Trump out of SoHo: The Trump Organization announced that it is exiting management of the Trump SoHo Hotel in New York City in a buyout with the building’s owner, CIM Group of California, by the end of the year, amid falling hotel rates and moribund condominium sales.
Read more in the New York Times
IHG in India: IHG and Samhi are rebranding 14 hotels totaling about 2,000 rooms in India to the Holiday Inn Express brand, in cities including Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai, with an additional four hotels under construction. The additional four hotels are under construction; the move puts IHG’s India pipeline at 41 hotels.
Volcano erupts in Bali: Indonesia closed the airport on Bali and ordered the evacuation of 100,000 residents living near Mount Agung. Tens of thousands of tourists have been stranded as the volcano erupts for the first time in 54 years.
Starwood acquires in Budapest: Starwood Capital Group acquired the Sofitel Budapest Chain Bridge Hotel from Orbis Hotel Group in a sale and management transaction, for €75 million (US$89.4 million), subject to the approval of the European Union Merger Control Office. New owners plan a renovation of the 357-room hotel.
Georgia hotel fire: A government official in Georgia has called for all hotel rooms to be inspected after a fire last week. The fire in the Black Sea city of Batumi, Georgia, at the Leogrand Hotel killed 11 people and injured 21. The hotel had previously been fined for poor fire safety conditions.
Greek hotel buy: Greece’s Lampas SA on Friday completed the purchase of the King George Hotel in Athens from Eurobank for €43 million (US$ million). The company had leased the hotel since 2013 and operated it jointly with its adjacent Grande Bretagne hotel.
Caribbean insurance increase? Caribbean hoteliers should plan now for an increase in insurance premiums anticipated to range from 10% to 40% following September hurricanes. Panelists at a Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association webinar this month said insurance companies have started telling their clients that increases will occur in their next renewal cycle for inland and beach properties – for the whole region, not just the islands affected by the hurricanes.