Fairmont Port Douglas Hotel to Open in Far North Queensland in 2023

Accor will bring the Fairmont brand to Australia for the first time, with the announcement that the Fairmont Port Douglas is set to open in Far North Queensland in 2023.  Set on the edge of two UNESCO World Heritage sites – the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest - the hotel has been sustainably designed to give back to the environment.
 
“We are excited to bring the extraordinary Fairmont brand to Australia and are confident that Fairmont Port Douglas will deliver a new level of luxury and sophistication to one of the country’s most glamourous resort towns,” said Simon McGrath, Chief Operating Officer, Accor Pacific. “Accor continues to expand its luxury offerings in Australia and, as our first Fairmont, this is going to be a truly special resort, whose architecture mimics the rich biosphere of the Daintree Rainforest and, which is centred on well-being, nature and cultural immersion.”
 
Fairmont Port Douglas will boast 253 glamorous rooms, several restaurants and bars, a decadent day spa, a treetop walk and panoramic conference and wedding facilities, all designed around resort-style pools and built to blend seamlessly with nature. From the organic architecture to copious green spaces and natural light, the resort brings nature close, with butterfly nets above the children’s swimming pool, an intimate lobby inspired by birds’ nests and verdant tropical gardens.

Courtyard by Marriott Penang takes brand into Malaysia

Marriott has announced the opening of Courtyard by Marriott Penang – the first Courtyard property to debut in Malaysia.

Located along the bustling Jalan Macalister in the heart of Penang’s UNESCO-listed George Town, the new 199-room Courtyard by Marriott Penang is set to provide the best hotel experience for guests to pursue their personal and professional passions while on the road.

“We are thrilled to continue to grow our presence in Malaysia with the opening of Courtyard by Marriott Penang,” said Rajeev Menon, president, Asia Pacific, Marriott International.

“Designed for today’s ambitious and enterprising traveller, the opening of Courtyard by Marriott Penang marks Marriott International’s 17th brand in Malaysia and further compliments our growing footprint in the country.”

Radisson adds dual-brand property at Heathrow

Radisson Hotel Group has welcomed two new brands at London Heathrow, joining forces under one roof.

The new Radisson Red hotel features 258 bedrooms showcasing the bold and playful design of the brand.

The other bedrooms, of which there are more than 600 in the neighbouring Radisson Hotel & Conference Centre London Heathrow, follow the Scandinavian-inspired Radisson style, nodding to the heritage of the group.

Family rooms with bunk beds able to accommodate up to four people are featured at both properties.

Hyatt Announces Plans for Thompson Monterrey

Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) announced plans for Thompson Monterrey, the first Thompson hotel in Mexico’s state of Nuevo León. The 150-room lifestyle hotel is expected to open in 2022 and will mark the fourth Thompson-branded property in Mexico.

“Thompson Monterrey comes at a time of significant growth for the Thompson Hotels brand and will represent the brand’s entry into a key new market,” said Alfredo Reynoso, director of  development, Mexico, Hyatt. “The Thompson brand aligns very well with Monterrey’s position as a business and entertainment destination, and we look forward to introducing a new lifestyle offering that will provide experiences that celebrate its destination in a sophisticated way for guests and locals alike.”

Developed by Visa Desarrollos and Grow2, Thompson Monterrey will be located in the San Pedro Garza García, a contemporary financial and commercial area of Monterrey in the state of Nuevo León. Located near headquarters for many national and multinational companies and university campuses, the hotel will be part of Torre IKON, a new-build mixed-use complex with aproximately 215,000 square feet (20,000 square meters) of office space. Thompson Monterrey will occupy a portion of the 31-floor tower designed by Duda Paine Architects, which is set to be one of the most iconic high-rise buildings in the San Pedro Garza García.    

Thompson Monterrey will provide a truly superior experience with just the right amount of edge to the San Pedro Garza García through its thoughtfully curated design, culinary sophistication, and effortless yet intuitive service. From the moment guests arrive, they will experience elements of Monterrey’s culture in the hotel’s sought-after hub – its rooftop bar – which will reflect the guests’ authentically stylish and dynamic lifestyles with a buzzing social scene and thought-provoking arts and entertainment.

