With contributions from Stephen Rushmore, Roland deMilleret, McKenna Luke, Eric Guerrero, Janet Ott, Patricia Shih, Cole Masler, Raymond Parejo, Caroline Dioso, Robert Fitzpatrick, and Chelsey Leffet
Hilton is proud to announce the return of their highly successful ‘Hilton on the Green’ experience to the RBC Canadian Open, June 6-11 at Oakdale Golf and Country Club in Toronto, Ontario.
Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE: CHH), demonstrating continued growth in 2022's highest performing category in the entire lodging sector, opened a company record, six WoodSpring Suites hotels during the month of May. These openings, which were led by a dedicated, extended stay team, account for 732 new economy extended stay rooms from coast to coast and 1,414 total new rooms for the brand since the start of 2023, with nearly 38,000 rooms in the domestic pipeline.
Pacifica Hotels, the largest owner and operator of boutique hotels along the Pacific Coast, is excited to announce the recent purchase of the Kimpton Hotel Vintage Seattle. The boutique hotel located in downtown Seattle will join the company’s growing portfolio of 40 plus properties currently located across California, Hawaii, and Oregon.
Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) announced the continued expansion of the Hyatt Regency brand in the U.S. with the recent openings of two Houston-area hotels: Hyatt Regency Baytown-Houston and Hyatt Regency Conroe. Both hotels debuted this month and feature contemporary design, versatile indoor and outdoor meeting and event space, more than 200 modern guestrooms, and regionally inspired onsite dining options. With a total of 13 Hyatt Regency properties across Texas, the intentional growth of the Hyatt Regency brand with these full-service hotels further showcases Hyatt’s commitment to offering travel experiences in places that matter most to guests and World of Hyatt members.
Premier beach resort company OUTRIGGER Hospitality Group today announced its plans to acquire Kā‘anapali Beach Hotel, a beachfront resort on the Island of Maui, renowned as “Hawaii’s Most Hawaiian Hotel.” It is located on the golden sands of world-famous Kā‘anapali Beach, which was recently ranked as the No. 1 Beach in the U.S. and No. 10 Beach in the World by TripAdvisor. The property spans 11-acres with 432 rooms.This transaction is expected to close on July 26, 2023 at which time the property will be rebranded as OUTRIGGER Kā‘anapali Beach Resort. The purchase price is not being disclosed.“From Maui to Maldives, OUTRIGGER is bullish about our mission to be The Premier Beach Resort Company in the World, simultaneously elevating our current assets and strategically adding complementary resort products to our global portfolio,” said Jeff Wagoner, President and CEO of OUTRIGGER Hospitality Group. “OUTRIGGER’s investment in a full-service Maui resort underscores our confidence in this iconic destination and our commitment to its community.”The global hospitality brand was founded in Hawaii 75 years ago and has deep expertise in this market; OUTRIGGER currently owns and/or operates 26 resorts, hotels and vacation condos throughout the island chain – including seven condominium resorts on Maui. In the last two years alone, OUTRIGGER added five premier beach resorts to its portfolio, including OUTRIGGER Kona Resort & Spa on Hawaii Island, as well as three properties in Southern Thailand and a five-star resort in the Maldives.The award-winning Kā‘anapali Beach Hotel recently completed a US$75 million property-wide renovation spanning two of the guestroom wings. The property offers a dozen Hawaiian cultural classes for guests alongside abundant ocean activities such as outrigger canoe paddling and snorkel tours. Additionally, Kā‘anapali Beach Hotel is employing several high-impact sustainability initiatives, including the installation of solar panels, charging stations for electric vehicles and water refill stations.These efforts have not gone unnoticed; last year, readers of Condé Nast Traveler named Kā‘anapali Beach Hotel the No. 4 Top Resort on Maui and readers of Hawaii Magazine voted it the No. 1 Hotel Statewide.