Sydney’s Newest Boutique Hotel

STR reported China hotel data for the week ended June 3. Hotel RevPAR in China was up 60.4% year over year, up against a decline of -21.6% comparison. When compared with the same week in 2019, RevPAR was down -5.5%. 

Hotel Morris Sydney – Handwritten Collection will be opening on June 14. The Sydney property originally opened in 1929 was Australia’s tallest hotel for 34 years. It will open in June 14 as an 82-room boutique hotel and evocative bar. The privately owned property, located in the heart of the city on Pitt Street is set to be operated by Accor and will be one of Australia’s first Handwritten Collection hotels. Some of the personal touches of the brand include a welcome beverage on check-in, Bar Morris bill ritual – end the evening by rolling the dice for a chance at a complimentary Amaro nightcap, and a deck of SCOPA playing cards in the room. Bar Morris is the 40 seat art deco inspired wine bar that includes a day to night menu. The hotel, a restored heritage hotel’s 82 rooms have six ensuite varieties.

Design concepts have been released for the guest rooms of the JW Marriott Auckland. New Zealand’s newest five-star hotel is expected to be completed in mid-2024. The hotel is the result of a $25 million refurbishment of the Stamford Plaza building on Albert Street. It will be Aotearoa’s first JW Marriott and marks the latest in high profile hotels being opening in Auckland including Park Hyatt, Voco, QT and Hotel Britomart. The JW Marriott Auckland will feature 286 refurbished rooms along with its renovated restaurant, meeting rooms and lobby area, fitness center, spa, sauna and indoor heated swimming pool on the top floor.

DoubleDragon Corp said its Hotel of Asia Inc. subsidiary will soon launch its latest project in Libis, Quezon City in the Philippines. This follows the announcement they sold out of its Cebu-Mactan project a year earlier than expected in their pre-selling. DoubleDragon said the Hotel101-Libis Bridgetowne on E. Rodriguez Ave, Libis, Quezon City would have 745 rooms. This will be the group’s third hotel project in Metro Manila after Hotel101-Fort and Hotel101-Manila. The Hotel101 Cebu Mactan Airport project has sold out after 21 months. The 548-room property is poised to be the biggest airport hotel in the Visayas and Mindanao and is being built on a 5,493 square meter prime commercial lot along the Cebu Mactan Airport Terminal Road near Mactan Marina Mall. Hotel101-Cebu Mactan is set to be the first Hotel101 project to adopt the new global version of the Hotel101’s 21 square meter room standardized signature HappyRoom. DoubleDragon said the new Hotel101 is expected to become known as one of the most technologically advanced hotel chains across all parts of its value chain. The Hotel101 pipeline of inventory from secured prime titled land sites in Cebu, Libis, Boracay, Palawan and Bohol is expected to generate P18.14 billion in revenues, excluding the revenues to be generated from the Hotel101 overseas projects.

Apeejay Surendra Park Hotels has launched its fifth and newest hotel – Zone Connect Saket, New Delhi. Located in South Delhi’s stylish shopping and entertainment hub, the hotel in district centre Saket is at the heart of corporate park with heritage attractions for leisure travelers. Zone Connect Saket has 57 contemporary rooms, all day dining Café-C, Co-Bar, Terrace Lounge with a capacity of up to 120 guests, and Town Hall for social and business gathering of up to 50 guests. The hotel is located just 20 km from Indira Gandhi International Airport, central to all major locations at Saket, New Delhi. Zone Connect is part of Apeejay Surendra Park Hotels’ Zone by The Park mid-scale brand. The brand has three hotels operating in Coimbatore and Goa with upcoming hotels in New Delhi, Patna, Alibaug, Darjeeling and Manali which are slated to open in the next few months.

Ennismore announced the strategic global expansion of its Mondrian brand, on track this year to debut hotels in Singapore, Ibiza, Hong Kong and Bordeaux. The brand has further expansion in its sights for 2024 and beyond with a solid pipeline of new Mondrian openings, each of which comprise a hotel and branded residential component. Mondrian will make its debut in the UAE and Saudi Arabia with properties in Abu Dhabi and Riyadh plus Australia’s Gold Coast and Tulum. Mondrian Abu Dhabi is slated for a 2024 opening. Mondrian Tulum Hotel & Residences, the second in Mexico, will open in 2025 while Mondrian Riyadh is due to open in 2026.

Middle East Highlights

Anantara Hotels Resorts and Spas announced the Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort by Anantara now has an all new four bedroom Sahra Villa and two bedroom Al Sarab Villa completed with its own private majlis. Located a few minutes drive from the resort in a secluded area, both villas are part of the exclusive villa compound designed to offer the utmost privacy and discrete service. The 489 square meter Sahra Villa is a palatial hideaway furnished in noble hues that can accommodate up to eight adults in its master bedroom and three twin bedrooms, each with its own private terrace. The villa includes a private swimming pool with a cabana and sprawling indoor and outdoor living spaces. The 853 square meter Al Sarab Villa includes two elegant bedrooms accommodating a maximum of four guests. The lavish villa includes a grand reception majlis and a fireplace. The outdoors includes a private pool overlooking the dunes. Guests staying at Al Sarab Villa can choose to book the private majlis situated in a separate building close by. It includes a team of butlers on hand. The majlis include a seating capacity of up to 20 guests indoors and an additional outdoor entertainment area. All guests staying in villas belonging to Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort by Anantara’s Exclusive Villa Collection enjoy 24/7 dedicated personal butler attention, private entrance with shaded parking and exclusive amenities.

IHG Hotels & Resorts announced the signing of a management agreement with Akan Al Rajhi, a joint venture between AkamAlRajhi and Al Rajhi Saudi groups for the first voco resort in Egypt. The voco hotel brand is already well established in the Middle East and Africa region with locations in the UAE and KSA but Egypt’s North Coast will get the first one there. The 300 key voco North Coast is expected to open in December 2026 and will include low-rise buildings, chalets and townhouses in a prime location, directly on the beachfront. The resort is part of the DOSE Village North Coast secure gated community, located on the front row of development. The voco North Coast will include natural landscapes, artificial lakes, a swimming pool, spa, health club, running and biking tracks, a shopping mall, waterpark and diverse dining options. The resort will also offer meeting and events spaces, totaling 1,375 square meters. The new voco will be located 23km from Egypt’s new Al Alamein Airport.

Six Senses Amaala is set to launch in Saudi Arabia, part of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 program. The resort will have 64 rooms, six suites, 30 villas and 25 branded residences, located along Amaala’s Triple Bay area, offering panoramic views across the Hijaz Cove to the Red Sea. The resort will include the Six Senses Spa including a cryotherapy chamber, longevity clinic and male and female thermal areas featuring Finnish and infrared saunas, herbal steam rooms, salt rooms, vitality pools and ice baths along with a Watsu pool. The resort includes a coffee roastery, bakery, water bar, shisha tea house, kids and teens club, prayer rooms and communal lounges. There are all-day dining menus at eateries featuring Middle Eastern and Mediterranean influences. The 25 Six Senses branded residences go from three to six bedrooms. Six Senses Amaala is set to open as part of the first phase of the Triple Play development.