Centara Launches a New Property Portfolio
Skift Take
STR reported China hotel data for the week ended January 11. Hotel RevPAR in China was down -0.2%. Comps will get dramatically easier in 2025 as this week was up against a modest +17.7% year over year comp in the same week in 2024. ADR was actually up 1.1% year over year for the week, while occupancy was down -1.3%.
According to official data, in less than two weeks, 60,000 multiple entry visas have been issued for travel to Macau’s neighboring cities. Since January 1, Zhuhai residents have made 257,000 trips to Macau, up 26.1% year on year. China’s National Immigration Administration said 59,000 “One Trip Per Week” endorsements for travel to Macau have been issued along with over 6,000 Multiple Entry endorsements. From January 3-5, daily visitor arrivals to Macau remained over 100,000, not something that has typically been seen in non-holiday periods since the pandemic. As for the upcoming Chinese New Year week, Cotai hotels are nearly fully booked, with only SJM’s Grand Lisboa still having availability over the entire period.
Post Today reported Thailand’s casino bill is expected to be enacted in early 2026. The Deputy Minister of Finance said the timeline is enacting in 1Q26, investment conditions announced later in 2026, bidding will take place, and construction expected to begin in 2027. We remind you of our comments yesterday on how nobody should bet on this timeline. Remember when the bidding was supposed to be in 2025? Thailand said their goal is to beat Japan to the punch of opening IRs. Construction beginning in 2027 means beating MGM in Japan will take delays for MGM/Orix in Osaka and no delays at all for Thailand IRs. Once again, don’t bet on this.
Thailand’s leading hotel operator, Centara Hotels & Resorts, announced the launch of The Centara Collection, a portfolio of what the company calls one-of-a-kind properties that celebrate individuality, authenticity, and creativity. These were formerly known as being part of the Centara Boutique Collection, but Centara said the portfolio has been transformed and elevated to a new level of distinction. Centara also said the Centara Grand Island Resort & Spa Maldives will be renamed as Machchafushi Island Resort & Spa Maldives, as it becomes the first international member of The Centara Collection. Also being part of that is the Roukh Hiri Khao Yai in Northeast Thailand, overlooking the UNESCO World Heritage-listed rainforest of Khao Yai National Park, and the Varivana Resort Koh Phangan in Southern Thailand.
Atura Wellington, the former Thorndon Hotel by Rydges, unveiled its newly refurbished rooms. The New Zealand hotel initially completed a full refurbishment of all public spaces as part of a broader redevelopment plan. All 108 guest rooms have now been upgraded. The hotel is in the historic Thorndon neighborhood and is part of the EVT family, owners of QT, Rydges, LyLo, and Independent Hotels across Australasia.
Miramar Hotel and Investment is buying a unit of Henderson Land Development in Hong Kong for US$400.75 million. They plan to build a new hotel and commercial complex there, in the heart of Hong Kong’s Tsim Sha Tsui district. Miramar will demolish the existing building to build The Mira Hong Kong. Henderson Land has a 50.8% stake in Miramar.
Raffles Sentosa is now open for bookings. The all-villa property, the first of its kind in Singapore, will open on March 1, 2025. The resort is nestled on 100,000 square meters of greenery on Sentosa’s hilltop, offering a secluded escape. The resort will include 62 exclusive villas, each featuring a private pool, outdoor terrace, and floor-to-ceiling windows. Accommodations range from 210-square-meter one-bedroom villas to 650-square-meter four-bedroom Royal Villas, all serviced by the legendary Raffles Butler Service. The resort will feature a world-class spa with 13 treatment rooms, two ballrooms, five restaurants and lounges, and more.
Shanghai Disney Resort announced its third hotel reached a new structural milestone with the final primary steel beam installed, marking the completion of the structural phase of construction. The nine-floor, deluxe hotel will have 400 rooms and suites, close to the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel, adjacent to the shores of Wishing Star Lake.
IHG Hotels & Resorts announced the return of the Holiday Inn brand to Tokyo with the grand reopening of ANA Holiday Inn Tokyo Bay in 2025. IHG is partnering with BEST HOSPITALITY Network Inc., a unit of Tsukada Global Holdings. The ANA Holiday Inn Tokyo Bay will reopen in April 2025 following an extensive renovation. The hotel has 132 rooms, situated within the upper floors of the Seafort Tower on Tokyo Bay. This joins 10 ANA Holiday Inn properties across Japan.
Early investors in OYO, including Lightspeed Venture Partners, are in talks with a group of family offices to sell part of their stakes at a valuation of around US$3.9 billion. Peak XV Partners recently sold some of its remaining 3% stake, getting about $80-$90 million in return. This adds to the over $1.4 billion Lightspeed and Peak XV cumulatively made in 2019 by selling most of their holdings to founder Ritesh Agarwal. The latest stake sale will be at a more than 60% premium to the funding round in August 2024. While that is good, remember that OYO’s valuation in 2021 was over $9 billion.