Asia-Pacific

The Daily Lodging Report – Asia Pacific for 5/18/2021

Alan R. Woinski, Editor

The Hong Kong/Singapore Travel Bubble has been pushed back with no new date given. The start was supposed to be May 26th after being pushed back a week more but due to a recent increase in community cases in Singapore, the bubble has burst. There is no new date given and the Hong Kong government said there would be further announcements on or before June 13th.

InterContinental Hotels Group, cooperating with MIK Real Estate Investment & Development Group, is expected to officially launch a world-class resort and hotel in the Bai Dai Area in the north of Phu Quoc Island in Vietnam. Crowne Plaza Phu Quoc Starbay consists of 300 rooms and six large meeting areas. The hotel also has a swimming pool area, an attractive restaurant and bar, a spa, entertainment area and more. The hotel is a milestone marking the cooperation of M.I.K. and IHG. The goal is for Crowne Plaza Phu Quoc Starbay to meet all the needs for conference tourism in Phu Quoc City, a city that is constantly growing in terms of both its economy and tourism.

Indian Hotels Company Limited said they are readying a post-Covid plan which includes acquisition opportunities through its partnership with GIC, growing the Ginger brand, crossing the first hundred mark with its homestay brand Ama and doubling revenues on the online platform Qmin. IHCL is expecting M&A activity to pick up speed if the pandemic’s pace slows down in the next four to eight weeks. They believe if something fits with their portfolio in whatever form, they are willing to find creative solutions to take advantage of the consolidation and expand their portfolio. IHCL had announced a partnership with GIC to acquire stressed asset last fiscal year but due to the pandemic they have not been able to make any deals. IHCL said their Ginger brand will soon have more than 100 hotels in their portfolio. Right now they have 78 hotels of which 54 are in operation. IHCL’s homestay brand Ama has 38 properties under its portfolio including 19 in the pipeline They plan to get to 100 in the next 18 months. In the middle of last year, IHCL launched Qmin, its home delivery brand. Today it is operational in 14 cities, noting they have taken 70,000 orders in the previous financial year with revenue of more than Rs. 26 crore.

Galaxy Entertainment Corp. has become the latest in a long line of companies pulling out of plans to bid for one of the three integrated casino resort licenses in Japan. Call it a result of the pandemic’s impact on balance sheets, the negative view of the way Japan has been handling the whole IR situation or concerns that the way Japan has structured the IR process, the companies will be unable to make money but there has been a steady streams of companies backing out of the plans with nearly no new companies saying they will throw their hat in the ring. Galaxy was teaming up with Monaco’s Societe des Bains de Mer in Japan and had originally abandoned plans in Osaka to bid in Yokohama. Galaxy announced they decided not to participate in the current request for proposal process in Yokohama but did not rule out still bidding somewhere in Japan. Galaxy said that they remain interested in pursuing an integrated resort license in Japan.

PH Resorts Group Holdings Ltd flagged a new completion date for the first phase of Emerald Bay, a casino resort development in Cebu in the Philippines. PH Resorts said Emerald Bay would be developed in two phases, with the first phase expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2022, pushed back from the previous second quarter 2022 completion timeline for the first phase which was pushed back from the initial soft opening that was expected by the end of 2021. The first phase will include a casino with 122 gaming tables, 600 electronic gaming machines and a five star hotel with 270 rooms. The second phase is to be developed by 2026 and will feature more than 700 electronic gaming machines, 146 additional gaming tables, as well as space for meetings and exhibitions. It will also add a second five star hotel with 780 rooms. The first phase of the project has an estimated cost of US$238.5 million with the second phase budget being US$465.4 million. PH Resorts is a company controlled by Dennis Uy.

Marriott International announced the expansion of Aloft Hotels and Element Hotels in the United Arab Emirates with the opening of Aloft Al Mina, Dubai and Element Al Mina, Dubai. The two hotels are situated on Sheikh Rashid Road in the Al Raffa neighborhood in close proximity to the city’s attractions. Aloft Al Mina, Dubai has 192 guestrooms designed with the brand’s signature artful and innovative loft-style layout featuring nine foot ceilings. The hotel features a number of signature social spaces and amenities including W XYZ Bar, the Re:mix Lounge and all day restaurant, MIX. The hotel also has a 24/7 Re:charge fitness center, outdoor infinity pool and fully equipped meeting spaces. Element Al Mina Dubai gives a longer stay concept, a collection of 96 studios, one and two bedroom apartments. Each apartment includes a Heavenly bed, spa-inspired bathroom, oversized closets and a fully equipped kitchen. The hotel features a compact meeting room and state of the art fitness center as well as a rooftop pool.

Minor Hotels plans to expand their NH Hotels brand to the Middle East region later this year with the launch of NH Dubai The Palm. The new build 533 key property is currently in the final stages of development, scheduled to open in December. Located on Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah, NH Dubai The Palm will be part of Seven Hotel & Apartments, a mixed use development consisting of a hospitality tower and a residential tower. The hotel will be easily accessible on The Palm’s main trunk, adjacent to the largest mall on The Palm. The new 14 story property will offer 227 hotel guest rooms and suites in addition to 306 serviced apartments. Facilities will include multiple restaurants and bars, three spa treatment rooms, a gym, kids’ club, four meeting rooms and a rooftop pool. NH Dubai The Palm is owned by Seven Tides, a luxury real estate and hospitality developer.

