STR reported China hotel data for the week ended February. Hotel RevPAR in China for the week was up 8%. It was up against a +35.6% year over year comp. The Chinese New Year date was January 22nd in 2023 versus February 10th this year. In other words, the hotel data for January and February has to be combined to see the true comparison.
Hilton reported a solid earnings report yesterday. In terms of the Asia Pacific region, Hilton said Q4 RevPAR was up 41.6% year on year with the Greater China RevPAR up 72.8% on easy comps with 2022. Full year APAC RevPAR was up 587% versus 2022. Hilton said Beijing, Tokyo and Kuala Lumpur were standout markets for them. Hilton added 143 hotels in the region in 2023 with 45 opening in 4Q. Hilton is now over 760 hotels in APAC and is on course to exceed 1,000 by 2025 with a pipeline of 861 hotels.
The Pacific Asia Travel Association released their Executive Summary report for its latest forecasts for international visitor arrivals into and across Asia Pacific. PATA predicts pre-Covid levels of IVAs shall be surpassed in 2024 under the mild scenario and in 2025 under the medium scenario. The severe scenario remains a possibility and arrival numbers under that are expected to remain about 13 percentage points below the 2019 benchmark by the end of 2026. In absolute terms, the number of IVAs predicted for 2024 ranges from a high of 750 million under the mild scenario to 619 million under the medium and 477 under the severe scenario. That would be growth rates of 34%, 29% and 11% respectively, year over year.
CBRE’s Australia Capital Flows said Japanese investors trumped buyers from North America, Hong Kong and Singapore to be the most active offshore capital in Australia’s property sector last year. The report tracks investment across the office, industrial, retail, hotel and living sectors. CBRE said Japanese buyers snapped up just over $2 billion in Australian assets last year, well up on the $140 million invested in 2022. North America was the second biggest source at $1.6 billion but that was down -17% year over year. CBRE said the living and hotels sectors observed an increase in transaction activity of 39% and 11% respectively. They expect deal activity to begin trending up this year before a big resurgence in 2025.
As most of you probably expected, Indian visitation to the Maldives plunged in January due to the controversy and boycott. India went from first to fifth in being a source market. In the month of January, only 15,006 Indian tourists visited the Maldives. Sri Lanka was the beneficiary, getting 34,399 Indian tourists during the month.
The 86 room Sebel Sydney Martin Place in Sydney, Australia has completed its multi-million dollar refurbishment. Corridors have been fitted with playful carpet boasting bold pattern and tones, complemented by powerful artwork, downlit signage and ambient lighting. Guest rooms have been refreshed with the stand-out feature being the signature marble, Italian Terrazzo, which decorates the in-room kitchenettes, specifically sourced from Europe to bring Mediterranean tranquility to Sydney’s CBD. The hotel is owned by Salter Brothers and managed by Accor Pacific.
The $8 million refurbishment of Airlie Beach’s Mantra Club Crow has been unveiled. All 160 guestrooms in the Whitsunday Region of Queensland, Australia hotel have been transformed with the new interior design concept echoing seaside elegance, offering stylish boutique-style accommodation with coastal-inspired décor. Mantra Club Croc is owned by Well Smart Capital and operated under Accor’s Mantra brand. The property is situated close to the beachfront and Coral Sea Marina, housed in a traditional Queenslander-style building. Notable features of the guestroom refurbishment include local photographers’ artworks, pendant lighting, coastal-style wall paneling, freestanding minibar, robe with an open hanging rail and shelves, custom bedheads, and a storage banquette with an upholstered seat pad. Mantra Club Croc also now offers a reimagined room service offering, a new poolside cocktail service, and full resort high-speed Wi-Fi upgrade. The resort refurbishment will also extend to the resort’s reception area and poolside restaurant and bar later in the year.
Hilton announced the opening of its flagship branded hotel in Thailand’s capital. The 325 room Hilton Bangkok Grande Asoke is located in the heart of Bangkok’s Sukhumvit district and includes a blend of dynamic spaces with state of the art fitness center, tennis court, outdoor pool, and spa as well as versatile MICE facilities that forge connections and drive the exchange of ideas. Rounding out the amenities, there are four distinct dining establishments.
Centara Hotels & Resorts announced the COSI Vientiane Nam Phu, marking the affordable lifestyle brand’s first foray into the overseas market. The Vientiane, Laos landmark property is set to open its doors on March 1, 2024 with high-tech rooms, ultra-chill rooftop pool, grab and go Café247 and a social hub for round the clock eating, drinking, game playing and meeting up with friends. The 95 key property offers three types of rooms ranging in size from 18 square meters to the 39 square meter COSI Family Room.
Six Senses Kyoto will mark the brand’s entry into Japan in late April 2024. The resort will open its doors in the historic Higashiyama district. There will be 81 guest rooms and suite ranging from 42 to 238 square meters with the pinnacle of the accommodations being the Three-Bedroom Penthouse Suite on the top floor of the hotel.
A grand opening ceremony was held for Roxy Impiana Hotel in Kuching, Malaysia following 18 months of major renovation works to revitalize the formerly abandoned building. The building was turned into the Impiana Hotel but was abandoned in the early 2000s for about 20 years. Whether the building is haunted like they say will not be known for a while but Tecktonic & Sons Holdings feels it was worth it to buy and refurbish it as a new boutique hotel.
