Ginger Hotels Announces The Signing Of Three New Hotels

Ginger Hotels announces the signing of three new hotels –two in Chennai and one in Patna –designed around the brand's lean luxe philosophy. The two Chennai properties will take the total number of Ginger hotels in the city to five, while the Patna property will be the brand's second hotel in the city.

Chennai and Patna are both high demand markets. With the addition of these hotels in different micro-markets, the Ginger brand deepens its market penetration in cities that are important commercial hubs of India

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Radisson Hotel Group Signs Pakistan’s First Internationally Branded Serviced Apartments

Radisson Hotel Group announced the signing of the Radisson Blu Serviced Apartments, Islamabad in Pakistan, the first internationally branded serviced apartments in the country

This marks the group's second hotel in Pakistan, accelerating its ambition to have 10 hotels and 2,000 rooms in operation and under development across the country by 2025.

The new-build hotel will form part of a mixed-use development, which includes offices and a retail mall

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Hotelogix, AxisRooms and RepUp Merge to Offer the Most Powerful, Full-stack Solution for Hotels

Hotelogix, a Cloud PMS company, AxisRooms, a distribution company and RepUp, a guest experience management company have announced their merger into Hotelogix PTE, headquartered in Singapore. This three-way merger marks the radical beginning of a new era of hospitality solutions that will now be re-imagined and delivered by this integrated platform which will cover operations, distribution, reputation, marketing automation, and guest-facing technologies.

The merger has given Hotelogix PTE an aggregate customer base spanning 100+ countries, powering 10000+ hospitality businesses ranging from hotels, resorts, boutique hotels, hostels to aparthotels, campsites, villas, vacation rentals, independents, and chains. With 200+ employees, the new entity has emerged as one of the largest SaaS providers for the hospitality sector in the APAC market and aims at aggregating 20K+ customers in the next 3 years.

Hotels today use multiple systems through a guest's lifecycle, from pre-booking to post-checkout stages, which then require integration of various systems leading to high costs, broken experience, delayed implementation, and fragmented support. Worst still, it leaves guests with sub-optimal stay experience. The core objective of the merger is to harness the power of data across operations, distribution, and customer experience systems to deliver exceptional value and seamless experience to its clients' customers.

Aditya Sanghi who will continue to be the CEO at Hotelogix said, "With this merger, we will have a wide range of solutions to offer which will give superior value to our customers and increase our share of wallet. This definitely gives us a huge competitive edge against our competitors at a global level.

Prabhash Bhatnagar, founder of Hotelogix adds, “Our decade-plus experience has given us a presence in more than 100 countries. The merger will add to our arsenal of offerings, and will help fuel our growth in many of these geographies quickly.”

Anil Kumar Prasanna, CEO at AxisRooms said, "The future of hotel technology needs to be open and accessible to every hotel partner or technology provider. If hotels want the full range of services or just a part of the stack, we want the technology to integrate as seamlessly as possible and be available to all partners with this merger."Ravi Taneja, co-founder of AxisRooms adds, "We have worked closely with Hotelogix and RepUp for a few years; customer-centricity has been our common focus, together we will enhance this joint vision to greater heights and create legendary customer experiences."

Pranjal Prashar, current CEO at RepUp said, "We are very excited to partner with two of the finest companies in the hospitality technology ecosystem with whom we have always had significant working synergies. With our customer-centric and in-depth machine learning approach, coupled with other individual technological prowesses of the merging entities, we will continue to deliver solutions of high relevance for our customers."

Accel Partners, Vertex Ventures, Saama Capital and Seedfund amongst others are existing investors of the companies and are backing this merger. Jagadeesan Kumar (JK), Managing Partner at JV Advisors LLP acted as the exclusive financial advisor for the three companies.

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Accor signs 14 hotels across Northern Europe in first half of 2020

Accor signed a total of 14 properties across Northern Europe in the first half of this year, including four hotels in the UK and Ireland.