“With its pristine location along a three-mile stretch of sand, deep cultural connections and authentic Hawaiian hospitality, Kā‘anapali Beach Hotel has tremendous synergy with the OUTRIGGER brand; we are honored for the opportunity to become stewards of this coveted property,” Wagoner added. “Our intention, once the sale is finalised, is to craft a thoughtful plan to further enhance the resort grounds while retaining unique attributes that guests have cherished for years.”Under the helm of General Manager Mike White since the 1980s, Kā‘anapali Beach Hotel has been a pioneer in preserving and supporting Hawaiian culture – receiving numerous state and national awards for its focus on culture, community service and creating a model of sustainability for the Hawaii tourism industry at large.The link between Kā‘anapali Beach Hotel and OUTRIGGER stretches back three decades with the founding of OUTRIGGER’s values-based management approach, Ke ‘Ano Wa‘a which translates to The OUTRIGGER Way.“When the renowned scholar Dr. George Kanahele and I created the state’s first Hawaiian cultural training course for hotel employees in 1986, OUTRIGGER’s leadership understood and appreciated the value of this curriculum – so, 30 years ago we guided them in creating a version tailored for OUTRIGGER called Ke ‘Ano Wa‘a,” said White. “It’s uplifting to know that this platform of caring for host, guest and place remains intact today and will be a foundation of this exciting next chapter for Kā‘anapali Beach Hotel.”Additionally, as part of this transaction, OUTRIGGER will also take ownership of The Plantation Inn – a charming, 18-room bed and breakfast in historic Lahaina Town, located steps from Maui’s famous Front Street, which has consistently been voted the #1 B&B on Maui. At this time, no changes are planned for this quaint, adults-only accommodation.Travelers can book a room today for OUTRIGGER Kā‘anapali Beach Hotel at www.kbhmaui.com and The Plantation Inn at www.theplantationinn.com, as well as www.outrigger.com for stays from July 26, 2023 forward.OUTRIGGER Kā‘anapali Beach Resort will retain the Lei Aloha platform and also be added to the OUTRIGGER DISCOVERY loyalty programme, which rewards guests with exclusive member rates and DISCOVERY Dollars for staying at OUTRIGGER, as well as more than 800 hotels in the GHA DISCOVERY portfolio.
The Ascend Hotel Collection, part of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE: CHH), opened 2023 with an impressive first quarter, further solidifying its status as the industry's largest upscale soft brand collection with over 330 hotels open or in development worldwide. The Collection awarded seven new agreements and added four new properties to its global portfolio in the first quarter of 2023, fueling Ascend Hotel Collection's continued growth.
Disney’s $2,400-a-night Star Wars hotel, which opened to much fanfare just over a year ago, is set to close in September. The Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, which launched in Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, on 1 March 2022, was initially marketed as an immersive experience. Sold as a two-day package, a stay included lodgings in a cabin or suite; immersive entertainment, such as light saber training and participating in missions with the Resistance fighting against Kylo Ren and the First Order; food and drinks; and admission to Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Life House, a technology-forward hotel management company, has been selected to manage three new hotels in Texas - Hotel Dryce in Fort Worth, The Flats at St. Mary in San Antonio, and a third property that will be announced soon. The owners of both Hotel Dryce and The Flats at St. Mary wanted an experienced independent hotel operator to run the day-to-day operations and free up their time to focus on development projects. They were drawn to Life House’s ability to preserve brand identity, while maximizing profit through tech-enabled management.
Questex has acquired and assumed management control of the NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference from the NYU School of Professional Studies (NYU SPS) starting with the 2024 edition. The value of the transaction was not disclosed.
Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE: CHH) continues its nationwide expansion of Cambria Hotels in the Pacific Northwest with the official start of construction on Cambria Hotel Pearl District—Portland and Cambria Hotel Hillsboro. Expected to open in Spring 2025, the new properties will be added to Cambria's growing portfolio of hotels in travelers' favorite destinations.
