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Asia-Pacific
Vietnamese Outbound Travel Rises Sharply
Vietnamese travelers are said to be opting for outbound tours due to the significant increase in the price of domestic flights as the holiday season approaches, according to travel agents and tour operators. The South China Morning Post said hotel room rates in Hong Kong are surging ahead of the Labour Day holiday. The number of visitor arrivals to Macau in March rose by 271.4% year over year to 1,956,867, according to the Statistics and Census Service. -
North America
SVB Collapse Doesn’t Impact Booking or Pricing
Truist said they have seen no noticeable changes to overall corporate booking and pricing trends in the first 10 days following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank . On March 20, Membership Collective Group commenced trading on the NYSE under its new name and ticker, Soho House & Co Inc. / SHCO. In a joint venture, NewcrestImage and Hospitality Capital Partners have acquired 16 hotels with a total of 2,155 rooms for $137.3 million from Service Properties Trust . -
North America
A Sad Sack of Lodging SPACs Struggling as Public Companies
In an amazing recovery from over 700 points down, the DJIA ended the day down only 280 points while Nasdaq rallied to end up 6. Vacasa’s stock price plunged well into penny stock category, joining Sonder, before recovering somewhat, ending the day down -25%. Braemar Hotels & Resorts and Ashford Hospitality Trust both issued press releases, clarifying that their cash holdings are safe . STR reported US lodging data for the week ended 3/11. US hotel RevPAR was up 11.1% year over year. -
North America
Hotel Asset Sales Pick Up
Jefferies said the looming recession and stabilizing credit market could be positive for the prospects of timeshare, but with a harder landing not off the table, they see stocks trading at rich valuations. Truist said with earnings season about to kick into gear for the lodging sector, they continue to see macro over micro. Park Hotels and Resorts Inc. closed on the sale of the 508-room Hilton Miami Airport , located in Miami, Florida , for $118.25 million. -
Asia-Pacific
Asian Hotels Begin to See Chinese Tourists Returning
UNWTO’s forward-looking scenarios for 2023 suggests global international tourist arrivals could reach 80%-95% of pre-pandemic levels this year. Cambodia is expecting to receive up to four million international tourists this year, accelerated by China announcing its reopening policy. 2022 brought some 2.28 million international tourists to Cambodia with China making up only 106,000 of them. The Macau Hotel Association warned that local hotels may need to cap their maximum guest capacity at 70% to 89% during the Lunar New Year holiday period due to a shortage of staff in operations. -
North America
Hotels Change Hands, Brands Enter New Markets
Lodging stocks were mostly lower. VCSA was down -12%, SOND was down -8% but MCG was up 5% on a new Buy rating. Northland Capital Markets initiated coverage on Selina Hospitality Group with an Outperform rating and $4.50 target price. The scheduled auction of the downtown Hilton Hotel Minneapolis , previously slated for Friday, has been postponed. -
Asia-Pacific
Hilton Plans More Luxury Rollouts
STR reported China hotel RevPAR for the week ended December 3. RevPAR was down -2.6% on a year-over-year basis while down -40.2% against the same week in 2019. More reports are coming out about China’s decision to roll back Covid-Zero rules . The latest STR report, commissioned by Arabian Travel Market, conducted at the end of September 2022, suggests the GCC region now has over 170,000 hotel rooms under active development. -
Asia-Pacific
Singapore Is a Regional Recovery Standout
STR’s global bubble chart for October 22 showed Singapore standing out in the Asia Pacific region while noting continued, steady recovery for most of the world. HG Hotels & Resorts announced a partnership with Shenzhen Bay Area Urban Construction and Development Co. Ltd. to develop a new luxury and lifestyle hotel. The Fullerton Ocean Park Hotel Hong Kong officially opened The Fullerton Spa , offering best-in-class wellness treatments for Hong Kong guests and travelers.7 -
Asia-Pacific
Accor to Add Five-Star Property in Sydney
Accor said they signed an agreement with Panthers Group for a new five-star Pullman hotel at the Penrith Panthers precinct in Western Sydney . InterContinental Khao Yai is a new resort in Thailand , located in Nakhon Ratchasima province in Khao Yai National Park . IHG , in cooperation with Bao Quan Investment & Construction Joint Stock Company , will open its first Crowne Plaza hotel in Vinh Yen City in the northern province of Vinh Phuc this November. -
Asia-Pacific
Chengdu Covid Fears Spurs Lock Down
STR reported China hotel RevPAR was up 48.2% year over year against very easy comps. When compared with this week in 2019, RevPAR was down -20.4%. Absolute occupancy in China last week was 59.1% versus 43.1% in the same week last year. Chengdu reported 1,000 Covid cases and the Southwestern city in China has pretty much been sealed off. About 70% of the flights have been suspended to and from the city. Hong Kong is targeting an end to hotel quarantine in November , ahead of a summit of global bankers and an international rugby competition.