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1. RLJ Completes Sale of DoubleTree Metropolitan for $169 Million
RLJ Lodging Trust announced Monday it has completed the sale of its 764-room DoubleTree Hotel Metropolitan New York for $169 million, according to a news release. The property remained closed as of its third quarter 2021 earnings call in November.
The hotel real estate lodging trust acquired the property in 2010 for almost $332 million, the Real Deal reports, citing property records. The article states Beverly Hills-based Hawkins Way Capital acquired the property.
Along with its hotel disposition, RLJ reported acquiring the 170-room Moxy Denver Cherry Creek for $51.3 million.
2. DiamondRock Buys Two Florida Resorts for $175.5 Million
Hotel REIT DiamondRock Hospitality Company announced it purchased the 170-room Henderson Beach Resort in Destin, Florida, and the 103-unit Tranquility Bay Beachfront Resort in Marathon, Florida, for a combined $175.5 million, according to a news release.
“The six transactions we successfully completed over the last year solidify DiamondRock’s strategic initiative to curate a preeminent portfolio of leisure-oriented, lifestyle hotels and resorts,” DiamondRock President and CEO Mark Brugger said in the news release. “These investments cap off an active year where DiamondRock recycled $220 million from low-yield, encumbered, capital intensive properties into $293 million of high-quality, unencumbered, independent hotels and resorts. We project our recycling initiative will immediately and meaningfully increase our investment yield and drive long-term cash flow growth.”
3. Majority Owner of Mandarin Oriental in New York Acquired for $98 Million
India-based Reliance Industries announced the acquisition of the company that owns a controlling stake in the Mandarin Oriental hotel in New York for $98 million, CNN reports. The acquisition target is a Cayman Island-based firm owned by the Investment Corporation of Dubai.
Reliance Industries is known for its investments in energy, retail and tech, but in its filing, the company stated it wanted to add to its “consumer and hospitality footprint,” the article states. The company has holdings in Oberoi Hotels, a collection of resorts in India and six other countries, as well as the English country club Stoke Park.
4. Contactless and Mobile-First Among Major Hotel Tech Trends
Hotel guests continue to want technology that will give them more control over their stays while being able to avoid in-person contact with staff and other guests, reports HNN’s Sean McCracken. These trends accelerated during the pandemic and are here to stay.
"Mobile-first has been a rallying cry for more than a decade, but the hospitality community has not adopted this shift as quickly as other industries," said Patrick Dunphy, chief information officer for industry group Hospitality Technology Next Generation, "Traditional hotel companies should look at the rapid changes in the restaurant space for opportunities, namely ghost kitchens, online ordering, kiosk deployments, QR code adoption, among other technologies. Companies that embraced this before or during the pandemic have a head start on those that are just trying to figure this out.”
5. Maui Council Overrides Veto on Moratorium on New Hotels
The Maui County Council voted to override the mayor’s veto on a two-year moratorium on new hotel development and visitor accommodations, reports Hawaii News Now. The mayor vetoed the bill in July 2021, arguing there were other solutions to handling the island’s tourism issues.
The council members in favor of the legislation intend to use the time to address the island’s over-tourism issues, diversify the economy and provide more affordable housing. The moratorium puts a pause on new construction while allowing renovation work of existing properties to go on, the article states. The council has the option to vote to end the moratorium early.