A new Ibis Budget hotel is set to open in Glasgow in 2022, next to the group’s forthcoming Tribe property, and Business Traveller has previously reported on the following UK and Ireland signings this year:

Accor’s Tribe brand to open Manchester airport property

Accor to open Ireland’s first Fairmont with the refurb of Carton House

Accor adds Sheffield and Bournemouth properties

In mainland Europe, a total of ten properties were signed in Benelux – six in Belgium and four in the Netherlands.

A new Novotel Living property is set to open at Brussels airport, alongside an Ibis Styles hotel, and other signings in Belgium include a Mercure property in Hans-Sur-Lesse, an Ibis Styles hotel in Bredene, an Ibis in Geel, and an Adagio Access in Brussels.

Meanwhile in the Netherlands, there were signings for Accor’s Tribe and Mercure brands in Amsterdam North, as well as forthcoming Ibis Styles and Mercure properties at Rotterdam airport.

Commenting on the news Phillip Lassman, vice president of development, Accor Northern Europe said:

“The first half of the year has posed a unique set of challenges for Accor and the hospitality industry as a whole. However, the strength of our proposition remains and through the dedication of the Accor team and hard work of our partners we have delivered an outstanding set of development results, with 14 new signings collectively adding over 2,000 rooms to our network in the past six months.

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Christian Wiendieck Appointed General Manager At Kempinski Hotel Jinan, China

The soon-to-be-opened new top luxury hotel in Shandong province, Kempinski Hotel Jinan, is now headed by General Manager Christian Wiendieck, who has just been appointed to his new position. A seasoned hotelier, he can look back on an outstanding career of more than 20 years within the Kempinski brand, joining the Jinan pre-opening team from his last assignment as general manager at Kempinski Hotel Fuzhou.

A native German, Christian Wiendieck started his Kempinski journey in 1997 in the Food and Beverage Department at Kempinski Hotel Bristol Berlin and continued as Food and Beverage Director at Kempinski Hotel Munich Airport. After three years at Grand Hotel des Bains Kempinski St. Moritz, he was promoted to his first general manager position at Kempinski Hotel Adriatic in Croatia, followed by stints in Italy and the United Arab Emirates.

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IHG Loses 103 Hotels to Sonesta

Service Properties Trust (Nasdaq: SVC) today announced that it will transfer the branding and management of 103 hotels to Sonesta International Hotels Corporation, or Sonesta, from InterContinental Hotels Group plc (NYSE: IHG), or IHG. As previously announced, SVC sent notices of termination to IHG for failure to pay SVC’s minimum returns and rents due for July and August 2020 totaling $26.4 million, plus accrued interest, and IHG had until August 24, 2020 to avoid termination by making payment to SVC. SVC did not receive any payment from IHG by August 24, 2020, nor does SVC expect to receive any payments from IHG in the future, and the management agreements with IHG will be terminated. The effective date of the termination is November 30, 2020, which is the same date that SVC currently plans to transfer the branding and management of these hotels to Sonesta.

SVC’s management agreements with IHG cover 103 hotels (three InterContinental®, five Kimpton® Hotels & Restaurants, 11 Crowne Plaza®, three Holiday Inn®, 20 Staybridge Suites® and 61 Candlewood Suites®) in 30 states in the U.S., the District of Columbia, Ontario, Canada and Puerto Rico. Upon transfer to Sonesta, SVC expects that these hotels will be operated under the Royal Sonesta, Sonesta and Sonesta ES Suites brands. There are currently 80 Sonesta branded hotels worldwide.

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Radisson Hotel Miami Beach Announced

Radisson Hotel Group today announced the signing of Radisson Hotel Miami Beach. The hotel will offer 216 guest rooms and suites. With its exceptional oceanfront location, guests will have endless opportunities to relax in the outdoor pool or walk around the beautiful butterfly garden. Those looking for more entertainment can visit the sundeck, which will host special events and poolside barbeques. Prior to opening its doors in Q4 of this year, the property is undergoing a multimillion-dollar renovation to further enhance the guest experience with state-of-the-art amenities and services.