IHG Signs Two New Hotels in Bangladesh

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has signed a management agreement with Evalona Limited for two new build hotels in Bangladesh. The 200-room Holiday Inn Resort Kuakata is due to open in early 2026 and the 150-rooms Crowne Plaza Kuakata will open its doors to guests in Q1 2028. Located on the second largest beach in Bangladesh, both hotels will be best in class products in the country.

Affirming an optimistic mid-long-term outlook despite on the ongoing global pandemic, this marks the third signing across four hotels for IHG in the SWA region since Q2 2020.

Located approximately 280 kms from Dhaka, Kuakata is a beach town on the banks of the Bay of Bengal in Southern Bangladesh. A beautiful destination on its own, the beach is 18 kms long and 3 kms wide and offers a full view of sunrise and sunset. The location can also be accessed by speed boat from the Sundarbans (mangrove forests) and is in close proximity to Payra Seaport development, which is set to become an important seaport in the country.

A perfect destination for MICE events, Crowne Plaza Kuakata will offer a ballroom accommodating 800-900 guests, two function rooms, two meeting rooms, a business centre and a boardroom (2,475 sqm in total). Offering a wide range of F&B options, the hotel will feature an all-day dining restaurant, two specialty restaurants and a lobby lounge & bar. For guests to rejuvenate, Crowne Plaza Kuakata will feature a spa, a fitness centre, an outdoor pool and a recreation area, as well.

Positioned as a great destination for leisure travelers, on opening, Holiday Inn Resort Kuakata will feature an all-day dining restaurant, a fitness centre, a retail area along with an indoor and outdoor recreation area. The hotel will also offer a meeting room and a boardroom for guests with business requirements.
Sudeep Jain, Managing Director, South West Asia, IHG commented: "We are pleased to announce the signing of two new hotels in Bangladesh in partnership with Evalona Limited. Being built at an excellent location, Crowne Plaza Kuakata and Holiday Inn Resort Kuakata will be amongst the first international hotels in Kuakata and will benefit from the latent demand for international, branded holiday and MICE destination within Bangladesh.

He added: The signing is testament to our long-term commitment to grow in the SWA region and introduce right brands to key markets with the right partners. Despite current challenging circumstances, we are confident in the mid-long-term outlook of the industry – it is great to see that our owners share the same sentiment and are investing in our trusted brands."

Sadiq Rahman, Managing Director, Evalona Limited said: "We are excited to partner with IHG for our first hospitality project and bring Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn brands to the beautiful beach of Kuakata. IHG has a strong reputation in the country with their existing portfolio and a robust pipeline. We are confident that we will benefit from their experience, expertise and operational excellence, and that both hotels will be successful on opening in the future."

IHG has 39 hotels in SWA across mainstream, upscale and luxury segments and 54 in the pipeline. *

*numbers as of June 30th 

Gregory Viaud Appointed Resort Manager At Four Seasons Resort Orlando at Walt Disney World Resort - FL, USA

Gregory Viaud has recently been appointed as the new Resort Manager at Four Seasons Resort Orlando at Walt Disney World Resort. Viaud joins the Orlando property from Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia at Comcast Center, where he served as Hotel Manager. A 16-year veteran of Four Seasons, Viaud has traveled the globe with the company, working at properties in London, Bora Bora, Maui, Bali and Los Angeles, in addition to Philadelphia.

Viaud graduated from the Vatel Nimes Hotel and Tourism Business School in the south of France and carries hospitality, tourism and adventure in his heart. His trajectory with Four Seasons began at the Park Lane London hotel in 2004. Later, he traded in city life for island living, relocating to Bora Bora, Bali, and then Hawaii. During this tenure, Viaud advanced to Food and Beverage Director and learned to love the natural beauty of a remote location. After eight years in the South Pacific Islands, Viaud and his family embarked on a journey to explore the US mainland, establishing a home in Los Angeles at Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel followed by his move to Philadelphia and now, Orlando.

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Middle East's hotel performance increases in July 2020

The hospitality industry in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) continues to see marginal improvements each month as properties adapt to COVID-19. According to the latest data from STR, July was a stronger month than June, though performance as a whole is still low compared to the pre-pandemic.

