The Philippines Plan to Expand Air Travel
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The Philippine government is working to boost flight availability and establish new routes to the country, aiming to increase arrivals from key and emerging markets. The local Dept. of Tourism unveiled plans to collaborate with various agencies at a recent Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas (Coffee time with the New Philippines) event in Quezon City. The DOT said the country's international and domestic air transport seat capacity last year exceeded 90% of its pre-pandemic level and the agency is expecting further growth this year. Seats for international flights reached 94% of pre-pandemic levels, while domestic flight capacity recovered to 99%. The DOTr signed an agreement with South Korea to increase weekly seating capacity for direct flights from Manila to Incheon from 20,000 to 30,000. South Korea brought in 1.45 million visitors in 2023. The agency is also targeting the Indian market, which ranted 13th in arrivals in 2023.
Fili Hotel, a homegrown luxury hotel property located at the Nustar Resort and Casino in Cebu City, Philippines, is the first upscale hotel property from the Gokongwei family's Robinson's Land Corporation. The company announced it is expanding the Fili Hotel brand with the opening of the second property to carry the name inside the 30-hectare Bridgetowne compound that straddles Pasig and Quezon City. The hotel is targeted to open between late 2025 and the first half of 2026. Fili Hotel in Nustar Cebu has 379 rooms and is the first to open in the planned multi-hotel integrated casino and resort property in the Queen City of the South. The second Fili Hotel will likely have the same number of rooms and will retain the same Filipino-focused design. Fili Hotel in Bridgetown will also have a view of the Marikina River and will be built by RLC through its hospitality arm Robinsons Hotels and Resorts.
ESPACIO The Hakone Geihinkan Rin-Poh-Ki-Ryu opened its doors, introducing a new level of world-class hospitality to Japan's mountain hot-spring destination of Hakone. The nine-suite retreat is tucked into a pristine valley in the forested Miyanoshita region. This is the first concept in Asia from the creators of ESPACIO The Jewel of Waikiki, the Forbes five-star, AAA diamond-winning Hawaii property. The nine private villas have been designed to honor and reflect the natural environment surrounding the property. Guest villas range in size from 92 square meters to 385 square meters, each a private sanctuary with spacious interiors, outdoor pavilions, and both indoor and outdoor baths. Several villas feature private saunas, swimming pools and rooms for tea ceremonies and entertaining. All villas are fed by the pristine Dogashima hot spring, with the water flowing freely into the baths of each private villa. ESPACIO The Hakone Geihinkan Rin-Poh-Ki-Ryu marks the debut of ESPAICO Spa, featuring an open-air Hakone lava cave bath.
Rydges has officially re-opened its doors in North Sydney, only a stone's throw from Sydney Harbour. The property has undergone a complete refurbishment across all rooms, dining, conferencing and communal areas. The renovated hotel offers a prime location with easy on-site parking, quality rooms and suites, modern and spacious event facilities all located just five minutes from Sydney's best attractions. The property has the largest conference and event space in North Sydney, including five newly designed meeting areas, spanning an expansive 399 square meters. There are 168 transformed rooms and suites including a one bedroom king, two bedroom family bunks and a penthouse suite. There also is an interactive fitness studio, Wattle Bar + Kitchen and more.
Indian Hotels Company announced the signing of a new resort in Mangalore, Karnataka. The brownfield project will be branded as Taj, marking the company's continued expansion into key leisure destinations. The Taj Resort & Spa Mangalorewill have 96 guest rooms and suites, a variety of culinary delights at the resort's all-day diner, bar, specialty restaurant, and a serene lobby lounge. There is a Viewing Deck, recognized as the longest free-standing cantilevered concrete projection in the Indian Book of Records. The resort will house a J Wellness Circle offering a range of holistic wellness experiences along with an open-air theater and state of the art banqueting space exceeding 10,000 square feet. With this hotel, IHCL will have 20 hotels in Karnataka under Taj, Vivanta, Gateway and Ginger brands, including 6 under development.
Stotrak Hotels announced the opening of its fourth hotel in Mussoorie in India. Sangam by Strotrak is situated near Jhula Ghar on the Mall Road in Mussoorie. This gives them an inventory of over 85 rooms in the Queen of Hill station.
Fortune Hotels announced the signing of Fortune Select Airport Road, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh. The hotel is expected to open in FY27-28, strategically located within comfortable driving distance from the upcoming Ayodhya International Airport and the glorious temple. The hotel will be home to 123 well-appointed rooms, an all-day dining restaurant, a banquet hall and other facilities.
OYO reportedly raised US$50 million from InCred Wealth and Investment at a valuation of US$2.38 billion, down -76% from its peak valuation of almost $10 billion. The travel tech platform will issue 14.37 crore Series G CCPS (compulsorily convertible preference shares) to raise funds. OYO will use the proceeds for growth, global expansion, including acquisitions, and enhanced business plans.
Personnel Moves
Atour Lifestyle Holdings has eliminated the Chief Operating Officer roles from its C-Suite. The two people who held that role, Xun Zhang and Gang Chen, will no longer serve there but will remain with Atour. The company also announced Hong Lu resigned as a director of the company, to be replaced on the board by Jianfeng Wu, co-CFO of the company.
Sarovar Hotels has appointed CDR Siddhartha Gargori as the Corporate Director of Engineering and Suranjit Sengupta as the Corporate Director of F&B.
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