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Hotelmarkt Deutschland: Anzahl der Betriebe steigt um 2,6%

Quelle: "Top hotel" - 3. August 2009

Neue Hotels kommen noch eine ganze Menge: In den nächsten vier Jahres werden in Deutschland 353 neue Häuser eröffnet. Damit erhöht sich die Anzahl der Betriebe um 2,6 Prozent. Dies geht aus einer Veröffentlichung des auf Hotellerie und Gastronomie spezialisierten Marktforschungsunternehmens CHD Expert, Scheeßel bei Hamburg, hervor.

Das wohl schönste neue Luxushotel in Deutschland wird das
Kameha Grand Bonn – spektakuläre Neueröffnung ist am 15. November
Nach den aktuellen Zahlen steigt der Bestand an Luxushotels in den nächsten Jahren um satte 20 Prozent. Den bisherigen 208 Fünf-Sterne-Häusern werden 42 neue gegenüber gestellt. Eines der spektakulärsten Neubauprojekte ist das Kameha Grand Hotel in Bonn, das am 15. November eröffnet wird. Hausherr Carsten K. Rath (Luxury Hospitality & Entertainment Group) will mit seiner Vision ein Grand Hotel der neuen Zeit etablieren. Die Fachwelt blickt gespannt auf das ambitionierte Projekt.

Aber auch in der First-Class-Kategorie ist Wachstum programmiert. Die Anzahl der Vier-Sterne-Hotels wird in den nächsten Jahren um sechs Prozent zunehmen. 176 neue Häuser seien in Bau bzw. konkret geplant, so die CHD-Zahlen. Derzeit gibt es 2.660 First-Class-Hotels.

Bei den Komfort-Hotels fällt das prognostizierte Wachstum mit rund einem Prozent wesentlich niedriger aus. Den bestehenden 6.585 Drei-Sterne-Häusern werden 87 neue zur Seite gestellt. Im derzeit viel zitierten Budget-Segment (zwei Sterne) gibt es laut CHD lediglich 35 Neubauprojekte mit insgesamt 7.900 Gästezimmern.

The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company: 12 neue Hotels geplant – eines in München

Quelle: "Top hotel" - 3. August 2009

Trotz schwerer Flaute bei Geschäftsreisen: Die High-End-Luxus-Hotelkette Ritz-Carlton will in den nächsten zwei Jahren weltweit zwölf neue Häuser eröffnen. Eines davon könnte in München entstehen. Das sagte Ritz-Carlton-Chef Simon Cooper in Berlin der Tageszeitung „Die Welt“. Weitere Angaben wurden nicht gemacht. Mit dem Deutschlandgeschäft zeigte sich Cooper zufrieden, trotz Verluste bei Firmenkunden.

Die Wirtschaftskrise setzt auch Ritz-Carlton zu. „Ich habe solch einen abrupten Rückgang der Buchungen in meiner Karriere noch nie gesehen“, so Cooper gegenüber der „Welt“. Nun stehen Entlassungen an. „Wir sind weltweitgerade dabei, unsere Mannschaft an die gesunkenen Gästezahlen anzupassen.“ Der Luxushotelmarkt werde sich erst in vier bis fünf Jahren von der Krise erholen, so Cooper. Derzeit versucht Ritz-Carlton durch Preissenkungen „wohlhabende Touristen“ anzulocken und damit die Umsatzrückgänge im Business Travel auszugleichen.

Ritz-Carlton betreibt derzeit weltweit 72 Hotels in 24 Ländern, davon zwei in Deutschland (Berlin und Wolfsburg). In Österreich und der Schweiz gibt es bislang keine Ritz-Carlton Hotels. Das Unternehmen entstand 1983 und gehört heute zu Marriott International.

Doha/Qatar - Two luxury hotels to open by year-end

Source: zawya.com - August 3, 2009

Two of the five luxury hotels designed to be linked to the City Center building of Doha/Qatar will open by the end of this year. The other two will open next year.

The five luxury hotels, two of which will be attached to the east side of the shopping mall and the others on the west, include the two Marriott hotels -- the Marriott Courtyard and the Renaissance Hotel -- the Doha Shangri-La, the Doha Rotana Hotel and a new Merweb.

The Renaissance Hotel, which will have around 257 rooms and the Marriott Courtyard, which will have around 204, will open by the end of the year.

The Marriott Group will also open the Marriott Executive Apartments, which will have around 123 rooms, around the same time.

The Rotana Hotel, as well as the Doha Shangri-La, which will be managed by the Faisal Bin Oassim Al Thani & Sons Holding Company, will open in 2010.