For the Middle East, occupancy was down 41.8 percent to 35.3 percent compared to July 2019. The average daily rate (ADR) meanwhile fell 9.6 percent to US$106.93, and revenue per available room (RevPAR) dropped 47.4 percent to $37.70.

Compared to June 2020, this is a step towards the right direction for the Middle East, where occupancy was just 33.6 percent the month previous. ADR and RevPAR also improved from $97.31 and $32.72 respectively.

Looking at the UAE individually, occupancy in July 2020 was down 40.7 percent to 37.8 percent. ADR only fell by 3.6 percent to AED326.98, though RevPAR slipped by 42.9 percent to AED123.44.

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Marriott International Appoints Felitia Lee Controller and Chief Accounting Office

Marriott International, Inc. (Nasdaq: MAR) today announced the appointment of Felitia Lee as Controller and Chief Accounting Officer, effective August 28, 2020. Ms. Lee will be the Company’s principal accounting officer and report to Leeny Oberg, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Ms. Lee succeeds Bao Giang Val Bauduin, who is taking on the role of Chief Financial Officer for Consumer Operations, Technology and Emerging Businesses for the company. Ms. Lee joined Marriott in May 2020 supporting management of the company’s accounting operations.

“Felitia brings a strong track record of leading large organizations through change and delivering results,” said Leeny Oberg, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Marriott International. “Felitia has significant financial experience in controllership, audit, shared services and acquisitions and integrations. I look forward to her and Val playing pivotal roles in leading Marriott into the future.”

Prior to Marriott, Ms. Lee served as Senior Vice President and Controller for Kohl’s Corporation where she led financial reporting, Sarbanes-Oxley processes, capital management, tax planning and compliance.

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Zomato report says 10% restaurants have closed down, 30% more could shut due to Covid impact

New Delhi: Nearly 10 percent dine-out restaurants across the country have shut down while 30 percent more restaurants currently not operating due to COVID are not likely to reopen even after the pandemic ends, a new report by leading food delivery company Zomato said.

According to the report released Wednesday, these restaurants are among the 83 percent dine-outs that are currently non-operational. The remaining 43 percent of restaurants that are shut are likely to open as the situation improves.

“Out of the 83 percent restaurants that are not open for business, 10 percent of restaurants have already shut down permanently… an additional 30 percent restaurants might not reopen at all. The remaining 43 percent, which are closed right now, is likely to open as the situation becomes better,” said the report.

The rest of the dining industry is operating at just 8 to 10 percent of the gross merchandise value (GMV) from earlier levels pre-pandemic levels, it said.

“Nearly 60 percent restaurateurs said they estimate to retain less than half of their original business volumes for a few months even post-COVID,” the report said.

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Spinneys reveals 24 winners of F&B incubator programme

ocally-owned supermarket Spinneys announced the winners of its incubator programme for micro food and beverage suppliers in the UAE, which launched in May 2020.

Participation in the programme surpassed Spinneys’ expectations with more than 160 local businesses entering submissions. In response, the grocer has increased the number of winners, with 22 brands to be fast-tracked onto Spinneys’ shelves, and another two companies accepted into its product development programme.

The initiative has also been recognised by the UAE government’s Food and Water Security Office for its contribution to the country’s National Food Security Strategy.

Her Excellency Mariam Almheiri, Minister of State for Food and Water Security, says: “A leading objective for the UAE Food and Water Security Office is to support local food production, which includes helping innovative start-ups to enhance domestic agriculture and re-imagine the UAE’s food sustainability landscape. This aligns with the objectives of the National Food Security Strategy and the directives of our wise leadership, which recognises the importance of local tech-enabled production to strengthen the UAE’s food security.”

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Downtown Waterfront Hotel Announced for Panama City, Florida

The St. Joe Company (NYSE: JOE) and the City of Panama City, Florida execute a long-term land lease to bring a new hotel and restaurant to Panama City’s downtown waterfront district. Under the terms of the lease St. Joe will lease a City-owned parcel to develop, construct and operate a waterfront hotel and standalone restaurant on a portion of the Panama City Marina property fronting beautiful St. Andrews Bay, which has a deep water channel to the Gulf of Mexico.

