FIFA Women's World Cup Boosted Sydney Hotels

Hotel prices will surge for the upcoming Golden Week in popular cities. The Plus version of the Golden Week, including the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day Holiday, drives this. Data from Qunar indicates that as of September 11, the top three cities for flight bookings during the holiday were Shanghai, Beijing, and Chengdu. A luxury suite at the Peninsula Hotel in Beijing has seen its price jump from 2630 yuan on a regular working day to 3738 yuan during the holiday. A luxury garden-view twin room at the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel has more than doubled from 2482 yuan to 5634 yuan. Reports of controversial practice of hotel and homestay cancellations have also reemerged. Consumers have reported that their bookings have been canceled for various reasons, including renovations, no available rooms, the room has already been rented out, or the system has not yet updated the prices.

CoStar's preliminary August 2023 data for Sydney, Australia, showed that the FIFA Women's World Cup helped the city record its highest monthly performance levels since March 2023. Occupancy was up 26% to 80.7%, while Average Daily Rate was up 9% to A$261.83, resulting in a RevPAR surge of 37.3% to A211.19. The FIFA Women's World Cup occurred between July 20 and August 20 in several locations across Australia and New Zealand. The highest occupancy level in Sydney in August was on Wednesday, August 16, at 94.8%. That was the day of the Australia versus England semifinal match. Sydney's daily occupancy levels remained above the 70% mark throughout the month, apart from three days.

Accor is expanding its presence in Japan with the addition of the Daiwa Resorts portfolio, adding 23 properties and over 6,000 rooms to its nationwide network. All the hotels are set to open simultaneously in Q2 of 2024, with reservations beginning November 6, 2023. Grand Mercure will debut in Japan with two key properties scheduled to open: the Grand Mercure Yatsugatake Resort & Spa in the mountainous landscape of Yatsugatake and Grand Mercure Okinawa Cape Zanpa Resort. Both properties will undergo extensive renovations, including common spaces such as the lobby, restaurants, and onsen (hot springs). Grand Mercure Okinawa Cape Zanpa is set to open one of the largest swimming pools in Okinawa prefecture. Daiwa Resort said that in April 2024, they will rebrand and open 23 hotels simultaneously nationwide under the Mercure and Grand Mercure brands. This will more than double Accor's presence as, currently, it operates 21 properties with 5,085 keys in Japan under several brands. In addition to this agreement, five more properties with 1,147 keys are currently in Accor's pipeline.

Cosmos Hotel Management Co. Ltd. announced the Mimaru Kyoto Kawaramachi Gojo reopening on October 1, 2023. The Japanese apartment hotel has 10 room types, including rooms for large groups and a Pokemon Room and gym. 

CBRE Hotels said they sold the freehold interest in Quest Chermside to a Queensland-based hotel group. Quest Chermside is positioned on a 1,220 square meter freehold land parcel and comprises 54 serviced apartments with studio and one-bedroom configurations, on-site reception, meeting and conference facilities, and undercover car parking. The hotel is subject to a long-term lease to a Queensland franchisee with options through 2038.

I-Berhad has partnered with Wyndham Hotels & Resorts for the RM820 million gross development value luxury condominium development in Kuala Lumpur City Centre in Malaysia. The 50-story luxury residences at Zone 1 KLCC are now called the Wyndham Suites KLCC. I-Berhad said the strategic partnership is a leap forward, and they are thrilled to partner with Wyndham to transform Wyndham Suites KLCC.

The city government said that a domed baseball stadium and convention center will be built in Jamsil as part of Seoul City, South Korea's initiative to develop the area in Songpa-gu, southern Seoul. The city government plans to develop a baseball stadium modeled after the Rogers Centre in Toronto. Like its counterpart in Toronto, Seoul plans to build a hotel inside the stadium. The convention center will be 2.5 times bigger than the Coex Convention and Exhibition Center in Gangnam, southern Seoul, and 10,000 square meters bigger than the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in Manhattan. The city government plans to finalize its comprehensive negotiations and sign an implementation agreement at the end of next year. The current Jamsil Baseball Stadium will be demolished after the 2025 pro baseball season, with a plan to break ground in 2026 and complete the construction of the baseball stadium and convention center by 2031.

Marriott's Aloft Hotels brand announced its entry into Singapore with the opening of Aloft Singapore Novena, which is the world's largest Aloft hotel. The hotel's entrance includes a 2.5-meter crescendo sculpture inspired by musical notes. The hotel lobby features an 85-inch video wall showcasing electric art from renowned artists. The hotel's two towers include a total of 781 rooms and four suites, each ranging from 18 square meters to 46 square meters. The hotel introduces various dining concepts, such as Yue, a modern Chinese restaurant, 21 on Rajah, a halal-certified buffet restaurant, and the W XYZ bar in the lobby. Additional signature Aloft features include Re:fuel by Aloft grab and go; Re:charge indoor and outdoor gym in West Wing, and Re:charge indoor gym in the East Wing. Adjacent to the Indoor and Outdoor Gym is the hotel's Splash Pool. The hotel includes five modern meeting spaces.

Brilliance Capital said they are launching an Expression of Interest campaign for a six-story conservation commercial shophouse with hotel-approved use at 41 Hongkong Street in Singapore. The property is a 30-key sophisticated boutique hotel just opposite the Clarke Quay Central, steps away from the Clarke Quay wining and dining scene. There is a lively F&B establishment on the group floor, and the property comes with a tenure of 99 years with effect from December 18, 2018. The property currently houses Hotel NuVe Elements, with the ground floor leased and serving as a popular Japanese restaurant. The second to sixth floors house 30 contemporary guest rooms. A rooftop terrace has jacuzzi facilities. The guide price is S$35 million. The Expression of Interest closes on November 9.

Tui Group will open its first hotels in China under expansion plans designed to attract more holidaymakers from Asia to its in-house properties. A total of six Tui Blue hotels are planned in the country as part of a wider global expansion of the lifestyle brand. That is in addition to other hotels planned throughout Asia, including Bali, Cambodia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. The expansion into China is part of a pipeline of 23 new hotels across four continents over the next two to three years. The Tui Blue Fuyang in Anhui will be the first hotel to open in the winter of 2025-2026.