CHECK IN! – latest hotel highlights from across the globe

30 March, 2021

CTC - Corporate Travel Community brings you a round up of some of the latest accommodation and hospitality news from across the globe. Here's our first offering of the week.

  • Marriott International signs agreement with Al Saedan Group to bring three further hotels to Saudi Arabia
  • Hyatt reopens Hôtel Du Palais in Biarritz, part of its Unbound Collection
  • New Milwaukee area property marks 30th avid hotel open in North America
  • Premier Inn relaunches Business Booker online tool to simplify booking process
  • Data metrics - latest performance insights from STR
  • News briefs - bitesize updates of latest industry news and developments

Marriott International signs agreement with Al Saedan Group to bring three further hotels to Saudi Arabia

Marriott International has signed an agreement with Al Saedan Group, a leading real estate company in the Middle East, to open three hotels across Saudi Arabia. The multi-project agreement includes the country and territory's first Renaissance Hotel, the world's largest Aloft Hotel and a Courtyard by Marriott in the Holy City of Makkah. All three properties are projected to open by 2025. The new Renaissance Riyadh Hotel will be situated in the business hub of the King Abdullah Financial District and within close proximity to Riyadh International Airport - it is expected to feature 266 suites, three food and beverage outlets and leisure facilities such as a spa, pool and fitness centre. The Aloft Makkah Taysir will be situated in the Holy City of Makkah and plans to house 1,000 guest rooms. Located in the Taysir district and close to the Grand Mosque entrance, the hotel will be ideally located for guests visiting on pilgrimage. Meanwhile, the Courtyard by Marriott Makkah Kudai plans to encompass 438 guestrooms in a location around two kilometres from the Grand Mosque entrance. Marriott International's portfolio in Saudi Arabia already consists of over 30 properties with more than 9,000 rooms across ten brands and nine cities.


Hyatt reopens Hôtel Du Palais in Biarritz, part of its Unbound Collection

Hyatt Hotels Corporation has confirmed the reopening of Hôtel du Palais Biarritz, which is part of The Unbound Collection by Hyatt brand, a collection of one-of-a-kind hotels from historic gems to revitalising retreats. Paying homage to the property's original architecture and history, the hotel and the majority of its guestrooms and suites have been restored to reflect the palace's iconic past in French history. The only hotel with the recognition "Palace de France" on the French Atlantic coast, Hôtel du Palais in Biarritz was first built in 1854 by Napoleon III for his wife Eugénie de Montijo. The renovation process has rejuvenated and embellished its original and unconventional splendour, respecting the hotel's history while modernising certain elements with the guest experience in mind. The hotel features 86 rooms and 56 suites with areas varying from 301 to 1,076 square feet and is decorated with a Second Empire Style that remains true to the original architecture and history as a Palace. Guest rooms on the top floor feature an extraordinary marine ambiance, highlighted by nautical themes reminiscent of cruise ships with rounded windows and portholes.

New Milwaukee area property marks 30th avid hotel open in North America

IHG Hotels & Resorts has hit a milestone with its fast-growing brand avid hotels - the opening of the 30th avid hotel - avid hotel Milwaukee West-Waukesha. Since its introduction in 2017, the brand has grown quickly across North America with 2020 seeing the opening of the first location in Mexico, which was completed in just 10 months, and construction of the first location in Canada. With more than 200 hotels signed since launch and around 90 of those in planning or under construction, avid hotels is part of IHG's strong Essentials brand portfolio and a promise of "the basics delivered just right, every time at a great value". The new avid hotel Milwaukee West-Waukesha, owned by Kingbird Real Estate and managed by Aimbridge Hospitality, offers 95 rooms at a location less than three miles from the Waukesha County Airport, Waukesha County Expo Center, the Center Court Sports Complex and the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee at Waukesha.


Premier Inn relaunches Business Booker online tool to simplify booking process

UK budget hotel brand Premier Inn has re-launched its online booking tool for businesses in a move to simplify the way they book and arrange their hotel requirements. Business Booker offers solutions to a range of travel needs, from booking to payments in one place and gives users access to every one of Premier Inn's 820 hotels across the UK, Ireland and Germany as well as every room type and every room rate. Business Booker is free and its simple booking system is designed to save companies time and money by booking in just a few clicks, according to Premier Inn parent Whitbread. It also offers exclusive Business Flex rates with a guaranteed 5% and up to 15% discount off its Flex rate and ability to cancel up to 1pm on the day of arrival.


