| Starwood Completes Le Meridien Acquisition | Return to Headlines |
|
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. announced that it has acquired the Le Meridien brand and the related management and franchise business for the portfolio of 130 hotels and resorts globally for approximately US$225 million, roughly equal to the amount of Starwood's current investment, including accrued interest, in the debt of Le Meridien. The completion of this acquisition will significantly increase the company's foot print outside the Americas. With 43 properties in Europe, 47 in Africa and the Middle East, 28 properties in Asia Pacific and India as well as 12 in the Americas the brand represents a perfect complement to Starwood's current geographical footprint, securing its position as one of the leading consumer lifestyle hotel and leisure companies in the world. |
|
| Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts Announced Official Partnership With Beijing Based Charity | Return to Headlines |
| Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, announced its official partnership with the Beijing-based charity organization "Care for Children". Shangri-La is Care for Children's first and only hotel group corporate partner. Focusing on fostering Chinese orphans into Chinese families, Care for Children's slogan is "One in Ten" - a vision of placing one million Chinese orphans into foster families by 2010. Shangri-La will support Care for Children by leveraging its substantial network, providing financial assistance through guest donation programmes, sponsoring venues for charity's events and workshops, and launching a series of grassroots initiatives through 2006. For further information about Care for Children, please visit its website at www.careforchildren.com.cn. | |
| Express By Holiday Inn Opens in Hong Kong | Return to Headlines |
|
InterContinental Hotels Group has opened Express by Holiday Inn Causeway Bay in Hong Kong. The new hotel is strategically located next to the popular Times Square mall, in the heart of bustling Causeway Bay on Hong Kong Island. The 29-storey newly-built hotel features 269 modern guest rooms equipped with broadband Internet access and satellite TV, as well as a business centre and two meeting rooms. Express by Holiday Inn Causeway Bay is InterContinental Hotels Group's fourth hotel in Hong Kong. The group also manages the Holiday Inn Golden Mile, the InterContinental Hong Kong and the InterContinental Grand Stanford Hong Kong in the Special Administrative Region. |
|
| China's Jinjiang Group to List Best Hotel Assets in Hong Kong in 2006 | Return to Headlines |
|
Jinjiang Group, China's largest hotel operator, expects to list its best assets in Hong Kong next year to fund an overseas expansion, according to the China Daily. The newspaper said Jinjiang Group owns three companies listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, including Jinjiang International Hotels Development Co Ltd, which runs 80 hotels and owns a 20 per cent stake in Jinjiang Star Hotels, the country's first budget hotel chain. |
|
| Shanghai Records High Rates and Occupancies | Return to Headlines |
| According to the South China Morning Post, Shanghai's hotel business is as robust as Hong Kong's at the moment. Now in high season, occupancies of the city's 25,000 four- and five-star rooms are hovering around 80 per cent, according to Portman Ritz-Carlton general manager Ralph Grippo. Average room rates last month were US$300, he said, compared with US$265 over the year, more than US$55 up on last year. Occupancies are stable with fluctuations attributed to Lunar New Year, summer holiday season and other Chinese holidays. Being primarily a business destination, occupancies in Shanghai drop to about 70 per cent over holidays and weekends. Most Shanghai hotels had a strong corporate base with opportunities to increase occupancies at weekends. The hotels have their own association, International Brand Hotels of Shanghai, which represents approximately 35 four- and five-star properties. | |
| Mandarin Oriental to Manage Second Property in Macau | Return to Headlines |
| A second luxury hotel in Macau will be part of
a mixed-use complex, soon to be developed on a prime site on the Macau waterfront.
The overall project, which will be owned and developed through a joint venture
between Shun Tak Holdings and Hongkong Land, is scheduled to open in 2009.
The 2.6 million square foot mixed-use project will comprise a residential
development, an extensive upscale retail centre, serviced apartments and
a state-of-the-art Mandarin Oriental Hotel. The development will be directly
connected to the MGM Grand Casino. Mandarin Oriental's second property in
Macau will be designed as a chic, intimate and contemporary hotel, featuring
210 spacious guestrooms including 42 suites, all of which feature panoramic
views of Macau. |
|
| Absolute Share Price Performance, as at 25 November 2005 |
