Service Properties REIT to end Marriott pacts: Service Properties Trust is moving to cancel management contracts with Marriott International and is selling two dozen of the properties for US$153 million. The Newton, Massachusetts-based real estate investment trust is also set to transfer branding and management of 98 Marriott-branded hotels to Sonesta International Hotels Corp. after Marriott missed payments due Monday. According to reporting from Bloomberg, for Service Properties, which owns a 34% stake in Sonesta, nixing the agreements with Marriott allows it to expand the lodging brand while cutting costs and giving it flexibility to sell more assets or convert hotels into apartments.
Two new luxury resorts in Qatar: The two new openings, Hilton Salwa Beach Resort & Villas and Zulal Wellness Resort, are scheduled to open late 2020 and early 2021, respectively. The seventh Hilton hotel opening in the region, the Hilton Salwa Beach Resort & Villas, is located close to the nation’s capital, Doha and will have 30 villas and 246 hotel rooms and suites. The Zulal resort is aiming to be one of the largest wellness destinations in the country and the first wellbeing resort in the region. It will be located in the north of Qatar and will offer treatments and facilities targeting families and couples.
Marriott files D.C. suit: Marriott International filed a lawsuit against the owner of the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C., alleging the company is “shirking” its financial obligations in an attempt to permanently close the hotel and make way for a redevelopment. The 1,151-room Woodley Park hotel, D.C.’s second-largest convention hotel, suspended operations on March 27 as the pandemic raged on. Marriott Hotel Services, which operates the property, said the owner, a joint venture of JBG Smith Properties and Pacific Life Insurance, has refused to provide working capital to maintain the hotel during the closure, according to the lawsuit.
Fairfield by Marriott doubles Japan footprint: Marriott International has eight new Fairfield properties in Japan, more than doubling the size of the brand in the country. Sekisui House, a renowned Japanese developer, has partnered with Marriott on its “Trip Base” initiative – a project seeking to revitalize local sightseeing spots – with the opening of hotels alongside “Michi-no-Eki” roadside stations. As part of that project, Fairfield Gifu Seiryu Satoyama Park, Fairfield Gifu Mino, Fairfield Tochigi Utsunomiya, Fairfield Kyoto Kyotamba, Fairfield Gifu Gujo and Fairfield Mie Mihama are slated to open this month, followed by Fairfield Tochigi Motegi in November and Fairfield Kyoto Miyazu in December.