Minor, Funyard in China jv: Bangkok’s Minor Hotels and China’s Funyard Hotels & Resorts have established a hotel management joint venture agreement that will oversee business development, hotel operations, as well as the sales and marketing functions of seven Minor Hotels brands in China. The announcement follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two groups in January 2021 and officially comes into force on June 29, 2021. Among the brands that Minor Hotels is planning to bring to China as part of the partnership are Avani, nhow, NH Collection and Oaks, a serviced-apartment and resort accommodation chain predominantly operating in Australia and New Zealand. Oaks will debut in China with the opening of a property in Hangzhou.
Radisson’s new properties in Italy: The Radisson Hotel Group, Brussels, announced the signing of seven new hotels in tier 1 locations in Italy. Set to open this year, the new properties include premium lifestyle Radisson Collection hotels in Milan and Venice, the debut of Radisson Hotel Group’s latest brand – Radisson Individuals – with properties in Piedmont and Sicily, Radisson hotels in Ferrara and Nola, and a Radisson Blu hotel in Florence. The Radisson Hotel Group has grown from three to close to 20 hotels in Italy in a few years.
Sun International temporarily closes properties: Sun International has temporarily closed all its casino, hotels and resorts in South Africa, in line with the new COVID-19 regulations. Graham Wood, Sun International’s chief operating officer for hospitality, explained that they decided to temporarily close all their properties as they would struggle to operate amid the new restrictions on leisure travel in and out of Gauteng, alcohol and curfew.
TPG Hotels acquires Sherburne Inn: TPG Hotels, Resorts & Marinas, an operator of hospitality assets across all chain scales, has acquired the historic Sherburne Inn in Nantucket, Massachusetts. The name of the seller was not made public. The Sherburne Inn adds to the firm’s other properties in Nantucket- The Veranda House, The Regatta Inn, The Chapman House and Arbor Cottage- which are collectively called the Nantucket Resort Collection. TPG is approaching 200 branded, independent and boutique hotels comprising more than 32,000 guest rooms in 32 states.
Delissart adds IHG properties to revenue management portfolio: Dellisart, a national hotel ownership, management and development company, announced the addition of three IHG properties to its revenue management portfolio. The three properties include the 81-room Candlewood Suites Plano North in Plano, Texas, the 106-room Candlewood Suites Houston North l45 Spring in Houston, Texas, and the 87-room Holiday Inn Express Lebanon in Lebanon, Tennessee. Dellisart has over 20 properties in its revenue management portfolio.
Explorar launches in Thailand: Hong Kong-based boutique group Pavilions Hotels & Resorts has launched Explorar Hotels & Resorts with the first resort – the 24-key Explorar Pawapi Koh Mook – opening on October 1 on the peninsula of Koh Mook Island in southern Thailand’s Trang province. Explorar will focus on the millennial traveler looking for a light-hearted space to socialize, make local connections and enjoy easy, fun living while enjoying an experience that adds value to the community. It wants to develop within Asia and Europe, both urban and resort locations, and offers four themes – beach, eco, cultural and urban. Pavilions currently owns and manages 13 hotels and will franchise.
MGM Resorts launches solar array in Las Vegas: MGM Resorts International launched a 100-megawatt solar array, the hospitality industry’s largest directly sourced renewable electricity project. The array’s clean energy produces up to 90% of MGM Resorts’ Las Vegas daytime power needs, spanning 65 million sq. ft. of buildings across 13 properties and more than 36,000 rooms on the Las Vegas strip. MGM Resorts is the sole user of the renewable electricity generated. Located in the desert north of Las Vegas, the solar array features 323,000 panels arranged across 640 acres. Its electricity production will be equivalent to the amount of power used by roughly 27,000 average U.S. homes annually. The solar array speeds its progress towards MGM Resorts’ 2025 goal to reduce carbon emissions by 45% per sq. ft. The company announced two new goals it has developed guided by the science-based targets initiative: reduce absolute cope one and two greenhouse gas emissions 50% by 2030 (2019 base year); source 100% renewable electricity in the U.S. and 70% globally by 2030.