Category Archives: Hotels

AccorHotels Group officially announced the acquisition of FRHI Hotels & Resorts (FRHI) and its three prestigious luxury hotel brands: Fairmont, Raffles and Swissôtel. Following the approval of shareholders at the General Shareholders Meeting on July 12, 2016, the transaction with Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) of Saudi Arabia provided $840 million (€768 million) cash payment and the issuance of 46.7 million AccorHotels shares in consideration for the contributed FRHI shares. Joining AccorHotels’ global network is a portfolio of globally admired brands, which includes management of many of the world’s most iconic and historic hotels located in key strategic cities around the world, including: The Savoy in London, Raffles Singapore, Fairmont San Francisco, New York’s The Plaza, Fairmont Le Château Frontenac in Quebec City, and Le Royal Monceau Raffles Paris. The transaction gives QIA and KHC respective stakes of 10.4% and 5.8% in Accor’s share capital. Ali Bouzarif and Aziz Aluthman Fakhroo from QIA and Sarmad Zok from KHC will now join AccorHotels’ Board of Directors. AccorHotels plans to generate approximately €65 million in revenue and cost synergies thanks to the combination of brands, the maximization of hotel earnings, the increased efficiency of marketing, sales and distribution channel initiatives, and the optimization of support costs. Significant enhancements will also be made in terms of customer data, thanks to the integration of FRHI’s customer base that includes three million loyalty members, of which 75 percent are in North America.This addition of three remarkable brands instantly positions AccorHotels as a leading player in the global luxury hotel market, increases long term growth potential and profitability, and significantly expands the company’s footprint in North America, the world’s largest and most …

Stayzilla.com has expanded the number of homestays in North East, Sikkim and Bengal, given the remoteness and demand for stays in these areas. Stayzilla works closely with various state tourism departments for opening up more homestays across the hilly terrain of the East. It has also introduced homestays in Tawang, Bhalukpong and Bomdila, located along the West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh. While homestays in Bhalukpong are supervised by the forest division, the stays in Bomdilla are run by Monpa, Sherdukpen, Miji, Bugun and Aka tribes. Identifying the undersupply of stay options relative to demand in India, Stayzilla stays are surpassing geographical barriers to welcome diverse cultures experiences across remote places such as Majuli. With over ten homestays, local tribes of Majuli have been promoting spiritual and eco-tourism vigorously in the region. Majuli is located on the river Brahmaputra in Assam and is known as the largest river island in the country. With an array of homestay facilities available across Sikkim and Meghalaya, Stayzilla lists homestays that offer tourists an opportunity to live with the locals, discover and share their lifestyle. Stayzilla has been involved in promoting eco-tourism and rural home stays in the region. On revitalising village tourism, Ankit Rastogi, VP Marketplaces, Stayzilla said “Unlike most travel experiences, rural homestays focus on collaborating with locals in improving their community’s quality of living. We, at Stayzilla work closely with State Tourism departments to develop unique tourism experiences based on the community’s cultural heritage to enable tourists to experience local hospitality, cuisine, customs and traditions by staying with families.” Along with rural and wildlife tourism, religious destinations spearhead domestic tourism in the country. The Mayapur Tourism Department under ISKCON temple provides …

Cox & Kings-owned Meininger Hotels will open a property in close proximity to Leipzig’s main station at the beginning of 2017. The existing building and the former ibis Leipzig City (Germany) from the Accor Group which was closed in March 2016 will be converted in accordance with MEININGER standards and will ultimately have 404 beds available in 126 rooms. The hotel is located in the centre of Leipzig and is the perfect starting point from which to explore the city. Owing to its proximity to the main station, the hotel can be easily reached on public transport. The flexible room structure of MEININGER Hotels means that the accommodation options will range from traditional double rooms through private rooms with multiple beds right down to a bed in a shared dorm room. All the public spaces, such as the lobby, lounge, bar, breakfast room and terrace will be located on the ground floor of the building, as will the guest kitchen and games zone, which are also typical features of a MEININGER hotel. In the well-equipped guest kitchen customers will be able to prepare their own meals at any time, day or night. Moreover, the kitchen will also have a washing machine and a dryer. Peter Kerkar, Director, Cox & Kings, says, “This hotel in Leipzig will strengthen our portfolio of hotels in Germany where we have a presence in five other cities. Its proximity to the main station and city centre will attract a sizeable chunk of our clientele.”

