ANANTARA EXPANDS AFRICAN PORTFOLIO: Minor Hotels has signed a new Anantara resort which will be developed in Zanzibar, Tanzania. Situated on the northern coast of Zanzibar, the 181-room Anantara Zanzibar Resort is scheduled to open in 2027. The new-build, beachside retreat will have 37 luxury suites, a presidential villa and 73 one- and two-bedroom sea view villas with private pools. The property will also offer 38 one-bedroom apartments, 19 two-bedroom apartments, eight three-bedroom penthouse apartments and five penthouses. The resort will include six restaurants and bars, a spa, kid’s and teen’s clubs, gym, water sports club, lagoon pool, library, an executive lounge and a business center, along with event spaces. Owned by the Dubai-based Infinity Group, the resort will be managed by Minor Hotels and the Anantara brand. The retreat is Minor Hotels’ latest addition to its pipeline of luxury properties in Africa, following the recently announced Anantara Kafue River Tented Camp in Zambia and other properties in Mozambique and Tunisia.
IHG ADDS IN KSA: IHG Hotels & Resorts has signed a management agreement with the King Abdullah Financial District Management and Development Co. (KAFD DMC) to open two more luxury hotels in Riyadh. Adding to the IHG-KAFD partnership, Regent Riyadh KAFD and InterContinental Riyadh KAFD will complement the region’s first Kimpton at KAFD, which will open later this year as part of the agreement established in 2023, bringing its total to three properties in KAFD. KAFD is a vertical city which houses five-asset class mixed-use district of office spaces, luxury residences and hotels, retail venues, and entertainment venues spanning 1.6 square kilometers. With both the properties slated to open in 2027, Regent Riyadh KAFD will mark the brand’s debut in Riyadh. The 250-key hotel will have multiple dining venues, a luxury fitness facility, spa, grand ballroom and meeting rooms. InterContinental Riyadh KAFD will feature 400 keys with five dining outlets, conference spaces, a fitness center, spa, pool and a business center. Currently, IHG operates 43 hotels under six brands across Saudi Arabia, with a pipeline of 32 hotels set to open in the next two-five years.
REFINANCING FOR CASA CIPRIANI: Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has arranged a $103 million commercial mortgage-backed security loan with Citigroup, J.P. Morgan and Argentic for the refinancing of Casa Cipriani, a boutique hotel in New York. Built in 1909, the property was originally known as Battery Maritime Building and served ferries traveling to Brooklyn. The hotel offers 47 rooms, an exclusive private member’s club and an event space. In 2023, Walker & Dunlop’s Capital Markets group sourced capital for transactions totaling around $12 billion from non-agency capital providers.
CL HOTELS ACQUIRES CIRCA 39: CL Hotels, a sponsor of hospitality investments in the U.S., has acquired Circa 39 Hotel located in the mid-beach area of Miami Beach. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The 97-key boutique hotel is set to undergo multi-million-dollar renovations and rebranding and join IHG’s Vignette Collection. The hotel will be managed by Aimbridge Hospitality. The historic Art Deco hotel is situated close to the beach and features a pool with sun deck, which will be reimagined, along with a pool-lounge area. Built in 1939 by architect Albert Anis, the hotel was part of the Art Deco building surge in Miami.
INTERCITYHOTEL ADDS TO THE NETHERLANDS PORTFOLIO: IntercityHotel has announced a new hotel in the Netherlands — IntercityHotel Breda. The hotel features 174 rooms, a restaurant, bar and four connected meeting rooms. The hotel marks the third IntercityHotel property in the Netherlands. The hotel is operated by H World International as the leaseholder and owned by Commerz Real Institutional European Hotel Fund of Commerz Real, a subsidiary of the German Commerzbank Group. Project development and construction were managed by Synchroon B.V. and J.P. van Eesteren B.V. The partners are also working to open the next IntercityHotel in Leiden this summer.