Wheelock acquires soft-brand Marriott in Georgia: Greenwich, Connecticut-based Wheelock Street Capital has acquired the 167-room Perry Lane Hotel, a member of Marriott’s Luxury Collection brand located in Savannah, Georgia. According to reporting from Business Wire, Sage Hospitality Group was “instrumental” in the property’s concept design, development, and launch, and the group will stay on to manage. Built in 2018, the hotel features two 5-story towers with over 9,000 square feet of event space, three food and beverage outlets, along with a rooftop terrace and pool.
Wyndham dominates in Turkey: Wyndham Hotels & Resorts is further strengthening its position as Turkey’s largest international hotel chain with the upcoming summer opening of the newly built, 80-room Days Hotel by Wyndham Istanbul Maltepe, its first property in the country under the economy brand. It will be complemented by the 176-room Days Hotel by Wyndham Istanbul Esenyurt, a new construction hotel that is part of a mixed-use development scheduled to open in the second part of the year. The new additions are the latest in Wyndham’s expansion in Turkey, where the company is the largest international hotel chain with 80 hotels across the country including cities, resorts and up-and-coming destinations, and a development pipeline of over 2,000 rooms, including five hotels expected to open this year.
Radisson signs in Pendleton, Oregon: Radisson Hotel Group Americas has signed a new-build Radisson on the West Coast with the 75-room Radisson Hotel Pendleton Airport in Pendleton, Oregon. The hotel will have an onsite restaurant, along with a bar and lounge. Additional amenities will include a fitness center, business center, and meeting space. Ground has already been broken and the property is set to open in the spring of 2022.
XSS Hotels partners on 2 properties in Maine: New England-based hotel developer XSS Hotels has acquired a controlling interest in two properties in Portland, Maine: the 101-room Portland Harbor Hotel and the 44-room Inn At Diamond Cove. The original developer of both properties, Bateman Partners, retains a minority interest, while Colwen Hotels also acquires a minority interest. XSS Hotels’ management affiliate, Colwen Hotels, will operate both properties.
U.S. warns against Japan travel: The U.S. said Americans should avoid traveling to Japan, as the country finds itself in a state of emergency over a COVID-19 outbreak, according to reporting from Bloomberg. The outbreak has raised questions about whether Tokyo will indeed be able to host the Summer Olympics, which start July 23. The State Department raised its travel advisory for Japan to level four on Monday. The move, which comes despite far lower infection rates in Japan than the U.S., is another blow for a country struggling to convince both its public and the international community that it’s ready to host the Olympics, which have already been delayed once in 2020.
It’s the unvaccinated Americans out on the town: Vaccinated Americans are increasingly going out now — but not as much as their unvaccinated counterparts. According to The Wall Street Journal, vaccinated consumers were less likely to visit restaurants, salons and entertainment venues versus those who don’t plan to get the vaccine. Spending at entertainment venues was up 20% among consumers who don’t plan to get the vaccine in April compared with January 2020. And it was up just 10% among vaccinated people during that same period, according to data from market-research firm Cardify.ai.
Mexico has a leg up on tourism: Mexico is well positioned when it comes to tourism in the pseudo-post pandemic world, according to a new report from Horwath HTL. That’s because the main source markets in Mexico (the U.S., Canada, and other destinations) have enforced travel restrictions that have kept them closed off to the rest of the world. The country’s “open-sky” policy has bumped it up to the third most visited country worldwide. And the U.S.’ strategy hasn’t hurt either. Both the effectiveness of the U.S. vaccination strategy, as well as better development of the American economy, have generated optimism. As such, in a context of pandemic uncertainty, the World Bank has now adjusted Mexico’s expectancy of economic growth — and its headed upwards.
A tough blow for Booking.com: The hotel accommodation giant may no longer prohibit its German contract partners from offering rooms at a lower price than stated on the platform, after a recent ruling by the German federal court found that practice incompatible with German and international antitrust law. For years, hotel associations have sued against the alleged superiority of online hotel portals. Hoteliers report that Booking.com, HRS and Expedia in particular are able to prioritize their own contract conditions to mostly medium-sized accommodation providers. Now, the courts — at least in Germany — agree.
Countdown to Phuket reopening: The Thai island of Phuket will officially reopen July 1 to international visitors who have been vaccinated in line with the Phuket Sandbox model. The reopening will be a welcome move for the island’s hospitality industry, which is largely dependent on travel and tourism. First responders are expected to be from traditional long-haul European markets – with the UK, France, Germany and Scandinavia leading the way.
Union says ‘no’ to hotel jobs act: A hospitality union representing workers in Southern California and Arizona has said it firmly opposes the “Save Hotel Jobs Act”, and sent a letter to the American Hotel and Lodging Association and members of Congress informing them of just that. If passed, the policy would allocate US$20 billion in federal aid to encourage hotels to bring back veteran workers. The union, Unite Here Local 11, claims that’s too much for the industry and not enough for the workers. The union says the U.S. hospitality industry “has already received US$13.7 billion in public support, while 75% of our members in the hospitality industry remain unemployed.”
Traveling for vaccination: Having trouble getting vaccinated? Hop on a plane. According to research from flight booking data company ForwardKeys, internationally-based individuals are traveling to the U.S. to receive a vaccination against COVID-19. The trend is most pronounced in travel from Peru, and other parts of Latin America, especially to Arizona, Florida and Texas. Bookings from all origin markets to Florida rose from 44% of 2019 levels to 67%, and bookings from all origin markets to Texas rose from 58% to 91% of 2019 levels. Bookings from Latin America to Arizona shot up from 126% of 2019 levels to over 220% and bookings to Texas also dramatically increased — from 180% to 330%.