Gross Operating Profit (GOP) levels of the 5-star hotel sector in China have fallen to the lowest level recorded in the eight years the China Hotel Industry Study has been published.
The GOP level of RMB 91,752 per room (USD 13,375) is 39 percent lower than the peak recorded in 2005 and is the fourth straight year the figure has declined.
In Beijing and Shanghai, the two largest hotel markets in the country, GOP levels in 2009 were RMB 86,194 and RMB 119,645 respectively. The Beijing hotel market in particular suffered dramatically recording an occupancy of only 47.5 percent and an average room rate of RMB 836, which resulted in a RevPAR of only RMB 397.
Read More:
Monday, July 5, 2010
Update: Wyndham back in New Kingston
Hilton Hotels said Monday that its displaced senior managers at Delroy Howell's New Kingston property would be offered, as appropriate, positions in the Caribbean and elsewhere in the global operation.
Hilton ended a 12-year run as managers of the property on June 30, two years into Howell's acquisition of the hotel property, which is held under a company he chairs known as Ocean Chimo.
Read More:
Hilton ended a 12-year run as managers of the property on June 30, two years into Howell's acquisition of the hotel property, which is held under a company he chairs known as Ocean Chimo.
Read More:
How Will Google Shake Up Online Travel?
Google on Thursday announced that it is moving into the travel industry, buying a flight-information company called ITA Software for $700 million. But what does the entry of the Internet giant mean for companies already in the market, like Expedia, Priceline and even Microsoft’s Bing Travel?
Expedia’s Web site. ITA currently provides airfare data to many of the industry players, including Orbitz, Kayak and Bing; Google said on Thursday that it would honor existing agreements with ITA’s customers. But despite such promises, Google is likely to make a splash. Wall Street analysts say the threat level from Google depends on the company.
Read More:
Expedia’s Web site. ITA currently provides airfare data to many of the industry players, including Orbitz, Kayak and Bing; Google said on Thursday that it would honor existing agreements with ITA’s customers. But despite such promises, Google is likely to make a splash. Wall Street analysts say the threat level from Google depends on the company.
Read More:
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Kingdom Holding May Sell Minority Stakes in Hotels
July 5 (Bloomberg) -- Kingdom Holding Co., the investment company controlled by Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, and its hotels unit may sell minority stakes held in hotels as part of a plan to focus on higher-earning properties.
Kingdom has a “handful” of assets where it owns a 50 percent stake or less, and it “will assess the viability” of those holdings and may sell them to reinvest in the same industry, Sarmad Zok, chief executive officer of the lodging unit Kingdom Hotel Investments, said by phone from New York on June 30. He declined to identify the properties.
Read More:
Kingdom has a “handful” of assets where it owns a 50 percent stake or less, and it “will assess the viability” of those holdings and may sell them to reinvest in the same industry, Sarmad Zok, chief executive officer of the lodging unit Kingdom Hotel Investments, said by phone from New York on June 30. He declined to identify the properties.
Read More:
Las Vegas Harmon Hotel stuck in limbo
CityCenter's most famous architect is also its least publicized. His name is Norman Foster. He is a globetrotting superstar with books and museum exhibits dedicated to his work. "Stormin' Norman," as the British press calls him, serves as chairman of London-based Foster + Partners, an architecture, design and planning firm responsible for famous buildings across Europe and Asia, including the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank headquarters and Reichstag New German Parliament. The Harmon Hotel at CityCenter was to be Foster's Las Vegas debut.
Read More:
Read More:
On the Spot: TripAdvisor vs. the hotel
Question: I recently found a notice on TripAdvisor about the hotel I manage that said TripAdvisor thinks “individuals or entities associated with or having an interest in this property may have interfered with traveler reviews and/or the popularity index for this property.” Now I’ve received an e-mail that says this is a violation of TripAdvisor policy and in some places a violation of federal law. Neither my staff nor I did anything wrong. Now what?
– S. Benham, San Diego
Read More:
– S. Benham, San Diego
Read More:
Phoenix hotels letting guests go greener
PHOENIX (AP) - Guests checking into the Westin Kierland Resort and Spa or Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel can do more than order breakfast or request privacy by hanging a card outside their door.
They can also decline daily housekeeping service.
The hotels are among a small but growing group who have taken their in-room "green" initiatives up a notch, adding the option of no cleaning on top of existing options to reuse towels and forego fresh sheets.
Read More:
They can also decline daily housekeeping service.
The hotels are among a small but growing group who have taken their in-room "green" initiatives up a notch, adding the option of no cleaning on top of existing options to reuse towels and forego fresh sheets.
Read More:
New Law Aloows New York City To Crack Down On Illegal Hotels
ALBANY - A bill passed by the Legislature would give the city greater power to crack down on illegal hotels being run out of apartment buildings.