Data metrics - latest performance insights from STR

  • The America's Cup yacht race lifted Auckland, New Zealand daily hotel performance to its highest levels of early 2021, according to preliminary data. The market reached a peak occupancy of 73.0% on 13-Mar-2021 the highest level in the metric across 1Q 2021. The rise in occupancy was also accompanied by improvement in ADR and RevPAR which also hit recent highs of NZD264.47 and NZD192.96, respectively as at 13-Mar-2021.
  • Sanya, China was one of the few metro markets around the globe to report 2020 year-on-year growth in RevPAR. The southernmost city on China's Hainan Island, stands out beyond other markets thanks to high levels of domestic tourism as China continues to limit international travel. The 2020 growth was largely driven by a +19.7% increase in ADR, with occupancy at 55.8%, down -12.6% from 2019.

News briefs - bitesize updates of latest industry news and developments

  • TraknProtect, a developer of location-based technology purpose-built for the hotel industry and a leading employee safety button provider for several major hotel brands, has been selected as a preferred supplier of safety buttons to hospitality procurement services company Avendra.
  • The Delta Hotels by Marriott Virginia Beach Bayfront Suites has opened on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay - the largest estuary in the US - as the first hotel on the bay with its own private beach. The 295-room, nine-storey hotel includes a mix of one- and two-bedroom suites, a signature restaurant with an expansive outdoor patio, and meeting and event capabilities.
  • Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, in partnership with private equity investment specialist Emin Capital, will take over the management of the former Hotel Formentor in Mallorca, Spain. Originally opened in 1929, the existing hotel will undergo extensive renovations before it is unveiled as a Four Seasons experience in 2023. The property will offer 110 rooms and suites and is located on a 1,200 hectare (3,000 acre) plot of the Formentor Peninsula, offering access to a pristine beach, as well as a functioning vineyard a short five minute drive away.
  • The Mandarin Oriental, New York will reopen to guests from 01-Apr-2021 having been closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The anticipated reopening also debuts a new dining experience, MO Lounge, along with enhanced safety measures and programming designed to ensure wellbeing yet still delivering on the brand's renowned service quality.
  • Grupo Posadas has contracted hospitality software as a service provider Duetto to bring pricing optimisation and revenue automation to its limited-service one Hotels brand in Mexico. Launched in 2006, one Hotels is a three-star hotel brand providing practical and comfortable accommodation for those travelling on a budget. In total, 47 one Hotels properties comprising nearly 6,000 rooms will be integrated with Duetto's GameChanger pricing application.
  • Qbic Hotels will bring its promise of a property that "celebrates life rather than sucks life out of it" with its arrival in the northern English city of Manchester. The new Qbic Manchester is due to open in May-2021 in a converted 1960s office block on the city's busy Deansgate. The 261 rooms will include a mix of Mini Rooms (small double), windowless Smart Rooms, Cosy Doubles, Fun Rooms for up to three guests, and Qbic suites or Fancy Rooms.
  • Hyatt Hotels has confirmed the opening of Sweetgrass Inn at Wild Dunes, a newly built signature hotel located on four acres of the coastal Resort. Inspired by the sweetgrass that is indigenous to the South Carolina coast, the property is nestled among the dunes of Charleston's barrier island, Isle of Palms. The property features 153 guest rooms and suites, a spa, two dining outlets, an expansive pool deck and meeting and event spaces.
  • WhyHotel has announced Miami and Washington DC will be home to its latest signature pop-up hotels model. The WhyHotel Midtown Miami is coming to AMLI Midtown Miami in South Florida, in close proximity to the beach as well as close to a host of local breweries, restaurants, and high-end retailers. The WhyHotel Washington DC National Mall will arrive at the Kiley Apartments property in Washington DC, its second pop-up in DC and fifth in the region. Each pop-up hotel location will operate 100+ units.
  • Hotel management business Zeus International has completed the acquisition of three hotels in Bucharest, Romania. The properties are the Venezia, Opera and Central hotels located around the Cișmigiu Gardens near the historic city centre (CentruVechi), in the heart of the city's cultural and commercial area. The Central and Opera hotels were built during the interwar period, while Venezia was built at the turn of the twentieth century, now a listed building located at the historic square of Mihail Kogălniceanu.