Former Quest Apartment Hotels CEO Zed Sanjana has been named as the new Chief Executive of Veriu Hotels and Punthill Hotels, tasked with continuing the expansion of the rapidly growing brand.
Michelle Bradshaw will take charge of two as General Manager of a jointly-branded newbuild property - Ibis / Novotel Little Lonsdale Street in Melbourne upon the complex opening later this year. Beginning with the hotel giant in 2005, Bradshaw completed the Accor Vivier National Management training program in 2008. Since then she has worked for two hotels in Melbourne and Sydney - the Novotel Glen Waverley and Hotel Lindrum MGallery, which together book-end a stint at the Novotel/Ibis Sydney Olympic Park.
Ana Royal has been named as the new Hotel Manager at the Ibis Styles Tamworth. Beginning with AccorHotels in 2006 at the Mercure Wellington in New Zealand, Royal has worked her way up across a variety of properties in NZ and Australia. She comes to her new role from her recent position as Operations Manager at Ibis Styles Hobart.
Another graduate of the Accor Graduate Management Program is Rebecca Davis, who has ascended to the role of General Manager at Ibis Styles Geraldton. Davis has held a number of roles at AccorHotels properties in Sydney and Canberra and takes charge in her new role having most recently served as GM at Wilpena Pound Resort in the Flinders Ranges National Park in South Australia.
The new GM of Ibis Budget Melbourne CBD is Ashan Abeykoon, who returns to Melbourne after a two-year stint as Operations Manager at Novotel Wollongong in NSW. Prior to this, Abeykoon has progressed through the ranks at a number of properties in Melbourne, with a particular history and expertise in F&B roles. He has been with AccorHotels since 2003.
Design Hotels™ appoints Allison Barclay to represent their global collection of independent hotels, in Australia and New Zealand. Design Hotels represents and markets a select collection of more than 300 hotels in 60 countries and 200 destinations around the globe. Australia and New Zealand is an important growth market for those truly original and unique destinations. Jinou Park, Vice President, Design Hotels APAC says, "Design Hotels is the perfect proposition for the Australian and New Zealand market as it is a curation of independent, design-lead original experiences across the globe. Australia and New Zealand has always been a bedrock of our likeminded community and we decided to work with Allison to support our travel trade partners and gain greater presence in the region. Allison shares our passion for stories and experiences with our Design Hotels members and we look forward to growing the Design Hotels Community with her." Allison, of Revolve Communications, is based in Sydney and has national responsibility for representing Design Hotels and supporting travel partners in Australia and New Zealand.
Development paperwork has been lodged by Sydney casino The Star for a new 61-storey hotel tower which all but confirms the return of Marriott International's Ritz-Carlton brand to the NSW capital after a decade away.
STR's preliminary July 2018 data for hotels in Sydney, Australia, indicates performance affected by significant supply growth and less market events. Based on daily data from July, Sydney reported the following in year-over-year comparisons:
Graham Perry has been appointed managing director of Best Western Hotels & Resorts, Australasia. The appointment follows Best Western International (BWI) taking management control of the brand on June 1 from the Motel Federation of Australia. His first few weeks have been spent bedding down the operational transition as BWI moves to a property direct relationship with hotels and resorts in Australia and New Zealand. Perry's immediate goals are to boost the level of services Best Western provides properties such as increasing revenue management capabilities and growing Best Western Rewards. He was most recently CEO of inland NSW, while previous roles include CEO See Australia, CEO Traveland, managing director classifieds at Fairfax Media, and managing director Utell International.
Entrepreneur Martyn Barnes has signed a management agreement to badge his new Yarra Valley property as voco™, IHG's new upscale hotel brand, making it the second voco signing for Australia.
Travelers and staycationing Sydney-siders will soon be able to immerse themselves in Sydney's burgeoning Central Park Precinct, with the opening of the Four Points by Sheraton Sydney, Central Park. Strategically located in Chippendale, the hotel sits in the heart of Sydney's creative scene and playground of local haunts from artisan cafes and galleries to hidden bars.
Fore Management Group and Asean Events today announce the global hotel industry's leading cloud platform, SiteMinder, as the title sponsor of the 2018 Bangkok Hospitality Challenge.
Leading accommodation provider Oaks Hotels & Resorts, a division of Minor Hotels, has officially completed the acquisition of its newest property, Oaks Resort & Spa Hervey Bay on Queensland's magnificent Fraser Coast.In a deal brokered by leading accommodation specialist Resort Brokers, Oaks Hotels & Resorts now holds the hotel management rights of the iconic property (formerly Oceans Resort & Spa Hervey Bay), which has enjoyed a rich history as one of the region's premier and most sought after resorts in this destination. Local industry heavyweights have been quick to pledge their support and embrace the acquisition, commenting that the backing of an established international hotel operator will be a 'major shot in the arm' for the Resort and greater Fraser Coast district in terms of tourism growth.
Sydney's hotel performance has been powering ahead, buoyed by a resilient economy and strong tourism growth. The city's hotels are now posting RevPAR figures some $52 higher than the next best performing market, Melbourne. Horwath HTL Australia examines if the city can keep the streak going, or will new supply take the wind out of their sails?
Beijing July 31st, 2018, Shiji Group established operations in Sydney, Australia to manage the growth and customer care in the Pacific. With over 8,000 hotels using Shiji products in the region and international offices in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Macau it became evident that to keep with Shiji's tradition of customer service, an office was needed for Australasian customers.
Ovolo Hotels has appointed Christopher James as its General Manager of Sales, Australia managing sales across the Australian hotel portfolio. Hailing from The Langham Hospitality Group where he was Assistant Director of Global Sales (Corporate and Entertainment) and AccorHotels as Business Development Manager, Christopher will lead the Ovolo Australia's sales team focussing on sales for the Australian operation both domestically and internationally.
In the kitchen, Executive Chef Kitak Lee comes to the hotel following a successful stint heading up Melbourne's The Table at Kuro Kisumé. Raised in South Korea and trained in Europe, Lee also brings history in senior roles at many Sydney restaurants including Momofuku Seiobo, Cho Cho San and Bilson's to his new role at The Lobby Bar.
Holding an extensive professional pedigree across both Sydney and London, native Queenslander Ford returns home as the front-of-house face for the new hotel's dining establishments. Ford brings experience at Merivale's Coogee Pavilion and InterContinental Double Bay in Sydney and SoHo House Group's Shoreditch House in the English capital.
The Whitsunday Islands will welcome a new era of luxury in 2019 with the signing of a management agreement that will see IHG take over management of Hayman Island, rebranding it as Hayman Island, by InterContinental.
Rachael Harding has been announced as the newlyappointed General Manager for Club Med Australia and New Zealand.Harding brings award-winning industry experience and expertise to the role, having worked with The Travel Corporation over the past 15 years on brands including Contiki and Trafalgar Travel.