The DJIA fell 199 points while Nasdaq was down 63, the S&P 500 fell 24 points and the 10-year treasury yield was down .09 to 3.34%. Lodging stocks were mostly lower. AHT was the only big mover, down -11% on the day.
Sotherly Hotels reported preliminary operating results for 1Q23 for their 10 wholly-owned properties. RevPAR was up 21.4% led by an 11.4% jump in occupancy. We really have no idea why SOHO did this unless they were trying to balance the 20,000 share sale by their chairman the other day. Most other lodging REITs have been seeing insider buying.
Tighter budgets, busy airports, and soaring prices are prompting a more frugal tourist to return. Even high-end travelers are pulling back on their vacation spending, Bloomberg reported. They want to pay no more than $500 a night for a hotel, and they aren’t interested in paying extra for greener or fancier options, according to the latest MLIV Pulse survey with 465 respondents. This may be a reflection of diminishing consumer confidence or complaints that inflated pricing hasn’t been accompanied by a proportionate increase in service quality.
Lightstone announced the April 12 debut of the 37-story, 727-key Moxy & AC Hotels Downtown Los Angeles. The AC Hotel offers 347 guest rooms and the 380-key Moxy is the first Moxy property in Los Angeles. With two unique hotels under one roof, the Moxy Downtown LA and AC Hotel Downtown LA boasts 12 dining and drinking options and 13,000 square feet of meeting and events space.
Aimbridge Hospitality’s specialized Select Service operating division has added the newly opened Aloft Henderson, located just outside of Las Vegas, Nevada.
Extended Stay America announced the opening of the Extended Stay Premier Suites Fredericksburg, located in Virginia. The property was developed, and will be managed, by the owner KARA Hospitality. The four-story, 92-room, newly constructed property offers a fitness room, an outside grilling area, onsite guest laundry and a spacious lobby with additional vending options.
Choice Hotels’ Cambria Hotels unit and HOS Management celebrated the grand opening of the first Cambria Hotel in Georgia, the Cambria Hotel Savannah Downtown Historic District.
The all-new Pacific 19 Kona debuted as a completely renovated and re-envisioned island-urban hotel. Managed by Springboard Hospitality, the 122-room hotel is located in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. A giant monkey pod tree and lush flora anchor the open-air lobby entrance while steps outside of the lobby guests will find a daybed, pool, and firepits. The property is home to Café P19 and a lobby retail shop.
A Boston real estate developer has proposed a 94-room hotel just off Boston Common in Downtown Crossing in Boston, Massachusetts. A limited liability company affiliated with Paul Roiff, president of Heath Properties, filed an application with the Boston Planning and Development Agency last week. According to the filing, the hotel would be 15 stories and no parking would be included in the project.
Locale Hospitality and a team of Nashville developers announced the April 2023 opening of The Eighteen by Locale, a boutique apartment hotel located in the Five Points neighborhood. The property features 11 short-term rental units including two penthouses, a ground-floor commercial space and a rooftop deck. Locale will handle property management, marketing and guest services.
Giri Hotels acquired Anchorage by the Sea, a waterfront hotel located in Ogunquit, Maine, from the Ramsey Family. Wason Associates Hospitality Brokerage Group negotiated the transaction. The hotel has 249 rooms and offers amenities including ocean access, heated indoor and outdoor pools, an on-site restaurant, bar and hot tub.
A Chautauqua Lake is poised to become an upscale year-round destination with an event center, spa and pool. William H. Curry II and Jill H. Curry plan to buy the Hotel Lenhart in the Village of Bemus Point, New York, and then turn it into a modern hospitality venue. The renovated hotel will have 40 guest rooms with updated features. Originally a boarding house it currently includes a hotel, guest houses, a carriage house and a bakery. Chautauqua Lake Hospitality LLC will pay $3.5 million to acquire the site from the current owners, Lenhart Enterprises and John, Deborah and Barbara Johnston. The Currys will then renovate the multi-building complex, while adding another 5,934 square feet of third-floor employee housing, a ground-floor solarium and a rooftop bar. All guest rooms and common areas will be upgraded and the project also includes an expanded Crystal Dining Room for guests and visitors, an outdoor deck, an elevator and other accessibility improvements. The carriage house will be converted to a “pairing center” for learning, community events, lectures and private parties. The restaurant and banquet facility will be restored, and more. The Currys said the hotel and cottages will be available all year. Work is expected to begin this spring, with completion by late fall 2024.
Soul Community Planet acquired the Albion River Inn in Albion, California. Hershler Hospitality brokered the transaction.
Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. announced its slate of director nominees for its upcoming 2023 annual meeting of stockholders. The slate consists of the Company’s nine incumbent directors and new director nominee William E. Haslam, the former Governor of the State of Tennessee from 2011 to 2019.
IHG Hotels & Resorts announced the opening of a new InterContinental Hotels & Resorts property on the island of Dominica, which also marks the brand’s third Caribbean resort hotel. Owned by Range Capital Partners, the 151-room InterContinental Dominica Cabrits Resort & Spa includes four outdoor pools, an expansive spa, fitness center and beach access, 8,500 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space, onsite business center, four on-property restaurants and beach and swim-up pool bars.
Personnel Move
Plamondon Companies announced the hiring of Jeff Plamondon, the third generation of the Plamondon family, to join the organization’s hospitality business. Jeff will be joining the company as Director of Real Estate and Business Development. In his new role leading lodging portfolio growth, Jeff will focus on both ground-up developments as well as acquisitions to continue to grow PHP. Plamondon will also pursue third-party management relationships which the company had done in the past. Jeff comes to Plamondon Companies from Davidson Hospitality Group were he served as part of the Acquisitions and Business Development team.
Europe Highlights
Graham + Sibbald is seeking a buyer for the 46-bed Royal George Hotel in Perth, UK and has put the asset on the market for $3.1 million (£2.5 million). The mid-19th century property comprises a bar, restaurant, meeting and function rooms facilities, a gym, a gin distillery and an adjoining gin garden. The Royal George Hotel is being sold by the Anderson family.
Kanava Hotels & Resorts announced a rebranding to Empiria Group, celebrating the company’s 30 years of expertise and plans for further developments and echoes its evolving purpose, values, and commitment to creating space for joy. Empiria will continue to hold its status within The Luxury Collection, part of Marriott International’s portfolio, and Design Hotels, while also delivering a new distinctive and elevated brand identity to support all future endeavors. Empiria Group currently holds seven luxury properties within the inspiring portfolio with plans for the brand’s global expansion to continue with further hotel openings in the most coveted destinations around Greece.