This agreement comes after nearly two years of planning, discussions and public meetings between St. Joe, the City and local residents. St. Joe initially expressed interest in the project in September of 2018 in a letter to the City and reaffirmed that interest in November of that year after Hurricane Michael, a Category 5 storm, caused significant damage to the City’s downtown district. In the time since, St. Joe has held four public events to gather feedback and share conceptual plans with local residents. “We believe that a vibrant downtown with a mix of residents, shoppers, businesses and visitors benefits the community as a whole,” said Jorge Gonzalez, President and CEO for St. Joe. “We are making this investment in downtown Panama City with the anticipation that it can be a catalyst for other investments that over time, will make downtown Panama City a vibrant destination to live, work and visit."

The hotel and restaurant represent the first step towards implementing the award-winning Strategic Vision for Historic Downtown created by renowned design firm Dover Kohl & Partners. The vision was adopted in 2019 following a community-led effort that included workshops, focus groups, town hall meetings and design charrettes. The vision documents can be seen at www.rebuildpc.org.

The leased property and most of the downtown Panama City area are in a Qualified Opportunity Zone (QOZ), federal capital gains tax incentive program that was created in 2017 to encourage private investment in order to spur economic development and job creation. St. Joe created a QOZ fund for the downtown Panama City area.

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Cruise trips are back. This is what they look like now

Boarding in the Italian port of Genoa for a seven-day Mediterranean cruise on August 16, travel agent Valeria Belardi prepared herself for a voyage like no other.

Belardi was one of some 3,000 pioneering cruisers onboard MSC Grandiosa, the first cruise liner to return to the Mediterranean following the global shut down of the multi-billion-dollar cruise industry in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

The voyage was characterized by COVID testing, social distancing, hand sanitizing and temperature checks, but it was, Belardi told CNN, also relaxing and enjoyable. More importantly, it was, reportedly, virus-free.

MSC Cruises wouldn't confirm exact numbers, but the Grandiosa was operating at about 60% of its 6,300 passenger capacity.

There were day trips, including sightseeing in the Maltese capital Valletta and the Sicilian city of Palermo. While onboard, Belardi enjoyed pre-packaged snacks on the deck, relaxing evenings by the pool, and a trip to the spa.

"I think cruises could be the safest holiday, right now," said Belardi, who owns travel company Vivere & Viaggiare Roma Pittaluga.

But MSC Grandiosa is almost alone in its return to the high seas.

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Year-Over-Year the Global Hotel Construction Pipeline Continues to Increase

The latest Global Hotel Construction Pipeline Trend Report from Lodging Econometrics (LE) states that the global hotel construction pipeline stands at 14,779 projects/2,412,736 rooms. Year-over-year (YOY) the pipeline increased 5% by projects and 4% by rooms with several stages of the pipeline hitting their peaks by project and rooms counts.

Brands leading in the pipeline for each of these companies are Marriott’s Fairfield Inn with 431 projects/50,249 rooms; Hampton by Hilton with 775 projects/102,815 rooms; IHG’s Holiday Inn Express with 712 projects/90,479 rooms; and AccorHotel’s Ibis Brands with 319 projects/44,817 rooms.

Throughout the first half of 2020, the world opened 891 hotels accounting for 131,921 rooms

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Avani+ Ho Tram Resort under construction in Vietnam

Avani Hotels & Resorts has announced the signing of the first Avani+ upscale resort in Vietnam - Avani+ Ho Tram Resort. The property is scheduled to open in the third quarter of 2023.

Currently, the brand has a total of three properties under construction in Ho Chi Minh City, Doc Let and Cam Ranh, as well as two hotels in operation in Hai Phong and Quy Nhon

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Hotel JAL City Fukuoka Tenjin to Open in 2021

Okura Nikko Hotel Management Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Hotel Okura Co., Ltd., announced today that it will open Hotel JAL City Fukuoka Tenjin in 2021.

Sekisui House, Ltd., a renowned Japanese construction company, is now building the hotel and aiming to complete it by January 2021.

Based on Hotel JAL City's brand concept “smart simplicity”, the new hotel will offer a smart and simple stay experience, providing check-in and check-out and room key functionality by means of guests’ smartphone

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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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