Emaar Hospitality is planning to open 12 new properties this year and next as it charts an expansion within the UAE across new markets amid a recovery in tourism. Emaar Properties’ hospitality arm is expecting a boost in business with the opening of Saudi Arabia’s market after 14 months and the hosting of Expo 2020 n October. The addition of the new properties will expand Emaar Hospitality’s portfolio to more than 35 properties. They currently operate hotels in the UAE, Egypt and Milan and plans to enter Bahrain and Turkey where it will open new properties this year. They are considering expansion operations in Saudi Arabia. Emaar Hospitality owns about half its properties in the portfolio but is focusing more on developing its hotel management business. They are now focusing on adding new markets including those in central Asia and the broader Middle East.

Egypt is targeting tourism revenue of more than $8 billion as it aims to attract more than 8 million overseas visitors in 2021, driving by the anticipated return of Russian holiday makers and a revival in summer travel as the industry begins to recover. The country hosted 1.8 million visitors, mainly from eastern Europe between January and mid-May, earning nearly $2 billion in revenue. In April, 525,000 tourists visiting the country, getting it to about 60% of April 2019’s figures.

The Daily Lodging Report – Asia Pacific for 6/1/2021

Alan R. Woinski, Editor

Lodging Econometrics said the Asia Pacific region construction pipeline, excluding China, ended the first quarter of 2021 at 1,759 projects/371,856 rooms, down -8% by both projects and rooms year over year. LE said as the region races to vaccinate residents, the Maldives leads with 29.24% of adult residents fully vaccinated followed by Singapore and Mongolia with just over 27%. During the first quarter, 52 new hotels/10,675 rooms opened across the region. LE is forecasting a total of 308 projects/64,595 rooms to open by year end and estimates 358 projects/65,997 rooms to open in 2022. At the end of the first quarter of this year, the AP region, excluding China, had 869 projects/195,318 rooms under construction with projects scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months at 429 projects/81.113 rooms, up 5% and 2% by projects and rooms respectively. Projects in early planning stand at 461 projects/95,425 rooms. Indonesia leads with 323 projects/52,241 rooms followed by India with 307 projects/41,010 rooms. Jakarta, Indonesia leads the cities outside of China in AP with 75 projects/13,177 rooms. Marriott International leads the top franchise companies in the region with 278 projects/58,921 rooms followed by Accor with 214 projects/48,781 rooms. IHG’s Holiday Inn leads the top brands in the region with 57 projects/11,931 rooms.

The latest China Construction Pipeline Trend Report from Lodging Econometrics shows China’s total hotel construction pipeline stood at 3,440 projects/656,828 rooms at the end of 1Q21, down -3% by projects and up 2% by rooms year over year. The total number of rooms in China’s pipeline reached a cyclical peak in the quarter and is the highest it has been in over 12 years. In the first quarter, China opened 113 hotels/17,830 rooms. LE is forecasting a total of 901 projects/132,244 rooms to open in 2021 and 966 projects/165,666 rooms to open in 2022. The country currently has 2,360 projects/425,516 rooms under construction, up 1% by projects and 3% by rooms YOY. Projects scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months stands at 615 projects/119,566 rooms. Projects in the early planning stage hit a cyclical peak in the quarter at 465 projects/111,746 rooms. Chengdu reached a record high in the quarter and leads China’s hotel construction pipeline with 137 projects/28,120 rooms. Shanghai is next with 125 projects/24,068 rooms. Hilton leads the franchise companies with peak totals of 601 projects/116,446 rooms with IHG also hitting record high counts with 439 projects/92,738 rooms. Hilton’s top brand in the China pipeline is Hampton by Hilton with an all-time high of 347 projects/52,959 rooms followed by Hilton Garden Inn, also at an all time high with 77 projects/16,697 rooms. IHG’s leading China brand is Holiday Inn Express with 198 projects/32,697 room. Marriott’s top brad is Marriott Hotels & Resorts with 62 projects/18,852 rooms followed by Four Points by Sheraton at an all time high of 62 projects/17,300 rooms.

Singapore is speeding up vaccinations, marking an intention to shift away from the strict containment approach and reopen the country. The Prime Minister spoke to the residents, predicting a future where tourists will be welcomed, people can go to sporting events and no masks outdoors. He noted that the Coronavirus is here to stay but pledged the city-state would eventually become more tolerant to infections. After June 13, the country is likely to ease restrictions that have been put in place for four weeks but the easing will likely be done in a controlled manner. The city-state hopes to have two-thirds of its residents vaccinated with at least the first dose by early July, provided supplies come in as planned. As of May 30, nearly 2.3 million people, or 40% of the population, has received at least one dose.

