Hotel industry and travel news from around the Asia Pacific region: China’s tourism industry maintains an upward trend in 2017, Myanmar-based Memories Group debuts on Singapore exchange, IHG debut Holiday Inn in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, CDL Hospitality Trusts divests two Brisbane hotels and more...
Indonesia launches railway service from Jakarta to Soekarno-Hatta International Airport
Indonesia inaugurated Soekarno-Hatta Airport Rail Link (“Rail Link”), a new rail route that connects Jakarta to Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, reducing the travel time to downtown Jakarta from over two hours to 55 minutes. The new railway service, with a price tag of IDR 5 trillion (US$370 million), is a 34-kilometre route that links the airport to Manggarai Station in South Jakarta. Currently, as Manggarai Station is under renovation, Sudirman Baru station serves as the temporary terminus for the city centre. Rail Link will be fully operational next year with a total of five stops, stretching over 37 kilometres and utilising existing tracks of Jakarta’s commuter lines. Carrying 272 passengers per trip and operating 42 single trips per day, tickets are sold at a flat price of IDR 70,000 (US$5). The new rail service, already linked to the airport’s Skytrain service and expected to be integrated with other public transportation networks in the city, is expected to alleviate the worsening gridlock to and from the airport.
Manila-based AyalaLand set to expand Seda brand
Manila-based AyalaLand Hotels and Resorts Corporation (AHRC) has announced plans to expand its Seda brand from its current inventory of 1,409 rooms among seven hotels to 3,500 rooms among 15 hotels by 2019. Following the opening of Seda Lio in El Nido, Palawan in the first half of 2018, AHRC is planning to inaugurate its Seda brand in locations such as Makati (Circuit Makati), Taguig City (Arca South), Cebu (Cebu Business Park), Quezon City (Ayala North Exchange), and Bay Area, Paranaque City within the next two years. Further developments will be focused primarily in Metro Manila and Cebu-Mactan areas. In line with the company’s expansion plan, AHRC has announced the rebranding of Cebu City Marriott Hotel to Seda Hotel in 2018, as AHRC and Marriott International Hotels conclude their 20-years of partnership.
Mövenpick Hotels and Resorts accelerate expansion with Vietnam and Philippines signings
Mövenpick Hotels and Resorts (“Mövenpick”) will increase their presence in Asia with dual signings in Vietnam and the Philippines. The Mövenpick Resort Lang Co, the brand’s sixth property in the pipeline for Vietnam, will be the hotel chain’s debut in Lang Co and will provide 148 guestrooms, suites and villas. With its prime location on Vietnam’s central coast, the resort, slated to open in Q4 2018, will be located close to Danang, Hoi An and Hue. Elsewhere in the Philippines, the Mövenpick Hotel & Residences Quezon City, the brand’s third property in the country, represents Mövenpick’s debut in Metro Manila and will provide 350 guestrooms and suites as well as 250 residences. Scheduled to open in Q4 2021, the hotel will be situated in Manila’s commercial centre, near Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
Myanmar-based Memories Group debuts on Singapore Exchange
Memories Group Limited (“Memories”), a spin-off of tourism-related assets of Singapore-based Yoma Strategic Holdings Limited, Myanmar-based First Myanmar Investment Company Limited, and Exemplary Ventures Limited, has made its debut on the Singapore Exchange via a reverse takeover of SHC Capital Asia. A sum of 42.6 million new company placement shares and 7.4 million vendor placement shares raised S$10.65 million in gross proceeds at S$0.25 each. Memories is the first modern tourism-related business focused in Myanmar and operates a series of businesses including two lodges, Balloons Over Bagan, and Asia Holidays Travel Agency. With its debut, Memories became the first Myanmar tourism-focused company to list on a foreign exchange and also the first company to debut on the Singapore Exchange in 2018.
China’s Tourism Industry Maintains an Upward Trend in 2017
According to the statistics released by the China Tourism Academy and China National Tourism Administration, the number of domestic tourists and the total revenue generated have grown by 13.17% and 16.55%, respectively, in the first three quarters of 2017 over the same period last year. The outbound travel market has enjoyed steady growth, and inbound travel is also recovering, despite slow growth witnessed recently. In line with the targets set at the beginning of the year, domestic and inbound visitors in China are estimated to exceed 5.1 billion and generate a total revenue of over RMB5.3 trillion, contributing more than 10% to both GDP and employment by the end of 2017. Going ahead optimistically, the number of domestic and inbound visitors is expected to surpass 5.7 billion and tourism revenue is forecast to gross over RMB6 trillion in 2018, creating jobs for an additional one million people in China.
Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group Opens the Radisson Goregaon in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group announced the opening of the Radisson Goregaon in Goregaon, Mumbai, earlier this week. The hotel features 98 rooms, with base category rooms measuring 22m2. On the food and beverage front, the hotel features two restaurants, a bar, and over 1,500 m2 of indoor meeting and event space. Other facilities at the hotel include a swimming pool, a fitness centre and a spa.
InterContinental Hotels Group to Debut Holiday Inn in Johor Bahru, Malaysia
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has signed a management contract with SKS Hotel Residences and Resorts Sdn. Bhd., a member of SKS Group, for the first Holiday Inn in the state of Johor, Malaysia. SKS Group is one of Johor’s largest developers with a strong hotel portfolio that includes existing and new hotels across Johor Bahru, Desaru and Western Australia. Set to be in the city’s downtown, the flagship Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre will be a part of the integrated Komtar JBCC mixed-use development which also consists of retail and commercial components. Slated to open in 2020, the new-build Holiday Inn will provide 318 rooms, six meeting rooms, a business centre, an outdoor pool, a gym and an all-day dining outlet featuring the brand’s signature kid-friendly Kids Stay and Eat FreeTM programme. With Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre’s strategic location at 30 kilometres from the Senai International Airport, close proximity to the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex (CIQ) and the upcoming Singapore-Johor Bahru Rapid Transit System (RTS), it will be able to efficiently cater to both international travellers as well as domestic guests.
Onyx Hospitality Group Set for Phuket Expansion with 255-room Hotel
Thailand’s Onyx Hospitality Group continues its portfolio expansion with the development of the OZO Phuket in Thailand. Set to open in Q4 2019, the midscale hotel will offer 255 guest rooms, delivering on the brand’s values of sleep, connectivity and exploration. Located a short distance from Kata beach on Phuket’s western coast, hotel facilities will include OZO’s signature all-day dining restaurant, a grab-and-go deli, fitness centre, meeting room and two separate pools. Based in Bangkok, Onyx Hospitality Group currently has a regional portfolio of 44 properties across three core brands in eight countries, with 20 new properties in the development pipeline.
CDL Hospitality Trusts Divests two Brisbane Hotels for A$77 million
Singapore-based CDL Hospitality Trusts (CDLHT) has agreed to a A$77 million sale of a freehold property in Brisbane consisting of both Mercure Brisbane and Ibis Brisbane. Announced on December 22, the deal was struck between DBS Trustee Limited, a trustee CDL Hospitality Real Estate Investment Trust (H-REIT) which is one of CDLHT’s unit, and CR Hotel Target Pty Ltd. The property, encompassing the 194-key Mercure Brisbane and the 218-key Ibis Brisbane, is located within Brisbane’s central business district with both hotels connected at the basement level. According to CDLHT, the selling price indicates an attractive exit yield of 5.3 per cent on the fixed rental, and represents a 43.4 per cent premium over the original purchase price of A$53.7 million in addition to a 10.0 per cent premium over the independent valuation of A$70 million. CDLHT will utilize the proceeds to reduce existing borrowings and increase distributions to shareholders of its stabled securities in FY2018 to mitigate the effect of the divestment as well as possibly use it to fund future acquisition. The transaction is expected to complete in January 2018.
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