound, where there were 250 residents.
However, the tourist hot spot could attract up to 5000 visitors a day, so he was used to the pressures of operational logistics.
When it came to what he wanted to achieve at Larnach Castle, Mr Phelan said he wanted to continue to help grow the business.
Hospitality and tourism were ''forever evolving'' and customers' expectations had to continually be exceeded.
It was fortunate that the story, coupled with the castle and the surrounding gardens, was a winning combination, but there were still plenty of challenges and opportunities that he would continue to work on.
Larnach Castle director Norcombe Barker was confident Mr Phelan would play a key role in providing the solutions to the ongoing challenges of caring for ''one of New Zealand's most important conservation projects'', along with the demands of being a commercially viable business which employed 80 staff.
Mr Phelan replaces Andrew Husheer, who left to join Ngai Tahu Tourism operator Dart River as its business manager.
