HYATT SIGNS IN BELIZE: Hyatt Hotels has collaborated with Maya Rio Development to announce plans for the first Hyatt-branded hotel in Belize. The Placencia Resort will be become a part of Hyatt’s portfolio as an affiliated hotel, before joining the Destination by Hyatt brand and World of Hyatt loyalty program in late 2025. Located south of Mexico and east of Guatemala, The Placencia Resort is situated on the Placencia Peninsula, the 13-mile-long beach in southern Belize. The resort will undergo a $10 million renovation to offer 90 revitalized rooms, suites and beachfront villas and an enhanced arrival experience. The resort will also open a three-meal restaurant, indoor/outdoor event space, an overwater signature restaurant and bar and a reimagined pool and bar experience. The addition of Placencia Resort to its portfolio is part of Hyatt’s strategy to expand in the Latin America and Caribbean region, with more openings expected in the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Costa Rica and Panama.
PRINCESS HOTELS TO OPEN ALL-INCLUSIVE RESORTS IN JAMAICA: Princess Hotels & Resorts Group, the luxury hotel chain specializing in holiday and urban hotels, will be opening two new resorts in Jamaica’s Green Island in September. The openings include Princess Senses The Mangrove and its sister property, Princess Grand Jamaica. The all-inclusive, adults-only Princess Senses The Mangrove features 401 ocean-view suites and 14 over-water villas. Offering 590 ocean-view suites, the Princess Grand Jamaica is an all-inclusive, family-friendly resort which includes a water park, kids club, teens center, tennis and water sports, three pools, eight bars and nine restaurants. Guests of Princess Senses The Mangrove will also have access to the neighboring Princess Grand Jamaica, with the two resorts offering a total of 14 restaurants, 15 bars, multiple pools, a fitness and wellness center, convention center, nightclub, multifunctional sports field and a spa.
HOTEL BALZAC OPENS IN PARIS: Olivier Bertrand has unveiled his fifth hotel and third new hotel in three years with the opening of Hotel Balzac. Located off the top of the Champs-Élysées in Paris, the hotel sits in a building within the site of the former home of the 19th century French novelist Honoré de Balzac. The hotel is reopening following a complete overhaul of the interiors, led by French architecture firm, Festen. The luxury hotel features 58 rooms and suites, with some of them offering views of the Eiffel Tower. The hotel also has a three-Michelin star restaurant on the lobby, a bar, glass-domed lobby lounge and open-air terraces. A Japanese-inspired spa will open later this summer. The hotel, which is owned by Bertrand, as well as its sister hotels in Paris (Saint James Paris and Relais Christine) are members of Relais & Chateaux. The family’s other properties include the new Château des Fleurs and the 37-room Hotel Norman, both in Paris.
HEI ADDS TO TEXAS MANAGED PORTFOLIO: HEI Hotels & resorts has added The Westin Dallas Downtown to its portfolio, bringing the total number of hotels managed in the Dallas market to five. With this addition, HEI’s Texas management portfolio totals 15 properties. Opened in 2015, The Westin Dallas Downtown has 326 rooms, a three-meal restaurant and lobby bar, an indoor pool, a fitness center and 34,000 square feet of meeting and event space. The hotel is part of One Main Place, a 33-story mixed-use development, which is situated in Dallas CBD and close to the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center. Norwalk, Conn.-based HEI’s total management portfolio consists of more than 100 luxury, upper-upscale and upscale independent and branded hotels and resorts across the U.S.