Further investment in NYC: In a testament to increasing confidence in the New York City hotel market, Square Mile Capital Management invested US$75 million of preferred equity in a tri-branded, 1,046-key Hilton project in New York’s Times Square area being developed by the McSam Hotel Group. The deal marks the fifth time Square Mile and McSam have worked together. When completed by the end of 2022, the property will feature a 288-room Home2 Suites, 358-room Hampton Inn, and 400-key Motto. The deal was structured in conjunction with Meridian Capital Group.
Sensei’s second retreat: Wellness brand Sensei will launch its second retreat – Sensei Porcupine Creek in Rancho Mirage, California – in early 2022. It will be the brand’s first standalone retreat within the continental U.S. and will convert a 230-acre private estate, nestled against the Santa Rosa mountains in Rancho Mirage. The estate has 22 rooms in the main house, two villas and four deluxe garden suites. This will be the first time Sensei operates both wellness facilities as well as the hotel. Sensei, founded by Larry Ellison and Dr. David Agus, is known for leveraging technology to benefit health and deliver evidence-fed wellness programs in natural settings. The brand’s first retreat location was in collaboration with Four Seasons.
Sky high in Shanghai: China’s Jin Jiang International Hotels has just opened the world’s highest hotel on the top floors of the 632m Shanghai Tower in the city’s financial district. The building is the second tallest in the world after Dubai’s Burj Khalifa. The 165-room luxury J Hotel includes 34 suites, seven restaurants, a spa, an 84th-floor swimming pool, a restaurant on the 120th floor and 24-hour personal butler service. For the opening, J Hotel is offering a “special experience rate” of 3,088 yuan (US$477), while the J Suite sells for 67,000 yuan (more than US$10,000).
Scattered exhibitions in Italy: In an effort to combat overtourism in Florence, Italy, and promote sustainable tourism, the Uffizi Galleries in Florence launched its Uffizi Diffusi (Scattered Uffizi) project, which will see works of art being taken from galleries and displayed across the Tuscany region. The project will be launched this summer and five temporary exhibitions will be held in areas surrounding Florence. Almost 100 regional galleries will be created in the next five years and artworks will be re-homed across small towns and villages, instead of centering them around the Florence honeypot. Those in the sustainable tourism industry have applauded the idea. Justin Francis, co-founder and CEO of Responsible Travel, called it “a beautifully simple idea.”
Dual Hilton in Tel Aviv: Hilton announced it will open two new hotels with 577 rooms in one building on Tel Aviv’s seafront, set to open in 2026. Housed just north of the existing Tel Aviv Hilton, on floors 1-11 will be a 401-room Curio Collection by Hilton, and on floors 12-21 will be a Hilton 176-room LXR Hotels & Resorts concept. The hotels are being built in what is known as the “Sheraton hole” just south of Tel Aviv Port, where the Sheraton was demolished decades ago to make way for a bigger development.