The bill is designed to thwart a growing problem of landlords renting apartments as hotel rooms to get more money than rent laws allow. It has led to the removal of thousands of apartments "from an already tight housing market," said state Sen. Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan), the bill's sponsor.
Read More:
The bill is designed to thwart a growing problem of landlords renting apartments as hotel rooms to get more money than rent laws allow. It has led to the removal of thousands of apartments "from an already tight housing market," said state Sen. Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan), the bill's sponsor.
Read More:
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
New York’s Soda Tax Plan Dies After Industry Ad Campaign
Gov. David A. Paterson’s proposal to tax soda seems to have fizzled as lawmakers eliminated the controversial measure while cobbling together a state revenue bill. The penny-an-ounce tax on soda and other sweet drinks would have helped shrink New York’s ballooning deficit and, its supporters say, cut down on obesity.
Read More:
Read More:
Dominos Bahamas looks to add a new franchise partner
Dominos is actively searching for a new chain to complement its product, company execs confirm to Guardian Business — this search customized to a franchisor that can work in The Bahamas.
The choice - set to come before the end of 2010 - comes in the wake of several well-known franchises closing in recent months, due to demands from franchisors that require the brand to remain the same all over the world.
Head of pizza chain Dominos Gavin Watchorn told Guardian Business it was important for the company to find the right franchise.
“Some things just don’t work... one of the problems with U.S. franchises is that they don’t believe there is a different way to doing things outside of the U.S.,” he said. “Thankfully Dominos realizes that things happen differently in The Bahamas than it does in Michigan.
“So whatever decision we make, it has got to work for The Bahamas.”
Read More:
The choice - set to come before the end of 2010 - comes in the wake of several well-known franchises closing in recent months, due to demands from franchisors that require the brand to remain the same all over the world.
Head of pizza chain Dominos Gavin Watchorn told Guardian Business it was important for the company to find the right franchise.
“Some things just don’t work... one of the problems with U.S. franchises is that they don’t believe there is a different way to doing things outside of the U.S.,” he said. “Thankfully Dominos realizes that things happen differently in The Bahamas than it does in Michigan.
“So whatever decision we make, it has got to work for The Bahamas.”
Read More:
Foxwoods Debt Talks Test Tribal Bets
With a mid-July deadline looming for a big payment to its lenders, the Indian tribe that runs the nation's largest casino is in talks with banks and bondholders about how best to restructure more than $2 billion in debt that it can no longer afford.
The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, which owns and operates Foxwoods Resort Casino in Ledyard, Conn., wants bondholders to wipe out a significant portion of its roughly $1.3 billion in bond debt, in some cases paring the tribe's obligations by at least half, people familiar with the matter said.
Read More:
The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, which owns and operates Foxwoods Resort Casino in Ledyard, Conn., wants bondholders to wipe out a significant portion of its roughly $1.3 billion in bond debt, in some cases paring the tribe's obligations by at least half, people familiar with the matter said.
Read More:
The Greenbrier’s Casino Club Celebrates Star-Studded Grand Opening
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kicking off a month of dramatic firsts, The Greenbrier today will celebrate the grand opening of its Casino Club with a red carpet event, featuring internationally-known celebrities and sports figures. Prior to the Casino Club’s ribbon cutting, guests at the black tie event will be treated to an exquisite dinner and an intimate Lionel Richie concert. The opening of the 100,000 sq. ft Casino Club at the historic Greenbrier marks the beginning of the month of milestones which will culminate July 26 with the inaugural Greenbrier Classic, a PGA TOUR, FedEx Cup tournament.
Read More:
Read More:
Carlson Hotels acquires RHW Hotel Management Services in India
Carlson Hotels said Friday that it’s bought a majority interest in RHW Hotel Management Services, a major hotel management and consultancy services company in India.
RHW has been managing Carlson-branded hotels on the subcontinent since 1998. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Read More:
RHW has been managing Carlson-branded hotels on the subcontinent since 1998. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Read More:
Sunstone Reacquires Hotel
San Clemente-based hotel owner Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc. said Thursday it has reacquired a hotel it stopped making debt payments on last year.
The company said it paid $24.8 million for the Renaissance Westchester Hotel, a 347-room hotel in White Plains, N.Y., that Sunstone used to own before it went into receivership.
Sunstone, which owns all or part of 40 hotels, made waves last year by giving back some hotels to lenders after going underwater on their mortgages.
Read More:
The company said it paid $24.8 million for the Renaissance Westchester Hotel, a 347-room hotel in White Plains, N.Y., that Sunstone used to own before it went into receivership.
Sunstone, which owns all or part of 40 hotels, made waves last year by giving back some hotels to lenders after going underwater on their mortgages.
Read More:
