Hotel industry and travel news from around the Europe, Middle East & African region: Hard Rock heads to the Swiss Alps, IHG signs two more in Dubai, while Ramada Oldbury Birmingham changes hands and more...
Dalata Sells its Recently Acquired Hotel La Tour in Sale-and-Leaseback Deal...
Just a few weeks after it announced that it had purchased the entire share capital of the Hotel La Tour in the UK city of Birmingham for £31 million, Ireland-based Dalata Hotel Group has agreed to sell the 174-room hotel, on Park Street in Birmingham city centre, under a sale-and-leasback deal to global real estate investment firm Deka Immobilien for £30 million (£172,400 per room). Dalata is to operate the hotel, which opened as a new build in 2012, under a fully repairing and insuring lease for a term of 35 years, and it will be rebranded as a Clayton property during the fourth quarter of 2017. "The transaction, another milestone in the growth of our UK portfolio, is consistent with our stated strategy of growing in the UK primarily through operating leases," said Shane Casserly, Dalata’s head of strategy and development.
...While Ramada Oldbury Birmingham Changes Hands...
UK hotel operator Redwings Lodge Group has acquired the Ramada Oldbury Birmingham from businessman Gurjit Mahal for an undisclosed sum, increasing Redwings’ portfolio to six properties across southeast and central England. The 81-room hotel, six miles from Birmingham city centre and the NEC conference and event facility, was constructed in 2008. Redwings now plans to extend the property, adding further guest rooms and a new restaurant.
...And Birmingham City Centre Premier Inn Sold
Standard Life Assurance has acquired the 152-room Premier Inn Birmingham City Centre (Waterloo Street) from a syndicate of private investors for £26.5 million (£175,000 per room). A 20-year lease extension was agreed with Whitbread’s Premier Inn chain for the seven-storey hotel during the sale. Additionally, LXI REIT is to forward fund a Premier Inn development in the town of Middlesbrough, northeast England, by purchasing the project for £6.2 million, giving an initial yield of 5.1%. The hotel is currently under construction and expected to open in December 2017. The property is pre-let to Premier Inn for a 25-year lease.
Sale of Hampton by Hilton Aachen Tivoli Kick Starts New Property Fund
The Dr Peters Group has launched a closed-end property fund with the acquisition of the Hampton by Hilton Aachen Tivoli in western Germany for approximately €20.2 million (€123,200 per room). The 164-room hotel, in proximity to the Eurogress Conference Center and the Tivoli Football Stadium in the spa city of Aachen, recently opened in July. The three-star property is operated by Berlin-based Tristar.
Hard Rock Heads to the Swiss Alps…
Hard Rock International has plans to introduce its hotel chain to Switzerland by the end of the year. The recently renovated Spenglers Hotel and Hoslboer Residences, which is housed in a 130-year-old building at the centre of the Swiss Alpine town of Davos, will be transformed into the Hard Rock Hotel Davos, due to open in December 2017. The hotel will have 111 guest accommodation units, including 31 serviced one- to three-bedroom apartments.
…As Katara Hospitality Gets Set to Open the Bürgenstock Resort
Qatar-based Katara Hospitality will open the Bürgenstock Resort at Lake Lucerne in central Switzerland at the end of the month, following nine years of planning and construction. The car-free resort will include four three- to five-star hotels (383 guest rooms and suites), a health and medical centre, 12 food and beverage outlets, 67 residence suties and a spa, plus a wide range of leisure activities will be available to guests. The resort, which is perched 500 metres above Lake Lucerne, is part of Katara Hospitality Switzerland’s The Bürgenstock Selection.
IHG Continues its Expansion in Dubai
InterContinental Hotels Group has signed an agreement with API Hotels & Resorts for two new properties in Dubai. The 290-room Crowne Plaza Dubai Business Bay is scheduled to open in 2019 on Business Bay Canal. The InterContinental Residence Suites Dubai Business Bay will be on the Business Bay Canal extension of Dubai Creek, across from the Crowne Plaza hotel. The 160-unit waterfront Residence Suites will be part of the Marasi Business Bay development, which will house the region’s first purpose-built yachting destination and many other yachting, retail and entertainment facilities.
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