The first Asia Hotel & Tourism Investment Conference (AHTIC) is all set to be held at the Hilton Colombo in Sri Lanka from Nov 27-29, 2016, in partnership with the Sri Lanka Tourism Club (SLTC). AHTIC will attract an international audience of senior figures and decision-makers involved in all aspects of hotel and tourism investment in South Asia. The conference will focus on hotel development and infrastructure plans in these key markets. Join us in Sri Lanka and hear from regions industry experts on the opportunities available in the region, find out what lessons they have learnt about doing business in the region and how they have overcome development and operational challenges. Find out how banks are working together with investors to drive this economy forward, and what developers and owners need to provide to attract the big operators.

Representation and marketing company, RARE has added four new hotel partners to it’s portfolio. “We are thrilled to introduce these fresh off the boat properties for the year 2016. Call us RARE 50 as we endeavor to be a curated collection of 50 of the most unique concept oriented properties,” says Sowmya R Vijaymohan, Partner, RARE India in a statement. These new properties are: Raas Devigarh, Udaipur and Khaas Bagh, Jaipur in Rajasthan; Rajakkad Estate, Palani Hills in Tamil Nadu; and Reni Pani Jungle Lodges, Satpura in Madhya Pradesh. 39-suites strong Raas Devigarh, Udaipur, is within the spectacular fort complex of Devigarh in a rural setting just under an hour, north of Udaipur. While Khaas Bagh, Jaipur (Raj.) is no more than a ten minute drive from the city of Jaipur. Built on the lines of a haveli, but spread out like a country home with large open terraces, courtyards, verandas, and offers 18 spacious suites. The Rajakkad Estate in Palani Hills (TN), just under a two hour drive from Madurai, is a unique homestay located on a 40 acre coffee and pepper plantation. Reni Pani is an elegant lodge focused on the wildlife experience, a short drive from the Tawa Reservoir. Stylish and spacious cottages, 12 of them are distributed for privacy on a varied landscape featuring grass lands, a seasonal nulla and a hearty tree cover allow animals, insects, reptiles and birds to flourish. The lodge manager, himself an avid birder captains a team of naturalists constantly trained under his supervision.

OYO Rooms has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board (UTDB) for standardising and promoting hospitality in the state. Under the MoU, OYO will help in transforming and standardising hospitality real-estate units and make local homestays better equipped to suit the need of visitors and tourists. In the first phase, OYO has already standardised 15 home stays registered with UTDB. This will be followed by listing and marketing these properties on OYO’s channels. “We are very proud to partner the efforts of the Uttarakhand Government in building a tourism-friendly infrastructure while sustaining local communities. The pace of our efforts is aligned towards ensuring that while infrastructure is upgraded and standardized, the local ecosystem is not disrupted. OYO has built deep expertise in standardizing amenities and guest-experience in the unbranded hotels segment. This tie-up gives us the opportunity to transfer these skills and learning to the state of Uttarakhand.” said Abhinav Sinha, Chief Operating Officer, OYO. Commenting on the development Shailesh Bagauli, CEO, Uttarakhand Tourist Development Board said, “UTDB is happy to partner with OYO, the leading brand of hotel-networks in the country. We are confident that OYO’s expertise in standardizing and marketing large inventories to customers in different parts of India will drive immense value to this partnership. We look forward to our joint efforts contributing to increased tourist influx and a better stay experience for visitors to Uttarakhand.”

