Alila in Shanghai, China: A Hyatt affiliate has entered into an agreement with an affiliate of Fungseng Prosperity Holdings to develop a 188-room Alila hotel in the Jing’an District of Shanghai. Alila Shanghai is expected to debut in 2023 and will be the first Alila branded urban hotel in China. Alila Shanghai will be located in a mixed-use development that will also feature offices and retail space. The hotel facilities will include a rooftop Chinese restaurant, an organic restaurant, Tea Bar and a rooftop bar that overlooking the Old Shanghai Zhang Garden.
Rosewood Mexico City: Rosewood Hotels & Resorts is launching Rosewood Mexico City, a luxury property set to open in 2024 in the Polanco district of the capital. Designed by Mexico City-based architecture firm Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos, the 133-room property will occupy the tower of a new build expansion by Antara – a mixed-use development which also comprises offices, luxury retail outlets, restaurants and entertainment venues. The hotel will have four food and beverage outlets, two swimming pools, a fitness and wellbeing center and hydrotherapy areas.
U.S. weekly occupancy down slightly: Due to more supply in the marketplace, U.S. hotel occupancy fell slightly from the previous week, according to STR’s latest data May 2-8:
- Occupancy: 56.7%
- ADR: US$110.19
- RevPAR: US$62.50
Demand was up week over week, but an increase in supply from both reopenings and new properties pulled national occupancy down. Major markets, such as New York City and San Francisco, are showing the most movement with properties coming back online.
Among the top 25 markets, Miami (72.0%) and Tampa (69.8%) experienced the highest occupancy levels, while San Francisco/San Mateo (40.9%) and Boston (42.3%) came in the lowest. The aggregate occupancy for the top 25 markets (54.3%) was lower than all other markets on average, but ADR in the major markets (US$119.14) was higher.
Sage in Texas: Denver, Colorado-based Sage Hospitality Group is adding two upper upscale, full-service properties in Texas into its portfolio: the C. Baldwin, Curio Collection by Hilton in Houston and the Sheraton Austin Hotel at the Capitol. All food and beverage venues, including Rosalie and the speakeasy at C. Baldwin, will be managed by the team at Sage Restaurant Concepts, a Sage Hospitality Group Company.
Avid growth: IHG’s Avid hotel brand is expanding, with seven new hotels in U.S. cities, including three hotels in Texas. In addition to the Texas-based Avid Hotel Austin-Tech Ridge, Avid Hotel Corpus Christi Portland, and Avid Hotel Fort Worth-Fossil Creek, the brand is also adding Avid Hotel Columbus Northwest – Hillard in Ohio, Avid Hotel Fort Mill – Amusement Park in South Carolina, Avid Hotel Savannah South-Gateway in Georgia, and Avid Hotel Kalamazoo East in Michigan.
Travel, tourism deals dropped 34.3% in April: According to insights from data and analytics company GlobalData, 71 deals (comprising mergers and acquisitions, private equity, and venture financing) were announced in the global travel and tourism sector during April, which is a decline of 34.3% over 108 deals announced in March. The announcement of private equity, venture financing, and M&A deals decreased by 64.7%, 34.6%, and 26.2% during April compared to the previous month, respectively.
Wyndham declares quarterly cash dividend: Wyndham Hotels & Resorts announced that its Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of US$0.16 per share on its common stock, payable June 30, 2021 to shareholders of record as of June 16, 2021.
US still biggest travel market: Latest data from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) shows the U.S. maintained its position as the largest global Travel & Tourism market, despite suffering a huge 41% fall in GDP last year. China also kept its position as second biggest Travel & Tourism market, but experienced a harder GDP fall of 59.9% with Japan slightly improving its ranking – from fourth to third – shouldering a GDP fall nearly half that of China, of just 37%. Meanwhile, the UK, which in 2019 ranked as the world’s fifth biggest Travel & Tourism market, fell three places to number eight, sustaining a punishing GDP fall of 62.3%.
Read more and see the rankings
Portugal hotels see huge spike in UK bookings: The UK government said that from May 17, travelers from England will not need to quarantine when returning from Portugal. They will have to take a COVID PCR test within two days of their arrival in the U.K., whhich would be a much simpler process compared to the rules applied to other destinations. Though rules might change depending on how the epidemiological situation develops, UK tourists were quick to jump on the opportunity to book a vacation abroad. Pestana said demand jumped 250% since Friday and rose by 475% in external booking operators. Consumers are mainly opting for places in the Algarve and Porto Santo, a small island in the archipelago of Madeira.
UAE widens travel ban: The United Arab Emirates has widened its travel ban to include Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka, a ban which came into effect on May 12. The announcement comes after the UAE banned Indians from traveling to the country to curb the spread of the India COVID variant. However, this ban will not include long-term residency holders (such as the Golden Visa) and diplomats. There is no information for how long the ban will last, leaving many UAE-based companies to shift their short-term hiring plans, sourcing talent locally instead of hubs in South Asia like India.
MGM, Station returning to 100%: MGM Resorts International says casino occupancy at its nine Las Vegas Strip resorts is returning to 100% occupancy with no social distancing, while Station Casinos also announced a return to full capacity at its valley resorts. The restrictions have been in place since casinos started reopening June 4 after a closure of more than two months to help curb the spread of the coronavirus. The Nevada Gaming Control Board approved the increase from 80% occupancy for MGM based on the company’s efforts to vaccinate its workforce against COVID-19, MGM said in a news release. MGM opened an on-site vaccination clinic and launched vaccination education and incentive campaigns.
Guarding against travel scams: Two U.S. senators called on the Federal Trade Commission in a letter May 13 to do more to protect American consumers from travel scams. Responding to reports of increased fraud in travel and tourism — such as scammers posing as travel advisors or creating fake airline websites to sell counterfeit tickets — Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Steve Daines, R-Mont., asked FTC acting Chair Rebecca Slaughter to disclose any actions it has taken to address the issue and explain how it plans to prevent such crimes.