“This hotel is a phenomenal addition to our Radisson portfolio, serving as a top destination with stunning oceanfront views and fantastic amenities for every type of traveler,” said Phil Hugh, chief development officer, Americas, Radisson Hotel Group. “We are excited to see our growth in Miami with this hotel opening just a few months before the opening of the newly constructed Radisson RED Miami Airport. Our development team is working diligently to expand our footprint in more key gateway markets, with beautiful hotels like Radisson Hotel Miami Beach.”

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Thai hospitality firm Dusit International announces re-entry into India

Thailand-based hospitality firm Dusit International has announced its return to India with a plan to open at least two Dusit-branded hotels per year 2021 onward in tier I and tier II cities.

The company will focus on markets such as Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru – as well as key leisure destinations such as Goa.

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Ginger Announces The Signing Of Three New Hotels

MUMBAI, AUGUST 25, 2020: Ginger Hotels announces the signing of three new hotels –two in Chennai and one in Patna –designed around the brand’s lean luxe philosophy of offering a vibrant, contemporary and seamless hospitality experience to its guests. The two Chennai properties will take the total number of Ginger hotels in the city to five, while the Patna property will be the brand’s second hotel in the city.

Commenting on the signings, Ms. Deepika Rao, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, Ginger Hotels said, “Ginger Hotels recorded unprecedented growth in FY 2019-2020 with the addition of 1,250 rooms to its portfolio across India – the highest any single brand in the country has signed in the year. These three new signings carry this momentum further.”

The 99-room Ginger located in Sirusari, Chennai is a management contract with M/s KVSN Properties Pvt. Ltd. Ginger Pallavaram, Chennai, which will feature 108 rooms, is a management contract with Ravin Hotels Pvt. Ltd.

Ginger Bailey Road, Patna with 95 rooms, is strategically located, connecting Danapur and Patna city. This hotel will be a fully fitted lease agreement with PSVS Enterprises LLP.

As state capitals, Chennai and Patna are both high demand markets. With the addition of these hotels in different micro-markets, the Ginger brand deepens its market penetration in cities that are important commercial hubs of India.

U.S. Hotel P&L Turned Positive In July

BROOMFIELD, Colorado - U.S. hotel gross operating profit per available room (GOPPAR) reached positive territory for the first time since February, according to STR's latest monthly P&L data release.

In a year-over-year comparison with July 2019, the industry reported the following:

GOPPAR: -93.3% to US$5.74

TRevPAR: -74.1% to US$60.04

EBITDA PAR: -115.1% to US$-9.24

LPAR (Labor Costs): -64.8% to US$28.46

The industry had registered negative GOPPAR values for four consecutive months: March (US$-2.10), April (US-$17.98), May (US$-10.26) and June (US$-5.89).

The industry had registered negative GOPPAR values for four consecutive months: March (US$-2.10), April (US-$17.98), May (US$-10.26) and June (US$-5.89).

"As the industry inched closer to 50% occupancy, we saw continued incremental improvement in the subsequent profitability metrics," said Raquel Ortiz, STR's assistant director of financial performance. "We are of course nowhere near pre-pandemic levels, but there were additional encouraging signs in positive GOPPAR for full-service hotels and six major markets."

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Atlantis, The Palm to showcase the world's largest canvas

Five-star Dubai resort Atlantis, The Palm will showcase the world’s largest art canvas in November this year. Created by famous artist Sacha Jafri, the canvas is hoped to raise in excess of AED110 million (US$30 million) for charity.

Dubbed as the ‘Modern-day Sistine Chapel’, the canvas covers the Atlantis ballroom floor, coming in at just under 2,000 sqm or around the size of two football pitches. Jafri has spent 24 weeks on the painting, with plans to finish the piece on September 10.

With the support of The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), together with The Global Gift Foundation, Atlantis, The Palm, Dubai Cares, and the UAE Government, the canvas is the flagship piece in the artist’s ‘Humanity Inspired’ charity drive.