After recently signing a MoU with Madhya Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation, Stayzilla.com, the largest aggregator for verified homestays in India and Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board (UTDB) has signed an MOU to jointly promote and market homestays in Uttarakhand. The MoU was signed in the presence of Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Harish Rawat, Shailesh Bagauli, Secretary Tourism & CEO, Uttarakhand Tourism and Ankit Rastogi, Vice-President, Marketplace, Stayzilla.com. The company is closely working with various state tourism departments for joint promotion of homestays. Stayzilla recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Madhya Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation for joint promotion of homestays. Bagauli, CEO, UTDB said, “These are interesting times for Uttarakhand tourism with growing influx of tourists from across the country and we are working towards strengthening our homestay eco-system. We believe that our partnership with largest aggregator of homestays, Stayzilla will be extremely beneficial for offering best-in-class stay experience for our tourists. We are cognizant of Stayzilla team’s strength as they are already closely working with various state governments such as Madhya Pradesh, North East and more for joint promotion of homestays” he added. Under this agreement, Stayzilla will support verification procedures and jointly boost homestays across Uttarakhand. All homestays registered with UTDB will receive technological and operational support to run the homestays. Also, Stayzilla & UTDB will jointly conduct education and training sessions for UTDB registered homestays on best practices such as online usage, content management, operations and expense management. Stayzilla has been constantly conducting sensitization workshops for promoting the concept of homestays and bed & breakfast outfits across Uttarakhand region in cities such as Dehradun, Haridwar, Almorah, Nainital, Gopeshwar, Munsiyari, Rudraprayag, Chamba, Uttarkashi, Tehri, Rampur, Rudrapur, …

Varun Beach Bheemili Resort managed by AccorHotels has opened doors for public. Located 25 kilometres northeast of Visakhapatnam, the resort has 28 rooms overlooking the Bay of Bengal. The room rate start from Rs. 5850. The resort is within walking distance to Bheemili beach. Bheemili is known for its rich history and traces of Buddhism which offers a culturally rich experience to the tourists. Bheemili Resort is also well connected to the Varun Beach by beautiful marine drives and is within relative proximity to the city’s airport and railway station (42 kilometres and 33 kilometres respectively). For outdoor team building activities or social events the resort offers five acres of outdoor space, perfect for any corporate weekend retreats. Jean-Michel Cassé, Senior Vice President, Operations, AccorHotels India says, “India is a priority market for us and one in which we are seeing solid growth momentum. By the end of this year, we expect to have a strong presence with a network of 45 hotels in the country. The state of Andhra Pradesh is integral to our development strategy and we are committed to opening more world class hotels here. The Varun Beach Bheemili Resort is our second hotel alongside the 225-room Novotel Visakhapatnam and we have plans to open another Novotel with a convention centre in Vijayawada sometime later.” Madhav Bellamkonda, General Manager, Varun Beach Bheemili Resort managed by AccorHotels & Novotel Visakhapatnam Varun Beach says, “Varun Beach Bheemili Resort infuses local architectural elements with the warmth of Novotel hospitality, elegance and simplicity focused on the needs of the leisure or business traveller. Our large sea-facing rooms with balconies are the closest to a cruise experience on land made even more …

Hilton Worldwide is all set to open two new properties in India next year. Kaushik Vardharajan, Vice President, Development- India, said, “We have around 15 hotels in the pipeline for India with about 2500 rooms coming up. Next year we are going to open a Conrad Hotel in Bengaluru and we also have a Hilton Resort under construction at Goa which will also open next year. We continue to evaluate the markets around the country. While everyone is looking at Tier I cities, we believe that there is a lot of potential in Tier II cities. We have a property coming up in Lucknow as well.”

OYO Rooms  has launched a self-serve platform for business travellers on its mobile App, called OYO for Business. The platform offers rooms which cater specifically to the needs of corporate travellers and include amenities like air-conditioned rooms equipped with flat-screen television, free Wi-Fi, complimentary breakfast and 24×7 customer-care support. The rooms are present in over 6000 hotels spread across 180 cities in India. Ritesh Agarwal, Founder & CEO – OYO, said, “OYO has ushered in an era of reliable customer experience in the highly fragmented and unpredictable category of unbranded hotels in India. We are thrilled to extend our brand promise to business travellers across India’s premier corporates, SMEs and start-ups. We are confident that business travel in India will become more rewarding and hassle-free once booked through OYO for Business.”