- New Mercure hotel to open in trendy Hongdae area of Seoul in Aug-2020
- Rosewood Hotels & Resorts to add Le Guanahani in St Barth's to its portfolio
- Nobu Hotel Chicago brings lifestyle brand to the Midwest
- Data metrics - latest performance insights from STR
- News briefs - bitesize updates of latest industry news and developments
New Mercure hotel to open in trendy Hongdae area of Seoul in Aug-2020
Accor Ambassador Korea will open the new Mercure Ambassador Seoul Hongdae this coming August in partnership with Seohan Tourism Development Company. Located in Hongdae, a district renowned for attracting Seoul's younger crowd and vibrant spirit, the 270 guestroom property will boast an all-day-dining restaurant, a lobby bar, fitness centre and laundromat. Fully equipped with Internet of Things (IoT), all guestrooms can be easily controlled by guests' own smart devices. Accor Ambassador Korea currently operates 24 hotels across seven South Korean cities.
Rosewood Hotels & Resorts to add Le Guanahani in St Barth's to its portfolio
Rosewood Hotels & Resorts has been appointed to manage St. Barth's renowned retreat, Le Guanahani, which is set to reopen in spring 2021 following an extensive restoration of the fabled property. Closed since 2017 due to the effects of Hurricanes Irma and Maria, the property will reopen as Rosewood Le Guanahani St Barth's with a property-wide rebuild and refurbishment that preserves the unique spirit of the resort. This marks the growing ultra-luxury brand's third property in the Caribbean and first in the French West Indies. The accommodation comprises 66 guestrooms, suites and villas.
Nobu Hotel Chicago brings lifestyle brand to the Midwest
Nobu Hospitality, the globally established lifestyle brand founded by Chef Nobu Matsuhisa, Robert De Niro and Meir Teper, will open its latest property, the Nobu Hotel Chicago, on 01-Jul-2020. Situated in Chicago's vibrant West Loop, the hotel will feature 115 guest rooms and suites; a signature Nobu restaurant and bar on the ground level, and The Rooftop at Nobu showcasing on the roof dining amidst panoramic views of the city.
Data metrics - latest performance insights from STR
- Hotels in Africa reported unprecedented performance lows during May-2020 with the lowest absolute occupancy and RevPAR levels for any May on record. In comparison with May-2019, occupancy declined -72.1% to 14.2%, ADR fell -26.6% to USD70.09 and RevPAR was down -79.5% to USD9.97.
- The Asia Pacific hotel industry reported monthly lows in the three key performance metrics during May-2020. In comparison with May-2019, occupancy was down -47.3% to 35.8%; ADR fell -40.2% to USD55.93 and RevPAR declined more than two thirds, down -68.5% to USD20.04. The absolute levels in each of the three KPIs were the lowest for any May on record in the region, but were up from Apr-2020 levels.
- The Central and South America hotel industry reported historic performance lows during May-2020. In comparison with May-2019, occupancy was down -73.0% to 15.3%, ADR declined -34.3% to USD54.17 and RevPAR fell -82.2% to USD8.31. The absolute occupancy, ADR and RevPAR levels were the lowest for any May in STR's database for the region.
- The hotel industry in Europe reported performance lows during May-2020 and while the absolute occupancy, ADR and RevPAR levels were up from Apr-2020 levels, they were the lowest for any May in Europe. In comparison with May-2019, occupancy was down -82.3% to 13.3%, ADR fell -33.7% to EUR77.56 and RevPAR was down -88.3% to EUR10.30.
- Hotels in the Middle East reported unprecedented performance lows during May-2020 with the lowest absolute occupancy and RevPAR levels for any May on record. In comparison with May-2019, Occupancy was down -31.0% to 36.0%, ADR declined -45.6% to USD87.84 and RevPAR fell -62.5% to USD31.59.
News briefs
- Accor's Live Limitless loyalty programme has been expanded to include 25 Hours Hotels, a partner brand that operates just over a dozen properties, mainly in Germany, but also with units in Austria, France and Switzerland. This portfolio will spread this year to also include new hotels in Denmark (Copenhagen), Italy (Florence) and the United Arab Emirates (Dubai).
- The 144-room Element by Westin Toronto Airport formally opened on 24-Jun-2020 just across the street from the Toronto Pearson International Airport's Terminal 3. This new all suite extended stay hotel is operated as a Marriott franchise and is owned and managed by Easton's Group of Hotels, becoming the tenth Marriott branded hotel that the Easton's Group has built and developed.
- A new era awaits at Emporda Golf Resort from this summer with the Spanish venue undergoing a major redevelopment, transforming it into one of the premier 36-hole golfing destinations in Europe. The resort's new ownership and management team has unveiled multi-million euro plans to invest significantly across all facilities, with its two 18-hole golf courses, 86-room hotel and leisure facilities all receiving a major overhaul. The resort is located around 30 minutes from Girona in the heart of the Costa Brava region
- The 120-room Fairfield by Marriott Inn & Suites Columbus New Albany opened in Ohio earlier this month, owned and managed by SJB Management. The property is located nine miles from John Glenn Columbus International Airport and 15 minutes from downtown Columbus and provides convenient access to the Ohio Expo Center, Nationwide Arena, Ohio State University and Stadium and the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium.
- The new 261-room Hotel La Tour in Milton Keynes, in the UK, will aim to secure MICE business with 1,200 square metres of conference and meetings space. Work has commenced on the four star property which will feature a 14th floor sky bar and restaurant. It is scheduled to open in 2022.
- Hotelbeds has entered into a preferred partnership with Radisson Hotel Group. Through this agreement, Radisson will distribute via Hotelbeds' network of more than 60,000 B2B travel buyers such as tour operators, retail travel agents, airlines and loyalty programmes across more than 140 source markets worldwide.
- Hulsing Enterprises, a hospitality and medical facility management company that oversees an array of major hotel brand locations across the US will implement the ProfitSage performance data management, operational and financial reporting solution from ProfitSword. The platform will allow users at each of its hotel properties to receive real-time and granular insight into business performance.
- UK property brand Locke Hotels has revealed plans to expand into Europe with new openings planned in Dublin, Berlin, Lisbon, Munich and Copenhagen before the end of 2022. Further expansion in the UK will see the arrival of additional properties in Cambridge and London. Its properties are described as being a "boutique hotel apartment" or "design led aparthotel".
- The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood resort has implemented the VingCard Essence and VingCard Signature RFID door locks from ASSA ABLOY Global Solutions across the property. VingCard Essence is being used at its recently opened 638-guestroom Guitar Hotel upscale property while VingCard Signature RFID is being used to ensure the safety of guests at the 168-guestroom The Oasis Tower.
- The new SpringHill Suites by Marriott Atlanta Alpharetta/Roswell provides a little more space for travellers. The newly opened 90-suite hotel is located on Old Roswell Road and is owned by Xama Hospitality and managed by Horizon Hospitality Management.
- Hotel shopping, benchmarking and analytics provider TRIPBAM has revealed a new certification programme for managed travel consultants to use its platform to source and manage corporate hotel programmes. For corporates, the network of consultancies will help interested buyers migrate to The Tripbam Way - a method that enables companies to switch to majority dynamic hotel agreements that renew automatically each year, eliminating annual hotel RFPs.