Featured in this Asia Pacific Hospitality Newsletter - Week Ending 23 February 2007
Starwood Hotels And Morgan Stanley Real Estate Announce Joint Venture Agreement To Acquire Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel
Abacus Pioneers Hotel Fund
Vietnam To Invest US$46.8 Million In Tourism Infrastructure In 2007
The Westin Brand Plans To Open In Xian, China
Ascott Group To Sell Hotel Asia For US$96m
China Hotel Investment Summit 2007 - Network With Industry Leaders
Hotel Investment Conference - South Asia (HICSA) 2007
Absolute Share Price Performance, As At 23 February 2007


Starwood Hotels And Morgan Stanley Real Estate Announce Joint Venture Agreement To Acquire Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel Return to Headlines

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. and a fund managed by Morgan Stanley Real Estate have entered into a definitive joint venture agreement to acquire the Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel from Taisei Corporation Group, with a closing of the acquisition expected before the end of March 2007. The fund, managed by Morgan Stanley Real Estate, will own approximately 75% of the joint venture and Starwood will own approximately 25%. The 802-room Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay has been managed by Starwood since its opening in 1988 and will continue to be operated by Starwood under a long-term management agreement with the joint venture.


Abacus Pioneers Hotel Fund Return to Headlines

Abacus Property Group will launch Australia's first retail hotel fund as investors continue to snap up hotel and pub portfolios. The Abacus Hospitality Fund will begin with US$106 million worth of four-star hotel assets currently owned by Abacus, including the Novotel Twin Waters Resort in Queensland, the Rydges Tradewinds Hotel in Cairns and the Chateau on the Park hotel in Christchurch, New Zealand. Abacus managing director Frank Wolf said the fund would probably have about US$400 million in hotel assets within three or four years, depending on the availability of appropriate properties. Hotels, although trading on relatively tight yields, still represented good value because they were being sold well below replacement cost, Dr. Wolf said.


Vietnam To Invest US$46.8 Million In Tourism Infrastructure In 2007 Return to Headlines

Vietnam will invest US$46.8 million in tourism infrastructure in 2007, according to the Vietnam Administration of Tourism (VAT). The amount was 21 per cent higher than that of 2006 and brings the total state investment in tourism infrastructure between 2001 and 2007 to US$220 million. The VAT said that the investment will focus on national tourism projects in the central region and the Central Highlands, areas near Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City and tourism projects in isolated and remote regions. In 2006, the government constructed tourism infrastructure in 59 cities and provinces nationwide. Many of those projects have been put into operation, helping attract visitors as well as increasing investment in tourism.


The Westin Brand Plans To Open In Xian, China Return to Headlines
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc and Xian Yungao International Hotel Company Limited announced an agreement for Starwood to manage a 296-room Westin in Xian, expected to open in 2010. The Westin Xian will be part of a planned Great Tang All Day Mall, which is expected to become the world's longest cultural and commercial pedestrian mall in the world. The site is also within 40 minutes drive from Xian Xianyang International Airport and 60 minutes from the Terracotta Warrior site.

Ascott Group To Sell Hotel Asia For US$96m Return to Headlines
The Ascott Group has agreed to sell the freehold Hotel Asia on Scotts Road for US$96 million, instead of developing it into a serviced apartment building as previously announced, the company said in February 2007. Ascott said it will make a net gain of about US$14.5 million from the sale. Chief Executive Cameron Ong said the property was bought by an overseas investor, but declined to say from where. More market sources suggested the buyer could be from the Middle East. The buyer has not yet decided what to do with the property, Mr Ong said. One possibility is that Ascott could continue with plans to remake Hotel Asia into serviced residences and manage the property instead of owning it as well. Ascott said the group will continue to look for potential sites to expand its presence in Singapore to achieve its target of 1,600 serviced residence units by 2010. With the sale of Hotel Asia, Ascott's current and upcoming portfolio in Singapore stands at 1,054 units across 11 properties.

China Hotel Investment Summit 2007 - Network With Industry Leaders Return to Headlines

Date: 18-20 April 2007
Venue: Grand Hyatt Shanghai

Join us at the most established hotel investment summit in China. Delegates to the China Hotel Investment Summit 2007 will have the opportunity to network with leading hospitality real estate owners, investors, financiers, management groups, academia, government bodies and others, as well as take part in engaging discussions on the hottest topics on China's hospitality real estate investments. Co-hosted by Beijing International Studies University and HVS International, 2007 will prove to be an exciting summit which focuses on 'Investment in China's Hospitality Real Estate'.

Catch the opportunity to hear from*:

  • Prof. Dai Bin - Director, Academic Research Office, Beijing International Studies University and President, Beijing Hospitality Institute
  • A. Patrick Imbardelli - Chief Executive Asia Pacific, InterContinental Hotels Group
  • Ho Kwon Ping - Executive Chairman, Banyan Tree Holdings Limited
  • Koos Klein - President, Middle East & Asia Pacific, Hilton International
  • Miguel Ko - President, Starwood Asia Pacific Hotels & Resorts
  • Steve Rushmore - President & Founder, HVS International
  • Tim Gao - Chairman, TEDA Hotels Management Limited
    and many more...

*Speakers, agenda and other conference events are subject to change without notice

To register contact: [email protected] or visit: http://www.chisummit.com


Hotel Investment Conference - South Asia (HICSA) 2007 Return to Headlines

Hotel Investment Conference - South Asia (HICSA) 2006 was an astounding success! In just two years of it's existence, HICSA has become extremely popular.

The event will be held on April 4-5, 2007 in Grand Hyatt, Mumbai, India. The conference is valued for its networking opportunities and content-rich sessions. HICSA has become a "do not miss" event for all those who are looking to invest in South Asia. India calling... Are you ready?

Notable Speakers:

  • Paul Foskey - Executive Vice President - Development, Ritz Carlton
  • Madhu Rao - Chief Financial Officer, Shangri La Asia
  • Raymond "Rip" Gellein, Jr. - President - Global Development, Starwood Hotels & Resorts
  • Paul MacPherson - Chief Development Officer, Jumeirah International
  • Thomas J. Monahan - Sr. Vice President - Acquisitions & Development, Starwood Asia Pacific Hotels & Resorts
  • Raymond Bickson - Managing Director, IHCL
  • Sonu Shivdasani - Chairman & CEO, Six Senses Resorts & Spas
  • Nicholas Clayton - President, Kor Hotel Group
  • Tim Hansing - Sr. Vice President - Development, Kingdom Hotels Investments

To register for the event, contact: [email protected] or click here.

HICSA Website  |  Agenda  |  Register Now  |  Sponsors  |  Accommodation  |  More Information


Absolute Share Price Performance, as at 23 February 2007
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