HVS EMEA Hospitality Enews - Week Ending 3 July 2009

Hungary For A Hard Rock Hotel

US-based Hard Rock International has teamed up with Hungarian company Eurovegas Hungary Ltd to develop a mixed-use resort in northwest Hungary. The resort will be located near to Vienna, in Austria; Bratislava, in Slovakia; and Hungary’s capital Budapest. The Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Hungary is expected to open with more than 600 rooms at the beginning of 2012. A total of €5 billion is to be invested in the project over ten years.

Meridia Capital Cools Down With A Lot of Lolly

In these hot summer months nothing is nicer than cooling down with a nice ice lolly. Meridia Captial thinks so too, but it has a different type of lolly in mind…the type you can buy a hotel with! The private equity group has obtained financing for three projects in Paris, France, including the 90-room W Paris-Opera. This property, which is scheduled to open in 2011, will be its first hotel in Europe and it will be operated by Starwood Hotels & Resorts. The long-term syndicated loan is being provided by three Spanish financial institutions: la caixa, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, and Banco Sabadell. Meridia’s other projects in Paris are the acquisition of a building in the city centre and a new retail area.

Rezidor’s Royal Visit To Moscow

Rezidor Hotel Group has announced hotel number three for the Russian capital Moscow. The Radisson Royal Hotel Moscow is expected to roll out the red carpet and open to the public on 1 December 2009, with 507 rooms and 38 serviced apartments. The hotel, which previously operated as the Hotel Ukraina, is currently undergoing an extensive refurbishment and renovation before being brought under the wing of the Radisson brand. Rezidor will run the property in partnership with JSC Ukraina Hotel, the hotel’s owner.

A New Scandic Hotel For Oslo

Stockholm-based hotel company Scandic has signed a long-term management agreement with Fornebu Hotell AS for a new hotel in Oslo, Norway. Construction is expected to start on the 300-room Scandic Fornebu in 2010, and the hotel is scheduled to open in spring 2012 in the Fornebu business park, on the shores of Oslo Fjord.

Portugal's First Crowne Plaza

The area of Vilamoura, on the Algarve, has been chosen as the home of Portugal’s first Crowne Plaza hotel. The 327-room Crowne Plaza Vilamoura is the result of a franchise agreement between InterContinental Hotels Group and Portuguese real estate company Grupo Marope, which bought the property in 2006 and operated it as the Vilamoura Beach Hotel. The hotel, which is currently being rebuilt, is to open under the Crowne Plaza banner in January 2010.

A Recipe For Perfection

What do you get when you mix together a chef and the founder of a hotel company? A boutique hotel of course! The co-founder of Hotel du Vin Robin Hutson and Michelin-starred chef Alex Aitken have cooked up a plan to open a £30 million hotel in the village of Lyndhurst, in the New Forest, England. The 30-room hotel is scheduled to open in October of this year and it marks Mr Hutson’s return to the UK hotel industry after the sale of the Hotel du Vin chain in 2004.

A Hilton To Reside In Qatar

Hilton Hotels Corporation is to bring its extended stay product to the city of Doha, in Qatar. The US hotel company has signed a management agreement with New Doha Hotels Company for the 288-unit Hilton Doha Residence. The hotel is expected to open in the second quarter of 2012, adjacent to Hilton’s first resident in Doha the 324-room Hilton Doha, which is scheduled to open at the beginning of 2010.

Park Hyatt Says Hello To Saudi Arabia And Hilton Opens A New Garden Inn

Hyatt Hotels & Resorts recently opened it first property in Saudi Arabia. The 142-room Park Hyatt Jeddah – Marina Club and Spa opened on the coast of the Red Sea, in the city of Jeddah, in the south of the country. Another newcomer in Saudi Arabia is Hilton Hotels Corporation’s Garden Inn brand. The 180-room Hilton Garden Inn Riyadh Olaya opened this week in the country’s capital Riyadh. This hotel brings Hilton’s portfolio in Saudi Arabia up to five.

A Four Points By Sheraton For Mauritius

Starwood Hotels & Resorts’ Four Points by Sheraton brand made its debut in Africa this week. The 108-room Four Points by Sheraton Cybercity opened on the island of Mauritius, in the Indian Ocean. This is Starwood’s third hotel on the island alongside the 198-room Le Meridien Ile Maurice and the 193-room Grand Mauritian Resort & Spa, Mauritius.

Southern Sun Shines On Johannesburg

South African hotel company Southern Sun has announced that it is to develop a new hotel in the city of Johannesburg. The 132-room Southern Sun Hyde Park is expected to open in the city’s Hyde Park Shopping Centre in September 2009.

Kiessling’s Corner

The news from Spain by Gabriele Kiessling, HVS Analyst, Madrid. Husa Hoteles has just opened a new establishment in Leon: the four-star, 91-room Husa Abad San Antonio, which was constructed by Leocasa Inversiones SA. Hoteles Catalonia is planning to open the four-star, 70-room Catalonia Portal Angel in the centre of Barcelona at the beginning of September 2009. Oca Hoteles has announced its first hotel for the Galician city of Orense; the four-star, 45-room hotel is expected to open in 2010.

Absolute Share Price Performance Over the Past Week 25 June-2 July 2009

Rezidor Hotel Group - Shares rose on high volume for two consecutive days this week by 8.4%.

Marriott International and Starwood Hotels & Resorts - Barclays downgraded both companies to "underweight" from "equalweight".

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