As reported in the recently released Construction Pipeline Trend Report for Canada by Lodging Econometrics (LE), at the close of Q1 2023, the country’s hotel construction pipeline currently stands at 283 projects/37,683 rooms. Canada’s total construction pipeline increased 10% by projects and 5% by rooms year-over-year (YOY).Accelerated by the return of travel demand, new project announcements (NPAs) in Canada saw significant growth in the first quarter. NPAs surpassed totals for each of the previous five quarters, to stand at 27 projects/3,806 rooms at the Q1 close. As a result of the growing number of NPAs in Q1, projects in the early planning stage hit a peak for the country with 145 projects/20,583 rooms, up 38% and 36% YOY, respectively.Other pipeline metrics at the Q1 close include projects that are under construction, which stand at 47 projects/5,802 rooms, while projects scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months are at 91 projects/11,298 rooms. Additionally, combined renovation and brand conversion projects in Canada reached a record-high total this quarter with 105 projects/11,598 rooms.Ontario continues to lead Canada’s construction pipeline with record-high project and room counts of 162 projects/21,945 rooms and accounts for 57% of the projects and 58% of the rooms in Canada’s total pipeline. British Columbia follows, also reaching record-high totals at Q1, with 55 projects/8,670 rooms, followed by Quebec with 21 projects/2,555 rooms.The top cities in Canada, with the most projects in the pipeline at Q1, are Toronto, with 61 projects/8,763 rooms. Following distantly is Vancouver, then Niagara Falls, both reaching record-high project and room totals at the Q1 close, with 23 projects/3,634 rooms and 16 projects/5,088 rooms, respectively.Three franchise companies dominate Canada’s construction pipeline at the close of the first quarter, accounting for 65% of the projects and 60% of the rooms in the country’s total pipeline. These companies are led by Marriott International with 78 projects and 10,305 rooms, followed by Hilton Worldwide with 64 projects/7,850 rooms, and InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) with 43 projects/4,347 rooms.The top franchise brands in Canada’s pipeline are Hilton’s Hampton by Hilton brands with 24 projects/2,795 rooms, IHG’s Holiday Inn Express with 20 projects/2,159 rooms, and TownePlace Suites by Marriott with a record 20 projects/2,017 rooms.Other notable brands in Canada’s pipeline are Marriott’s Fairfield Inn with record project and room totals at Q1 of 19 projects/1,805 rooms, Tru by Hilton with 14 projects/1,350 rooms, also at record-highs, and Hyatt Place with 11 projects/1,582 rooms.LE’s forecast for new hotel openings in Canada calls for a total of 31 new hotel projects with 3,744 rooms to open in 2023, marking a 1.0% new supply growth rate increase compared to 2022 totals. In 2024, LE analysts expect a 1.1% increase in room supply with 68 new hotel projects/4,048 rooms forecast to open by year-end.
In the recently released United States Construction Pipeline Trend Report from Lodging Econometrics (LE), analysts detailed the leading franchise companies and their brands in the construction pipeline at the close of the first quarter. Marriott International (Marriott) tops the charts with the greatest number of projects in the U.S. hotel construction pipeline, at Q1 2023, with 1,499 projects/181,377 rooms, followed closely by Hilton Worldwide (Hilton), with a record-high count of 1,436 projects/161,359 rooms, and then InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) with 809 projects/80,679 rooms. Combined, these three franchise companies comprise 68% of the projects in the total U.S. pipeline.Marriott also has the most projects and room counts in each stage of the pipeline at Q1, with 279 projects/38,156 rooms currently under construction, 763 projects/90,038 rooms scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months, and 457 projects/53,183 rooms in early planning.The leading brands by project count for the three companies with the largest pipelines in the U.S. at Q1 are Home2 Suites by Hilton with all-time highs by projects and rooms of 546 projects/56,001 rooms, Marriott’s TownePlace Suites, also reaching all-time highs by projects and rooms at Q1, with 333 projects/31,068 rooms, and IHG’s Holiday Inn Express brand with 301 projects/28,371 rooms. These three brands collectively represent 21% of the projects in the total U.S. hotel construction pipeline at the close of Q1 2023.LE recorded record-high conversion pipeline totals of 1,079 projects/110,084 