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1. KKR, Baupost close on UK Marriott portfolio deal
KKR and The Baupost Group closed on their acquisition of 33 Marriott International hotels from the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, reports CoStar News' Paul Norman. KKR's European hospitality platform, Amante Capital, will be managing partner for the joint venture.
The 6,500-key portfolio of full-service properties will remain Marriott-branded hotels. They are located across the United Kingdom in cities such as London, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds and Liverpool.
“Our purchase of this impressive portfolio reflects our conviction in the UK and the opportunity we see to invest behind strong fundamentals and long-term growth in the European hospitality sector,” said Mai-Lan de Marcilly, managing director and head of transactions France and Hotels at KKR, in a statement.
2. DC hoteliers anticipate bookings for inauguration
Hoteliers in the Washington, D.C., area are readying for the jump in bookings that comes with presidential elections, the Washington Business Journal reports. There are a number of variables, however, that come into play that affect the final occupancy level, such as when Martin Luther King Jr. Day falls and other events planned around the same time.
In 2025, inauguration day falls on the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday.
Citywide occupancy was 61.5% for President Joe Biden's inauguration in 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Occupancy came in at nearly 89% for Trump's first inauguration, according to CoStar data.
3. How new tariffs would affect US hoteliers
New tariffs proposed by President-elect Donald Trump would raise the prices of imported goods, which means U.S. hoteliers need to plan now for future furniture, fixtures and equipment purchases, HNN reports.
Hoteliers who place FF&E orders now to try to beat the tariffs are likely out of luck.
“If we order today, nothing is going to ship before the inauguration anyway,” said Alan Benjamin, founder and president of hospitality procurement firm Benjamin West. “We’ve got our holidays, the Chinese New Year and everything else. None of this is going to be in place. It takes time.”
4. Meliá Hotels founder Gabriel Escarrer Juliá dies
Gabriel Escarrer Juliá, founder of international hotel firm Meliá Hotels International, died at 89 in his native Mallorca, Spain, reports HNN's Terence Baker. He was serving as Meliá's honorary chairman after handing over the company to his son, Gabriel Escarrer Jaume, in 2016.
A news release from Meliá said he had been a “key representative of the pioneering generation of tourism. Throughout his life, he has been a great example of passion, tenacity and entrepreneurial vision, since he founded the company we know today as Meliá Hotels International in Mallorca at the age of 21, which he would later promote throughout his life to the highest levels of the global hotel industry.”
5. Snow disrupts post-Thanksgiving travel
Heavy snow hit parts of the Midwest and Northeast over the weekend, disrupting post-Thanksgiving travel plans, NPR reports. Areas of New York, Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania saw more than 2 feet of snowfall.
Authorities had to close part of I-90 in Pennsylvania and westbound lanes of the New York State Thruway to Pennsylvania because of the snow. Pennsylvania State Police reported responding to nearly 200 incidents from Friday to Saturday morning.