Money raised from the sale of the artwork will go towards installing internet connectivity in some of the world’s poorest regions, enabling those in need to learn about medicine, healthcare, vaccines and sanitation.

Sandpiper Lodging Trust Has Acquired Two Candle wood Suites Hotels Located in South Carolina

Sandpiper Lodging Trust announced the acquisition of two Candlewood Suites Hotels located in North Charleston and Bluffton, South Carolina from DC Hospitality. Both properties are mid-scale extended stay hotels located in two dynamic hospitality markets. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Carter Rise, CEO of SLT, stated, “We are extremely excited to add these two hotels to the Sandpiper Lodging Trust portfolio. We have targeted the Charleston and coastal South Carolina market as an area with exciting long-term demographic advantages, and we are pleased to be able to acquire two quality assets in these markets.”

“Adding the Candlewoods Suites flag to our portfolio is consistent with our strategy to focus on mid-scale and upper-end economy extended stay assets as we grow SLT. Our core extended-stay portfolio has weathered the pandemic reasonably well, and we are grateful to our lenders and equity partners for their confidence in us as we continue to grow our footprint. We expect to continue to opportunistically grow our portfolio over the balance of the year and into 2021.”

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Rixos Water World Aktau Hotel opens in Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan has welcomed the opening of a new all-inclusive luxury resort, Rixos Water World Aktau Hotel.

With 500-rooms, the property sits on its own 420-meter-long beach, offering some 500 square metres of promenade pier and a sunbathing area.

For discerning travelers, there are a total of 23 suites and 15 luxury villas.

Now fully operational, the property will employ 750 people, with training taking place at the Mangistau College of Tourism.

In addition, some of the hotel staff will be trained in Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.

It also becomes the fifth Rixos hotel in Kazakhstan – with the company also offering accommodation in capital Nur-Sultan as well as Almaty, Shymkent and the Burabay resort zone.

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$500m Saudi giga-project still on track for 2024 opening

Hospitality and property management firm Al Khozama Company has announced it’s the District Al Faisaliah development project has now entered its second phase of construction.

Estimated to cost SAR2 billion ($US533 million), District is expected to open in 2024. One of the Kingdom’s many new ‘giga-projects’, the development incorporates Al Faisaliah Tower, Al Khairiah Towers, Al Faisaliah Hotel, Al Faisaliah Suites, Hotel Al Khozama and the Mode Al Faisaliah Mall in the Olaya District.

The first of the project was announced three years ago, where the Mode Al Faisaliah Mall was extended by 20 percent for a luxury retail space of 35,000 metres squared. The first phase also saw the introduction of restaurant brands such as Yauatcha, Meraki, Mamo Michelangelo, La Petite Maison and La Brasserie to the area. Now in the second phase, the District will work to integrate all of its retail, commercial, entertainment, hospitality, wellness and residential spaces. The popular Al Faisaliah Hotel is currently being renovated as part of the project’s development. Completion of the facelift is expected next year.

Another plan for the development’s second phase is the replacement of Hotel Al Khozama. One of the Kingdom’s oldest hotels – more than forty years old – the property will be replaced with a new hotel by 2024. The new property will boast 200 keys, two restaurants, MICE facilities, a spa and gym and a pool deck.

HH Prince Bandar bin Saud bin Khalid Al Saud, chairman Al Khozama said: “The strategy followed by Al Khozama Company is aligned with the Kingdom’s 2030 Vision in creating new benchmarks and opportunities for excellence, and contributing to the country’s long-term success. The District is one such example.”

Mr. Khalid Saud Abu Haimed, chief executive officer of Al Khozama Company added: “Under the leadership and direction of our chairman, we are proud to achieve significant success in hospitality, retail centres and F&B to create an unrivalled lifestyle and unique experience for the Saudi community and its guests.”

