Hainan takes over HNA hotels: Hainan Airlines, the flagship carrier of HNA Group, will take over the group’s hotel business as part of an asset restructuring by the Chinese conglomerate. Hainan Airlines announced in a filing to the Shanghai Stock Exchange that it would acquire HNA Hotel Group Holdings Limited and an unnamed overseas hotel operator, along with several aviation businesses, from HNA Group. Hainan Airlines suspended trading in its shares on January 10 and later said it was carrying out a “major asset restructuring.” A more recent statement it said the trading halt would continue until April 10.
The Kushner/Trump hotel? Jared Kushner’s family has been in private discussions to have the Trump Organization manage at least one hotel at the center of a development in Long Branch, New Jersey known as Pier Village, according to reporting from the New York Times. The Kushner Companies and the Trump Organization have signed a letter of intent, though no deal is final and the Kushners are not required to inform city officials.
Bulgari in Paris: Bulgari Hotel and Resorts has announced its eighth property, the Bulgari Hotel Paris, scheduled to open in 2020. The property will be located on Avenue George V, within the so-called Triangle d’Or – the area formed by the intersections of Avenue George V with the Champs Elysees and Avenue Montaigne. The property will have 76 rooms, which Bulgari says will be mainly suites. The hotel will be jointly designed by Italian architects Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel and Parisian firm Valode and Pistre.
Autograph in Belize: In partnership with owner and developer Andrew Ashcroft, an Autograph Collection hotel is expected to debut in Belize with the 2020 opening of Alaia in the Ambergris Caye island. The beachfront resort will feature 56 two-bedroom condominiums with lock off option and eight oceanfront villas, totaling 120 keys when completed.
Demand up in London: STR’s preliminary February 2018 data for London indicates a continuation of recent trends.
Based on daily data from February, London reported the following in year-over-year comparisons:
- Supply: +2.2%
- Demand: +1.8%
- Occupancy: -0.4% to 77.3%
- ADR: +1.2% to GBP133.84
- RevPAR: +0.8% to GBP103.48
Recent trends continued in London—demand increased, but supply grew at a faster rate, leading to a slight dip in occupancy for the ninth month in a row. ADR, on the other hand, increased year over year for the 16th consecutive month even as the “Brexit boost” continues to dissipate.