Vietnam suspended international flights into the capital Hanoi and commercial hub Ho Chi Minh City as it tries to control the new Coronavirus variant that its fears is fanning the nation’s worst outbreak of the pandemic. They plan to test all 13 million residents of Ho Chi Minh City and tighten social distancing measures. Vietnam becomes the latest of the countries praised last year for beating the virus, once again backing up our views that it’s the virus that determines things, not a politician or a reporter. The excuse given is that Vietnam is being caught up in a global vaccine shortage as new variants ricocheted back from Covid hotspots. The new variant discovered in Vietnam combined the mutations first found in India and UK, which spreads quickly by air. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Vietnam has seen 7,100 Covid cases but 4,000 of them have emerged in the outbreak that started April 27th.

Marriott’s Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company LLC announced its debut in the Maldives with the opening of the Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands. The property is located on the Fari Islands, an archipelago on the north-eastern tip of North Male Atoll. The resort is part of the Fari Marina and features 100 one to three bedroom villas, either set over clear waters or nestled along pristine beach covers. The villas each include a sun deck with a private infinity pool. The resort includes seven culinary venues, two located at Fari Marina, fitness retreats, Ritz Kids program, tennis program and the Ritz-Carlton Spa.

IHG Hotels & Resorts and Hotel Properties Limited announced the first voco hotel to open in Southeast Asia on Singapore’s Orchard Road. The former Hilton Singapore will become the 423 room voco Orchard Singapore in January. This will be the first voco in Southeast Asia. IHG already opened voco properties in Australia and China with further openings set for Vietnam, Thailand, South Korea, New Zealand and Saipan. The brand is IHG’s fastest growing with 19 hotels opened since the launch in 2018 and 31 more on the way.

Avani Hotels announced the opening of Avani Seminyak Resort in Bali, the brand’s first property in Indonesia. Centrally located in the heart of Seminyak, the resort is a short walk from the area’s stylish beach hub and renowned nightlife. The property has 21 brand new residence-style accommodations and 16 private pool villas, a 10 minute walk to Seminyak beach, 30 minutes from Ngurah Rai International Airport. Avani Seminyak Bali Resort joins the brand’s growing collection of 33 properties around the globe.

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts announced the signing of Ramada Encore by Wyndham in Indore, India. The Ramada Encore by Wyndham Indore, Madhya Pradesh is scheduled to open in 2022 and will have a modern design and 100 contemporary rooms, a lobby lounge, an all day dining restaurant and bar, meeting and event spaces, a business center, refreshing wellness areas and an outdoor rooftop swimming pool.

ONYX Hospitality Group is believed to still be working on a plan to open two new hotels in Malaysia in the first quarter of next year. Onyx’s website said it plans to open Amari SPICE Penang in the Bayan Lepas district of Penang Island in January 2022 and Amari Kuala Lumpur as part of KL Eco City in the capital’s Mid Valley district in March 2022. Amari SPICE Penang will offer 453 rooms in a tower connected to Setia SPICE, the world’s first hybrid solar powered convention center. Amari Kuala Lumpur is located near the Aspire Tower and KL Eco City Mall and will offer 252 rooms.

Ascott Residence Trust entered into agreements to acquire three freehold rental housing properties in central Sapporo for a total of S$85.2 million. The three properties are City Court Kita 1 jo, Big Palace Minami 5 jo, and Alpha Square Kita 15 jo, each within walking distance from train stations, within or near the central business district and close to a wide range of retail and entertainment options. The average EBITDA yield of the three acquisitions is 4%. The transactions are expected to be completed by the end of June 2021 with the acquisitions funded by debt and net proceeds from recent divestments.

Oakwood signed a new management agreement with Chaopraya Mahanakom Public Co. Ltd for the management of what will be their eighth Oakwood branded property in Thailand – Oakwood Suits Tiwanon Bangkok. The new development is expected to open in the third quarter of 2021.

Nepal’s CG Corp Global is in advance talks to acquire a publicly traded hotel brand in India that both owns and operates its properties. Hotels cited a top company official saying they are acquiring a well known brand of a listed hotel company. CG Corp Global also plans to add 26 new managed hotel properties in the country, to be operational in 2022.

Lotte Tour Development’s Jeju Dream Tower is set to open its doors in June. This followed an inspection of casino equipment and the hiring of marketing and service employees. The casino will have the third largest casino floor in all of South Korea, following Paradise City in Incheon and Jeju Shinhwa World. Lotte Tour executives expect the casino to generate at least US$270.8 million in annual sales but they may be living in a fantasy world if they believe that can happen in the next year or possibly even the next two years.

akayama prefecture in Japan confirmed they will submit a bid for one of the country’s IR casino licenses with Clairvest Neem Ventures proceeding with the prefecture’s IR bid. Clairvest gets the nod by default after Suncity pulled out. The governor of the prefecture admitted that Suncity had higher scores than Clairvest. Considering how fast the companies are pulling out of the bidding, there may not be more than 3 or 4 bids ultimately submitted meaning it will be anyone’s game.