Further opposition to M&C deal. Kwek Leng Beng’s City Developments Ltd. (CDL), which already owns 65.2% of London-based Millennium & Copthorne Hotels (M&C), continues to face opposition to a planned £624.3 million (US$ ) acquisition of the remaining 34.8% of stock, which would vale the company at £1.8 billion. International Value Advisers and MSD Partners, which own 7% and 1.9% of M&C respectively, have sent a letter to the hotel company’s independent directors, criticizing them for supporting the proposal, suggesting the price undervalues the company and urging a revaluation of the hotel company. They join two other minority shareholders unhappy with the deal terms. The CDL proposal implies a 32.5% discount to M&C’s per share balance sheet net asset value at the end of June, according to the letter.
Read the New York Times report
Icon grows in Japan. Mitsui Fudosan Co. Ltd., a Tokyo-based global real estate company, has announced together with its 100%-owned, Honolulu-based Halekulani Corp. that it will open Halekulani Okinawa at the site of the Okinawa Inbu Beach Hotel Project in Onna Village, Kunigami District, Okinawa Prefecture, in the summer of 2019. The resort, with a beachfront location facing a coastline stretching approx. 1.7 km, will comprise 360 guest rooms, all of which will have ocean views. It will include a diverse array of facilities enabling long-term stays.
Wanda on its own in 90210. Dalian Wanda Group’s U.S. subsidiary has lost its development partner, Athens Group, for the US$1.2 billion luxury condominium and hotel complex, One Beverly Hills, in Beverly Hills, California. Just as sales were about to begin, Bloomberg confirmed that the Phoenix-based Athens Group was walking away from the project with 193 luxury condos and 134 hotel rooms. Construction has yet to begin.
Rosewood’s fifth in China. Rosewood Hotels & Resorts has been appointed by Chengdu, China-based property developer Saiho Group to manage Rosewood Chengdu, scheduled to open in 2023. The 180-room ultra-luxury hotel will occupy the top floors of a new 300-meter mixed-use tower in an integrated complex in the city’s central business district.
Second Four Season for KSA. Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts and Middle East developer Jabal Omar Development Co. have announced plans for a new Four Seasons hotel in the Holy City of Makkah as part of the Jabal Omar integrated real estate development. In total, there will be approximately 375 guest rooms and suites, plus approximately 90 Four Seasons Private Residences. No opening date was announced.
Austria will see Six Senses. Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas by 2020 will open the Six Senses Kitzbühel Alps in Austria. The resort will feature 80 guest rooms, 50 residences and a small village of chalets available for private sale. It is being developed by Kitzbüheler Alps Projekt GmbH.
Mövenpick adds in Muscat. Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts has revealed plans to operate its third property in Muscat. It has inked a deal with Oman’s Golden Group of Companies to manage the 370-key Mövenpick Hotel Muscat Airport, part of a new upscale mixed-use project under development near Muscat International Airport. It will also feature retail and commercial space covering 3,000sqm and 10,000sqm respectively when it opens in 2021.
Citadines to Silicon Valley. CapitaLand’s The Ascott Ltd., Singapore, is investing S$81.5 million (US$60 million) to acquire and refurbish The Domain Hotel, a freehold hotel in Silicon Valley, California. The 136-unit hotel will continue to operate as it undergoes refurbishment in phases before being rebranded to Citadines Cupertino Sunnyvale in 4Q 2018. This will be Ascott’s second Citadines-branded property in the U.S., following its acquisition of Hotel Central Fifth Avenue New York in May. The property is Ascott’s fourth acquisition in the U.S. within five months.
MGM ads face criticism. MGM Resorts, Las Vegas, is being criticized for its #VegasStrong ad campaign, which started 14 days after 58 people were killed by a gunmen shooting from MGM’s Mandalay Bay hotel into a nearby concert site. Critics are suggesting the campaign released on Twitter takes advantage of the tragic event. The 30-second ad shows various views of the Las Vegas Strip and flashes phrases like ‘together we rise’ and ‘together we shine’ on the screen. MGM has responded to the critics by stating it created the ads to reflect the strength and resilience of Las Vegas and MGM Resorts.
Tragedy in Yangon. A fire has destroyed a well-known luxury hotel, the Kandawgyi Palace, in Yangon, Myanmar, killing one person. More than 140 guests were evacuated. The hotel was largely made out of teak wood and it took hundreds of firefighters several hours to put out the blaze.
Eastin biggest hotel. Absolute Hotel Services Group, Bangkok, has announced a deal with The Harbour View Development Co. Ltd. to manage and brand the largest Eastin property in Thailand, the 456-room Eastin Hotel Harbour Bangkok. The hotel is due to open in the first quarter of 2019.
Caribbean casino-resorts trade. Wind Creek Hospitality (WCH), an authority of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, has announced that a subsidiary of WCH has acquired the Aruba Renaissance Resort & Casino and the Curacao Renaissance Resort & Casino. The resorts will continue to operate under the Renaissance brand.
More Bangkok hotels. Thailand’s Akaryn Hotel Group has announced the launch of the 50-room akyra Sukhumvit Bangkok in February of 2018.
Those rogue bookers. A recent study by Egencia, the business travel arm of the Expedia group, found that despite the wide use of travel policies worldwide, “rogue booking,” the practice of business travelers booking outside of their travel program, is still an issue for corporate travel programs, especially when it comes to hotel stays. While 60% of companies have a travel policy in place, more than half of the business travelers surveyed are still allowed to book travel using any method they choose, and a full 46% have done so for hotel bookings, according to the 4th edition Egencia Business Travel and Technology Survey. To rein in these rogue booking tendencies, the study suggests that relevancy, incentivization and clear policies can pave the way.