Uber explores Expedia buy. The Financial Times reported on
Wednesday that Uber has explored a potential bid for Expedia as part of a plan
to develop a “super app.” Truist Securities wrote that Uber contacted advisors
in recent months regarding the potential acquisition. Uber CEO Dara
Khosrowshahi served as Expedia’s CEO from 2005 to 2017 and remains on the board
of directors. No formal approach has been made to Expedia and there are no
current discussions. Uber’s interest was deemed to be “at a very early stage.”
DC filling up for inaugural. With the presidential campaign
in the homestretch, Washington, D.C. is seeing a surge in hotel and vacation
rental bookings for early 2025, as visitors rush to secure spots ahead of a
potentially historic Inauguration Day. A Travel Weekly search on the Marriott
International, Hilton and IHG Hotels & Resorts websites for hotels in the
capital over the January 20 inauguration found that dozens of properties in the
city were listed as sold out. A search of Hilton and IHG properties showed only
three with availability in the D.C. area, all in Virginia or Maryland. And
prices at those properties started at $650 per night.
Regent back to US. The Regent brand has officially returned
to the U.S. with the opening of the Regent Santa Monica Beach. Part of IHG
Hotels & Resorts’ luxury and lifestyle portfolio, the brand’s new flagship
property in the Americas has 167 guestrooms and suites, with most offering
panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean, Santa Monica Beach, and its namesake
pier. The hotel includes a Chef Michael Mina-run restaurant, a Guerlain
Wellness spa and an elevated pool deck overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Regent
Hotels & Resorts joined IHG Hotels & Resorts in 2018 and today includes
Regent Hong Kong, Carlton Cannes, a Regent Hotel, Regent Shanghai on the Bund,
and Regent Phu Quoc in Vietnam. The debut of Regent Jeddah in 2024 and Regent
Kyoto in 2025 will lead the brand’s next wave of openings.
Positive week in US. Helped by the Columbus Day/Indigenous
Peoples’ Day calendar shift, the U.S. hotel industry for October 6-12 reported
positive year-over-year comparisons, according to CoStar data. Occupancy
was 70.3% (+2.4% YOY); ADR was $166.88 (+1.4% YOY); and RevPAR was $117.28
(+3.8% YOY). Among the Top 25 Markets, New Orleans saw the largest
performance lifts across each of the three key performance metrics: occupancy
(+20.1% to 75.6%), ADR (+13.1% to $194.70) and RevPAR (+35.9% to $147.18). The
market’s performance was driven by the Water Environment Federation’s Technical
Exhibition and Conference. Atlanta saw the second-highest increases in
occupancy (+15.6% to 77.5%) and RevPAR (+20.6% to $102.59), due to displacement
demand from Hurricane Milton. The steepest RevPAR declines were seen in Oahu
Island (-10.3% to $218.20) and Tampa (-9.8% to $88.67), the latter due to the
impacts of Hurricane Milton.
Two Six Senses for Italy. IHG Hotels & Resorts’ Six
Senses brand has signed management agreements with Gruppo Statuto for the Six
Senses Milan and Six Senses Lake Como. The 68-room Six Senses Milan will open
in 2025 and be located in the heart of the artistic Brera quarter, while Six
Senses Lake Como will open in 2028 following a full restoration of the Grand
Hotel Cadenabbia on the lake’s western shores. The number of guest rooms within
the six-story property will be significantly reduced to accommodate 102
generously sized rooms and suites as well as more space dedicated to the spa
and wellness area. These two hotels Six join 30 open hotels in the country, and
an additional eight in development. These two latest Italian signings also
establish Gruppo Statuto as a leading Italian real estate group with a
portfolio of international hotels, having acquired Six Senses London and Six
Senses Ibiza in addition to Six Senses Rome.
Four Seasons deals in Greece. Four Seasons Hotels and
Resorts and Blue Iris Investments S.A, an investment vehicle of AGC Equity
Partners, a global alternative asset investment firm, announced plans for the 94-room
Four Seasons Resort Mykonos scheduled to open in 2025. The resort will be located
along the coastline of Kalo Livadi Bay on 60,324 square metres (649,322 square
feet) of land.
Rosewood Exumas gets go-ahead. After
a public consultation mandated by the Department of Environmental Planning and
Protection on October 3, the $200 million development by Yntegra Group on East
Sampson Cay in the Exumas, the Bahamas, is moving ahead in partnership with
Rosewood Hotels and Resorts and is scheduled to open in 2028. In addition to
developing less than 50% of the 124-acre island, sustainable building practices
will be prioritized, native plants will be used in at least 80% of the
landscape design, and 14,000 native trees will be grown in the nursery
throughout its development. A 150-unit employee housing facility will also be
developed.
UK deal volume update. Transaction volume in the U.K. through
3Q24 reached £4.7 billion, an 181% increase on the same period in 2023, bringing
the year-to-date total to 230 properties (representing c. 25,500 rooms) to have
changed hands in 2024, according to new Cushman & Wakefield data. Deals in
Q3 were largely driven by single-asset transactions in London, Edinburgh and
the U.K. regions. London accounts for 51% of major deals in Q3. Transaction
volumes in the U.K. hotel real estate market reached c. £732 million in Q3 2024
as investment momentum continued albeit at a slower pace relative to the first
and second quarters. Cushman & Wakefield said it is now experiencing a
greater bullishness to get deals done, fueled by a greater meeting of minds
between buyers and sellers on pricing, the ability to price in base rate
compression, and the general resilience of hotel performance.
CDL grows UK portfolio. CDL Hospitality Trust has entered
into an asset and business purchase agreement with Hotel Exe Ltd., Plaza
Properties and Plaza Retail to acquire Hotel Indigo Exeter and two retail units
in the U.K. for $33.2 million and is expected to be fully funded through debt. The
property comprises a 104-room boutique hotel, with spa and gym facilities, as
well as two retail units. The property is located at the entrance of the
Princesshay Shopping Centre.
