HVS EMEA Hospitality Enews – Week Ending 10 April 2009

The First Paris Transaction of 2009 | Real estate fund Compagnie La Lucette has sold the Radisson Blu Hotel, Paris Boulogne to investment fund Capital France Hôtel (CFH) for an undisclosed sum. The sale of the 170-room hotel is the first Parisian transaction of 2009. With the addition of this hotel, CFH’s portfolio now comprises 13 properties across France.

Swiss-Belhotel's First Venture In Jordan | A hotel is coming to life on the Jordanian shores of the Dead Sea. The hotel, which has reportedly been more than three years in the gestation, was given birth to symbolically after a quick push, into the yielding sand, of the foundation stone. The 161-room Winter Valley Dead Sea by Swiss-Belhotel, which is to open towards the end of 2010, was conceived under a management agreement signed by Swiss-Belhotel International and the Jordanian company Winter Valley Tourism Investment. The hotel will be a first in Jordan for Swiss-Belhotel International.

Starwood Debuts In The Czech Republic | The Sheraton Prague Charles Square Hotel has the honour of being Starwood Hotels & Resorts’ first hotel in the Czech Republic. The former Golden Gate Hotel & Suites has been lovingly tended to by Orchid Investment over the past 21 months and the 160-room Sheraton is now in bloom in the Czech capital Prague.

A Radisson Blu Resort For Tunisa | The Thalassa Monastir resort in the northeastern Tunisian city of Monastir, on the Mediterranean Sea, is to be rebranded as a Radisson Blu property. The 280-room resort, which is owned by Thalassa Hotels Tunisa, will operate as the Radisson Blu Resort & Thalasso, Monastir as of November 2009.

A Tale Of Two Cities | This month sees the opening of two new Crowne Plaza properties. In Paris, France, the Holiday Inn République has been rebranded and is now operating as the 328-room Crowne Plaza Paris République. This hotel is the city’s second Crowne Plaza. Across the English Channel, in London, UK, the 162-room Crowne Plaza London Kensington is expected to open on 21 April. This hotel, which previously operated as the Holiday Inn London Kensington, has recently undergone an £8 million refurbishment.

Staybridge Suites Comes To Stay In Newcastle | Crowne Plaza isn’t InterContinental Hotels Group’s (IHG) only brand to be in the headlines this week. After its debut in Liverpool, in June 2008, Staybridge Suites has opened its second property in the UK in the northern city of Newcastle. The 128-suite Staybridge Suites Newcastle is owned by Trinity Hotels and is to be managed by IHG under a 20-year management contract. This is IHG’s third Staybridge property outside of North America.

Abodes' First Baby Is To Open In London | Sydney House Chelsea, a 21-room town house hotel in Chelsea, southwest London, will next month become the first hotel to take the newborn boutique brand Baby Abode. A Baby Abode is a smaller version (maximum 40 rooms) of a typical hotel in the ‘grown-up’ Abode Hotels portfolio. The father of the new brand is Andrew Brownsword, the co-founder of Abode Hotels and the owner of Sydney House. He is reported to be looking to open other Baby Abode hotels in London and in the Scottish capital Edinburgh over the next few years.

A Marriott Hotel For Twickenham | The Six Nations Championship is over for another year, and yet a seventh nation, the USA –represented by Marriott International – is enjoying some action at Twickenham Stadium. Marriott has opened the London Marriott Hotel Twickenham there as part of the development of the South Stand and will manage the 156-room hotel under an agreement reached with the Rugby Football Union.

A 15% Discount At The Arabian Hotel Investment Conference For Enews Subscribers | HVS London’s Russell Kett will be speaking at the fifth Arabian Hotel Investment Conference, which will take place on 2-4 May at the Madinat Jumeirah hotel in Dubai. This event attracts hotel owners, developers, operators and, of course, investors, as well as architects, designers, lawyers and many more, from around the globe. It is the largest hotel investment networking event in the Middle East. As a way of saying "thank you", the organisers have allowed us to extend the speaker’s 15% VIP discount to HVS EMEA Hospitality Enews subscribers. Dubai’s hotels have reduced their rates too. To register and claim your 15% discount contact [email protected] or call +971 (0)4375 5607 in Dubai (+3 GMT). Visit to see the conference agenda and networking events hosted by Jumeirah and Emaar Hospitality.

Kiessling's Corner | The news from Spain by By Gabriele Kiessling, HVS Analyst, Madrid. The city of San Sebastian has a new hotel which was inspired by the film world of the 1950s. The hotel has dedicated each of its 102 rooms to a film star who came to the city for the famous San Sebastian Film Festival. The three-star, nine-room Alcazar de Castellar in Castellar de la Frontera opened on 4 April after a seven-year renovation project; the hotel is owned by Tugasa (Turismo Gaditano SA). Other openings this week include a four-star, 124-room Novotel property in Murcia, and the nine-room Teodosio de Goñi hotel which opened in Navarra.

Absolute Share Price Performance Over the Past Week 2-8 April 2009

• Sol Meliá and Rezidor Hotel Group - Both companies are reported to be in uptrend while in top quartile by P/E.
• InterContinental Hotels Group - Investors downgraded the group to "neutral" from "buy".

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