Macau Marks Highest Visitation Numbers in 3 Years

Macau has received 245,000 visitors in the first four days of the first four days of the Chinese New Year/Spring Festival holiday week. The visitor numbers have increasing starting with close to 40,000 on Saturday, 51,000 on Sunday and then a big increase on Monday and Tuesday. This is the highest visitation Macau has seen in three years.

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts announced the signing of The Earth Armistar, Trademark Collection by Wyndham, its first hotel for the brand in India. The 57-room heritage hotel is expected to open in early 2024. It will be operated in collaboration with Earth Suites & Resorts Private Limited, a hotel operator with properties currently in Amritsar, Goa and Raipur. The five acre upscale The Earth Amritsar will offer a selection of rooms in two buildings. Accommodations will be spread across the hotel’s 130 year-old heritage building. There will be more rooms added in a new build addition which is currently under construction. Wyndham currently has over 50 hotels across India with another 30 hotels or so in the pipeline.

Sarovar Hotels and Resorts announced the opening of Shyama Sarovar Portico in the city of Orai, Uttar Pradesh in India. Sarovar said this is the foremost branded and theme-based hotel in the region. The hotel property is spread over close to five acres and features 72 well-appointed and spacious rooms and suites, executive cottages and honeymoon cottages; an all-day dining restaurant; a swimming pool; fitness center and a salon. The banquet halls and outdoor venues are spread over 50,000 square feet. The hotel is owned by Shyama Club and Resorts.

Indian Hotels Company announced the signing of its first hotel in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India under the Vivanta brand. The greenfield project is slated to open in 2026. IHCL is partnering with Evitamin Business Consulting Pvt Ltd. for the Vivanta hotel. The 115-key hotel is a short driving distance from the airport and industrial areas. Facilities at the hotel include an all-day diner, a bar, swimming pool, fitness center and a spa as well as over 550 square meters of banqueting space including meeting rooms. With the addition of this hotel, IHCL will have eight hotels across Taj, Vivanta and Ginger brands in the state of Madhya Pradesh including one under development.

CBRE Hotels said Abode Hotels and Apartments Woden in Canberra has been listed for sale by boutique property investment fund manager, The Shakespeare Property Group, with price expectations around $50 million. The Expressions of Interest campaign will close March 6, 2023. The hotel consists of 151 self-contained, apartment-style rooms and one two-bedroom apartment, three conference rooms, an all-day dining in-house restaurant, situated on a 1,516 square meter Crown land-leased site. The hotel is leased to Iconic Hotels under its Adobe brand, which is a division of Geocon.

The 132 year old Imperial Hotel, Tokyo is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the opening of its second main building, known as the Wright Building, with a Frank Lloyd Wright Suite. The building was designed by Wright. The Frank Lloyd Wright Suite is a 214 square meter luxury suite featuring original designs and architectural motifs from its 1923-1967 Frank Lloyd Wright hotel building and other landmark Wright structures. The suite overlooks Hibiya Park and Imperial Palace gardens in central Tokyo from a higher floor of the hotel’s main building and houses a living room, a dining room and a bedroom. You can use the Imperial Floor Deluxe Twin only suite in the world to bear the name of the US architect under an agreement with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation of the U.S.

Minor International and its European subsidiary, NH Hotels Group, announced plans for a massive expansion with 50 new hotels worldwide in the next 24 months. NH Hotel Group will open 27 hotels in Europe and the Americas, with a total of 4,471 new rooms. The openings include three new Anantara luxury brand hotels; three new Tivoli hotels; and four NH Collection hotels. Minor hotels will open 23 hotels in Asia, increasing its offer with 5,653 rooms. NH and Minor use eight brands in the hotel market. Minor International owns 94.1% of NH Hotels Group’s shares.

Hilton announced the signing of its second property in the city of Marsa Alam in Egypt. Hilton Marsa Wazar Red Sea Resort & Spa is a partnership with Boulevard for Tourism Development. The resort will have 282 accommodations, from standard guest rooms and beach-front suites to stand-alone villas with private pools. The resort will offer two main outdoor pools and an indoor spa pool, a spa spanning over 1,000 square meters and a gym. Guests will be able to enjoy a variety of exceptional food and beverage options with four bars located at the lobby or poolside as well as a specialty restaurant and all-day dining venue. The new property will join 14 Hilton properties currently operating in Egypt under the Hilton Hotels & Resorts and Conrad Hotels & Resorts brands as well as 11 properties in the pipeline.

Dubai Investments and Millennium Hotels & Resorts signed an agreement to open Grand Millennium Resort, Danah Bay at Marjan Island. The 300 room hotel is expected to be completed by Q4 2025 and will be operated under the Grand Millennium brand, positioned as an upper upscale resort with specialty dining options and a host of beach recreational facilities.

Between the leaks of videos of Beyonce’s surprise concert (no phones or cameras allowed) to the social media firestorm created by the LBGTQ community over the guests who were there, everyone must know about the opening of the Atlantis The Royal in Dubai. Beyonce’s one hour performance was her first live show since 2018. The resort was eight years in development so the ultra-luxury resort had to create a big splash.