Hotel boom in Asia/Pacfic

BANGKOK, 17 May 2012: India and Vietnam top the latest STR Global update on hotel room expansion in the Asia/ Pacific region that identifies 1,602 hotels representing 366,775 rooms in the development pipeline.

The STR report covers expansion up until March indicating India led the field for room growth, up 35%, if all 60,845 rooms under construction open on time. Vietnam was second with a room growth of 27.2% representing 10,830 rooms due to open.

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Tour agents blast hotels

YANGON, 15 May 2012: Tour operators and foreign-owned hotels are in a standoff over soaring hotel rates that skyrocketed almost 300% and threaten the country’s long-term tourism prospects.

The initial report on the dispute was reported by the Myanmar Times, but there has been evidence for some time, since the country started to open to investors, that hotels were taking advantage and trebling rates.

Representatives of Yangon’s foreign-owned hotel attended  a meeting chaired by the Myanmar Hotels and Tourism deputy minister, U Htay Aung, but it ended with no conclusion.

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Hotel groups add Thailand inventory.

BANGKOK, 10 May 2012: Three hotel groups updated their business pipelines, 2012 to 2014, that indicate they will acquire 14 new management contracts for hotels in Thailand.

Updates were released by ONYX Hospitality, Accor and Marriott International for hotel management contracts this side of 2014.

ONYX Hospitality Group cited 12 new properties up to 2014 but only three will be in Thailand. They are: Amari Hua Hin, 223 rooms due to open this June; Amari Residences Pattaya, 135 rooms and OZO Chaweng Samui, 220 rooms both due to open in 2014.

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Tune sells sleep and shower

BANGKOK, 3 May 2012: Red Planet Hotels, the parent company of Tune Hotels, will open 15 more properties in Southeast Asia with two properties scheduled to open in Thailand this year in Bangkok and Phuket.

Red Planet Hotels chief executive officer, Tim Hansing, told TTR Weekly that the group is now looking for more opportunities in Indonesia, the Philippines, China and Thailand.

Fifteen properties are scheduled to open by the end of 2013 in three countries; Thailand (two properties), Philippines (five properties) and Indonesia (eight properties).

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THA to start booking site

BANGKOK, 27 April 2012: Thai Hotels Association will launch online bookings for its members to compete directly with popular booking sites that charge high commissions.

Online bookings will be located on the THA’s website at www.thaihotels.org . The new section should be launched by late  May.

THA chairwoman of marketing, Supawan Tanomkieatipume, told TTR Weekly it has taken two years to develop the facility.

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STR reports gains

BANGKOK, 25 April 2012: STR Global released data of hotel performance in the Asia/Pacific region for March that showed positive results in three key performance metrics possibly heralding recovery in Japanese outbound travel market.

According to a summary of STR global data released earlier this week, March occupancy in the region improved by 4.4% to 69.4%. The average daily rate (ADR) increased by 4.8% to US$145.64 and the revenue per available room (RevPAR) increased by 9.4% to US$101.01 when compared to same month last year.

Tokyo reported the largest occupancy increase, up 47.6% to 84.7% followed by Shanghai in China (+11.5% to 64%) and Hanoi, Vietnam (+11 to 76.9%).

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TAT directors meet at the Cliff

PATTAYA, 19 April 2012: Royal Cliff Hotels Group hosted Tourism Authority of Thailand’s directors and representatives from Europe for their annual regional meeting 2012 in the lead up to the TAT’s marketing activity plan meeting due later in the year.

Royal Cliff Hotel Group managing director, Panga Vathanakul, welcomed delegates while the hotel’s executive director, Vitanart Vathanakul, made a presentation to the director’s on the Royal Cliff’s “brand enhancement project and repositioning initiative”.

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Lehman muscles GHM

SINGAPORE, 4 April 2012: Armed guards and local off-duty sheriff officers in uniform forced Singapore-based management company, General Hotel Management executives off the Setai South Beach in Miami.

The luxury property located on Miami’s prime oceanfront is part of a wider condo and hotel complex. The GHM managed resort was selling rooms for around US$725 a night.

According to GHM, its management was evicted 0230 Saturday, 31 March by owner representatives of the Setai South Beach who informed GHM they were taking over the property.

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Kwoks face graft charge

Hong Kong, 30 March 2012 (AFP) – Hong Kong’s anti-graft body on Thursday arrested two of Asia’s richest property developers, Thomas and Raymond Kwok, for alleged corruption as part of an ongoing bribery probe.

The Kwok brothers have substantial stakes in properties around Asia, including Hong Kong’s Four Seasons Hotel, International Finance Centre and recently developed International Commerce Centre, Hong Kong’s tallest building.

The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) said two senior executives and a former senior government official had been detained in connection with alleged bribery offences.

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Bookings flow in for Songkran

BANGKOK, 29 March 2012: Thailand’s hotel occupancy in February suggests hotels are heading for a positive Songkran festival as most major destinations report growth according to Thai Hotels Association president, Prakit Chanamournphong.

Mr Prakit reported occupancy for member hotels in February during the association’s meeting earlier this week.

In Bangkok, occupancy at four-to-five-star hotels stood at 77.75% up by 2% to 4% from the same month, last year, while the three-star category stood at 68.36% up from 63% last year.

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