Major hotel transactions have been few and far between over the past several years, as inflation has surged across the globe along with higher interest rates. A bid-ask gap between sellers and buyers has sidelined deals activity, while the so-called wave of distressed hotels has not materialized.
But transaction activity is starting to pick up, and the sentiment around the hospitality industry is that more deals may trickle through as investors and owners alike settle into the economic environment and central banks work toward cutting rates.
Below is a roundup of some of the recent major hotel deals struck between buyers and sellers.
Conrad Seoul
Deal announced June 5; expected close date to be determined
Toronto-based Brookfield Asset Management will sell the 434-room Conrad Seoul to Singapore-based real estate investment trust ARA Asset Management for 400 billion South Korean won ($292 million), the largest hotel deal in South Korea so far this year, HNN's Terence Baker reported.
Previous reporting indicated that Brookfield was looking for a sale price of anywhere from $370 million to $750 million before settling on the current deal.
Jesper Palmqvist, area director for Asia-Pacific at STR, said there's been some movement in regard to transaction volume in Seoul, but not necessarily a lot.
"It is hard to say how indicative [this deal] is, apart from the fact that the market pays what the market wants to pay. [There] hasn't exactly been tons of deals there recently," he said.
Turtle Bay Resort
Deal announced May 29; expected to close in third quarter 2024
Blackstone Real Estate plans to sell the 450-room Turtle Bay Resort in Kahuku, Hawaii, to Host Hotels & Resorts for $725 million, HNN reports. The property previously sold for $332.5 million in 2018, according to CoStar data.
Host will hand over the operations of the hotel to Marriott and will flag it with the Ritz-Carlton brand upon closing of the deal, which is expected to happen in the third quarter of this year. The property adds to Host Hotels' existing portfolio of four hotels and 2,006 guestrooms in Hawaii.
"We are thrilled to enter into an agreement to acquire Turtle Bay Resort, which will further expand and diversify our already strong presence in Hawaii," Host President and CEO Jim Risoleo said in a news release.
Hilton Paris Opéra
Deal completed May 14
Copthorne Hotel Holdings, a division of City Developments Ltd., acquired the 268-room Hilton Paris Opéra for €240 million ($259 million) from funds managed by Blackstone, HNN's Terence Baker reported.
Blackstone acquired the property in December 2013 for an undisclosed price and renovated it before rebranding it as a Hilton in 2014.
Kwek Leng Beng, executive chairman of CDL, said in a news release that he was excited to add the Hilton Paris Opéra to its portfolio before the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
"This acquisition provides us with the rare opportunity to enhance our hospitality portfolio with a trophy asset, expand our presence in a key gateway city in Europe ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympics and bolster our recurring income with potential for value-add," he said.
Arizona Biltmore, LXR Hotels & Resorts
Deal completed May 8
London-based private equity real estate manager Henderson Park acquired the 705-room Arizona Biltmore, LXR Hotels & Resorts in Phoenix for $705 million from BRE Hotels & Resorts, a Blackstone fund-owned hospitality platform, HNN's Bryan Wroten reported.
The property, which was renovated in 2021, was last sold in 2018 as part of a three-property portfolio from Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC Real Estate for $403.4 million, excluding the two 18-hole golf courses adjacent to the hotel.
The Arizona Biltmore, LXR Hotels & Resorts is celebrating its 95th anniversary this year.
1 Hotel Nashville and Embassy Suites by Hilton Nashville Downtown
Deal completed April 15
Host Hotels & Resorts kicked off the month of May with the acquisition of the 215-room 1 Hotel Nashville and 506-room Embassy Suites by Hilton Nashville Downtown for $530 million from sellers Starwood Capital Group, Crescent Real Estate and High Street Real Estate Partners, HNN's Bryan Wroten reported.
Host Hotels' Risoleo said Nashville's popularity as both a leisure destination and a convention destination contributed to its acquisition desires.
"With meaningful in-place cash flow, multiple demand generators and no expected near-term capital expenditure requirements, we expect the property will generate outsize growth as it stabilizes, enhancing the quality of our portfolio and driving additional value creation for our stockholders," he said.