rooms for the U.S. in the first quarter of 2023. Of these conversion totals, Hilton had the most conversion projects and room totals ever recorded by LE with 105 projects/14,456 rooms, similarly, Marriott had a record 100 conversion projects, accounting for 13,465 rooms, and IHG had 52 conversion projects/6,2543 rooms. These three franchise companies account for 31% of all the rooms in the conversion pipeline across the country.The franchise companies with the greatest number of new project announcements in the first quarter were: Hilton with 110 projects/11,790 rooms, Marriott with 61 projects/6,730 rooms, and IHG with 33 projects/3,103 rooms. These companies represent 60% of all new projects announced in the U.S. in Q1 2023.In Q1 2023, Marriott opened 33 new hotels with 3,711 rooms. Hilton opened 24 new hotels with 2,781 rooms, and IHG opened 6 new hotels with 629 rooms. The LE forecast for new hotel openings in 2023 anticipates that Marriott will open a total of 152 new hotel projects/19,064 rooms by year-end, Hilton is forecasted to open 141 new hotel projects/16,980 rooms in 2023, and IHG is expected to open 88 new hotel projects/9,975 rooms. These three franchise companies collectively account for 64% and 65%, respectively, of new hotel projects and rooms forecast to open in 2023.
In the Q1 2023 U.S. Construction Pipeline Trend Report released by Lodging Econometrics (LE), LE analysts report, that as a group, year-over-year the hotel construction pipeline has grown in the Top 25 Markets in the U.S. The top five U.S. markets with the largest hotel construction pipelines at the close of the first quarter are led by Dallas with, record-high project and room counts of 184 projects/21,810 rooms. Following are Atlanta with 144 projects/18,242 rooms, Los Angeles with 118 projects/19,066 rooms, Phoenix with 117 projects/16,100 rooms, and Nashville with 115 projects/15,354 rooms.
With continued elevated levels of inflation and interest rates, and fears of an impending economic recession, the U.S. commercial real estate industry continues to find itself in choppy waters. The recent stunning and swift collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), and subsequent failures of Signature Bank (SB), and Credit Suisse Group AG (CS) has created a perceived credit crunch now rippling across the global financial system.
LRE & Companies, a real estate development, asset manager, construction, and hotel management company, has revealed the plans for University Square, a 10-acre mixed-use development project at the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and University Avenue in Rocklin, CA. With retail and hospitality components, University Square is the developer’s first project in the city but second in Placer County. The project is slated to be completed by year-end 2025.
Officials of the Hospitality Asset Managers Association (“HAMA”) today announced that the 4th year students Emma Carlson and Kara Booth of The Pennsylvania State University were selected as the 2022 winners of the Seventeenth Annual HAMA Student Case Competition. The PSU team was chosen from a select field of top hotel schools.
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, the world’s largest hotel franchising company with approximately 9,100 hotels spanning more than 95 countries, today announced the expansion of its Manufacturer Direct program. First launched in 2022 for Days Inn® by Wyndham, the program—now available to Ramada® by Wyndham and Microtel® by Wyndham franchisees—helps hotels undergoing renovations save an average of 20 percent or more in cost versus traditional renovation programs.
Officials of She Has a Deal today announced the five finalist teams of the Early Career track selected to advance to the final round of SHaDPitch 2023. The annual hotel investment pitch competition allows teams of early career women to compete for the prize of $50,000 of equity in SHaD’s Prosperity Fund I, following the conclusion of a virtual, preliminary round of pitching. The goal of She Has a Deal is to increase the number of women owning and developing hotels. The organization is an ecosystem that offers inspiration and education through its EdTech platform to channel the power of collaboration and mentorship. She Has a Deal creates new pathways to hotel ownership and development by exposing participants to the hard-to-find details needed to successfully source, analyze, raise capital and close hotel real estate investment deals.
H&LA’s Adam Zarczynski attended the Hunter Hotel Investment Conference in Atlanta in March. Here are some key highlights from the conference.