Millennium Hotels & Resorts MEA brings five-star hotel to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia

Millennium Hotels and Resorts MEA has opened its first Grand Millennium-brand property in the Kingdom, located in the city of Tabuk.

Designed for both business and leisure guests, Grand Millennium Taruk is located close to the Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz Airport. Inside, the hotel features 218 keys spread across rooms, suites, and a large royal suite.

“Grand Millennium Tabuk represents the first Grand Millennium in Saudi Arabia and unfolds a story of the bygone era. The hotel is reminiscent of the vintage Hejaz Railway and the intricate design speaks volumes of stories reminding of the nostalgic Hejaz Railway,” said Kevork Deldelian, chief executive officer of Millennium Hotels and Resorts Middle East and Africa.

Hejaz Railway provided an immensely important route for travel and trade between Damascus and Al Madina. Each room of the hotel has been designed to celebrate the history of this railway station, with photographs and art of the station found throughout the property.

The hotel outlets include Al Maksoura (The cabin) all-day dining restaurant, Juzurna Arabesque restaurant, Al Multaqa (The gathering place) Lobby Café and Al Manzar Pool Lounge in addition to a ballroom for weddings and events with a total space of 1082 sq m and capacity up to 800 people, five meeting rooms with a total meeting space of 283 sq m. The hotel also includes a recreation area with outdoor and indoor swimming pools for adults and kids, gym and spa facilities for ladies and gents, two tennis courts, multipurpose court and kids’ play area.

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Robert Megargle Appointed General Manager At Four Seasons Hotel San Francisco at Embarcadero - CA, USA

Robert Megargle was most recently the Hotel Manager at the original Four Seasons Hotel San Francisco on Market Street, and in 2016 was the first hotel professional to be named to San Francisco Business Times' "40 Under 40" in recognition of his leadership. Prior to his arrival in the city in 2014, his tenure includes positions in Maui, New York and his home city of Detroit.

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Annabell Javinez Appointed General Manager At Quest Perth Ascot, Australia

Quest Apartment Hotels has today announced the appointment of Annabell Javinez as General Manager of Quest Perth Ascot, set to open next month.

With more than ten years' experience working for Quest, Annabell hails from Quest South Perth Foreshore where she spent eighteen months as Property Manager. Prior to this, the hospitality professional devoted just short of nine years at Quest Townsville, where she worked her way from front office staff to property manager.

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Revealed: Accor and IHG considered merger

French hospitality company Accor considered a possible merger with the UK’s InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) – which would have created the world’s largest hospitality company.

French newspaper Le Figaro reported the news, which was then reported by Bloomberg.

it said that Accor Chief Executive Officer Sebastien Bazin created a team in June that included Chief Financial Officer Jean-Jacques Morin and bankers from Centerview and Rothschild, to look into a possible deal.

Accor’s board was in favour of the idea, but Bazin put the project on hold as he thought it wasn’t the right time.

According to Reuters, an Accor-IHG merger would create a US$17 billion super-firm of more than 11,000 hotels. A merger would also put the two firms ahead of rival Marriott in terms of rooms, with more than 1.6 million between them.

A merger would bring together IHG brands such as Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza with Accor’s Raffles, Sofitel and Ibis. It would also save on HQ expenses and loyalty programs, said Le Figaro.

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Mandarin Oriental, Washington DC to reopen next week

Mandarin Oriental, Washington DC will reopen its doors to guests on Monday following a temporary closure due to Covid-19 related restrictions.

To ensure compliance with local regulations the hotel is operating with reduced facilities in dining and spa as well as at the fitness center.

Located along the capital’s revitalized Southwest Waterfront, the property offers five-star luxury with refreshed guest rooms in a picturesque setting and sweeping vistas of the waterfront or courtyard gardens.

It is conveniently located a short walk from the nation’s most prominent monuments and attractions in the District Wharf neighborhood.

For guests seeking a peaceful respite, the Spa at Mandarin Oriental, Washington DC is also available to provide renowned treatments and programs with updated Covid-19 safety and hygiene measures in place

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