Who accounts for big chunk of U.S. pipeline?: In the recently released Q4‘20 United States Construction Pipeline Trend Report from Lodging Econometrics, the franchise companies with the largest U.S. construction pipelines at year-end 2020 are Marriott International with 1,397 projects/184,775 rooms, followed by Hilton with 1,290 projects/150,294 rooms, and InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) with 826 projects/84,397 rooms. These three companies combined account for 67% of the projects and 65% of the rooms in the total U.S. construction pipeline. At the end of Q4‘20, over 50% of Hilton’s projects in the pipeline are in the early planning project stage, a record-high in this stage for the company, with 659 projects/71,962 rooms. Most of Marriott’s and IHG’s projects are currently in the scheduled to start in the next 12 months stage, with 44% and 65% in this stage, respectively.
Managing director for newly-formed Avistone: Denver, Colorado-based Avistone, a commercial real estate investment firm specializing in the acquisition and operation of multi-tenant, industrial U.S. properties, has named Charlie Muller managing director of its newly formed hotel division, Avistone Hospitality. Prior to Avistone, Muller was senior vice president of investments with First Hospitality, vice president of development at Omni Hotels & Resorts and executive vic -president and COO for CNL Hotels & Resorts and CNL Lifestyle Properties.
Two Florida hotels sell: The 227-room Hilton St. Petersburg Carillon Park in St. Petersburg, Florida, and the 139-key, 24-acre, Islander Resort in Islamorada, Florida, have both sold. The two properties were purchased by a joint venture of Lubert-Adler Real Estate Funds and Hersha Hospitality Management, both based in Philadelphia, and Loci Capital, based in Tampa, Florida. Hersha Hospitality Management will operate both assets. The sale price was not disclosed.
Lodging Dynamics to open two in San Diego: Provo, Utah-based Lodging Dynamics Hospitality Group has added the Hilton Garden Inn and Homewood Suites San Diego Downtown/Bayside to its portfolio. The Downtown/Bayside campus features 204 Hilton Garden Inn hotel rooms and 160 Homewood Suites, both with full-service kitchens.
Steigenberger Hotel Kunming: A Steigenberger hotel is planned in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan Province in China, and will be operated by Huazhu, the shareholder of Frankfurt-based Deutsche Hospitality. The 300-room hotel forms part of a new tourism center called Lakeside Town, which is being developed on the banks of Lake Dian. Two Unesco World Heritage Sites are nearby, the Naigu Stone Forest and Suogeyi Village. The hotel is set to open in 2024.
Travel’s slow return: Travel will slowly start to return in 2021, but it won’t necessarily be easy, writes Yahoo Finance. Many organizations are currently working to standardize vaccine passports, but it’s uncertain how that will ultimately play out. It appears staycations will dominate, if China is any example. The return of large in-person events presents a moral quandary. And tests for COVID-19 could easily become the norm, rather than the exception.
U.S. News rankings: U.S. News & World Report has announced its Best Hotels rankings, which evaluate more than 30,000 luxury hotels and resorts across the U.S., Europe, Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and the Caribbean. Four Seasons Resort Lanai in Hawaii landed the number one spot in the U.S., with Acqualina Resort & Residences on the Beach in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida, at number two, and The Peninsula Chicago at number three. Cheval Blanc St-Barth Isle de France in St. Barts is the best in the Caribbean and Le Bristol Paris, up from number three, came in as the number one hotel in Europe.
Sandals scholarship honors “Butch”: Bahamas-based Sandals Resorts International has announced a scholarship and conservation effort honoring founder Gordon “Butch” Stewart, who died January 4. Funded through contributions raised by the Sandals Foundation, the eponymous scholarship is available to full-time team members who will be evaluated based on their financial needs, personal attributes, and success in their current role. Working alongside the Sandals Corporate University and in partnership with local colleges and universities, recipients of the scholarship will be eligible to receive funding for up to a four-year college program in hospitality and tourism. Applications will be accessible through Sandals Corporate University starting June 1.