Developed by the Al Rayyan Tourism Development Company, the Doha Shangri-La hotel will have 272 luxurious guest rooms with wireless LAN and high-speed Internet access, 42 serviced apartments and a variety of restaurants including a lobby lounge: Leyla, a piano bar; Sridan, a Middle-Eastern food souq; a Latin American restaurant called Fuego and a Chinese sea food restaurant, Xi'an.

The recreation facilities will include Shangri-La's signature spa, CHI, The Spa at Shangri-La. The hotel will include an 840 square metre grand ballroom and other function rooms. It will also have a helipad on the terrace to facilitate the arrival of VIP guests.

"The Doha Shangri-La, which will open here next year, will of course, have the luxury ambience of a Shangri-La Hotel," said Debbie Cheung, Director of Business development -- Travel Trade of Kowloon Shangri-La, who was here on a short visit.

"The Shangri-La Hotel - Doha reconfirms our commitment to expanding in the Middle East. Our target is to build a regional presence of about eight to 10 hotels and we are delighted to be opening a hotel in Doha in a prime location with such dedicated owners," said Madhu Rao, Shangri-La's Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.

Hong Kong-based Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts group owns and manages 60 hotels under the deluxe Shangri-La and mid-market Traders brands.

The group also has over 50 projects under development in Austria, Canada, mainland China, France, India, Japan, Macau, Maldives, Philippines, Seychelles, Thailand, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The Merweb Hotel City Centre will comprise of 250 rooms and suites, furnished in an exciting modern design, in addition to 97 fully furnished one, two, and three-bedroom apartments. All accommodation will offer the very latest amenities.

$20bn Saudi projects cancelled, delayed

Source: arabianbusiness.com - August 3, 2009

Less than 80 active projects, with a total value of around $20bn, have been put on hold or cancelled in Saudi Arabia, Dubai-based research house Proleads Group said on Sunday.

By contrast, more than 400 projects with a total value of over $300bn have been suspended or cancelled in the UAE, Proleads said last week.

The Saudi study examined more than 720 construction projects with a total budget of more than $430bn across the commercial and retail; education and healthcare; leisure and entertainment; and residential sectors.

“The economic crisis has not had a great effect on the rate at which projects have been cancelled in Saudi Arabia,” said Emil Rademeyer, director of Proleads Global.

Cashflow in the Saudi construction industry grew throughout 2008 and stabilised in 2009.

“The market in Saudi Arabia is expected to maintain current levels throughout 2010, although slight decline is expected in the education and healthcare sectors countered with an expected slight growth in commercial and retail,” Rademeyer said.

Residential projects made up the biggest share of the market in terms of value but education and healthcare had the most projects.

Significant project completions are expected in 2011, Proleads said.

A less open economy, restrictions on foreign ownership and a smaller expatriate population has meant Saudi Arabia largely avoided the real estate bubble that sent property prices tumbling in the UAE.

The government in December announced a SAR475bn ($126.7bn) economic stimulus package for 2009.

Real estate consultancy Jones Lang LaSalle has said the Kingdom’s burgeoning young population means the country will face a housing shortage of up to one million homes over the next three years.

Starwood Hotels Completes Sale of the W San Francisco

Source: Focus on Travel News - August 2, 2009

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. announced that it has completed the sale of the W San Francisco to Keck Seng Investments (Hong Kong) Limited for $90 million. The sales price represents a multiple of over 14X anticipated 2009 EBITDA. Starwood also entered a long-term management agreement to continue operating the hotel as a W.

The Ritz-Carlton Cairo, Palm Hills to Open in 2012

Source: Press release The Ritz Carton Hotel Company - August 3, 2009

The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. has signed an agreement with Palm Hills Developments to manage The Ritz-Carlton Cairo, Palm Hills and a Jack Nicklaus-designed 27-hole golf course and clubhouse, set to open in 2012.

Situated within the Palm Hills October community in the new cosmopolitan 6th of October City, the property is approximately 45 minutes from downtown Cairo and within 20 minutes of the pyramids of Giza. Coupled with the mystical elements of Egyptian culture and legendary Ritz-Carlton service, Palm Hills is a spectacular location to host Cairo’s second hotel from the luxury hotel company. The Nile Ritz-Carlton, Cairo will debut as the city’s first in 2011, joining The Ritz-Carlton, Sharm El Sheikh which was the company’s first resort in the country.

“Our partnership with Palm Hills Developments is a very exciting one that sees the continuation of The Ritz-Carlton journey to one of the most captivating corners of the world,” said Simon Cooper, president and chief operating officer of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. “Cairo provides a voyage of discovery steeped in heritage and the opening of The Ritz-Carlton Cairo, Palm Hills is a key strategic move to expand our presence across the Middle East and North Africa.”

Mr. Yasseen Mansour, chairman and chief executive officer of Palm Hills Developments added, “Our partnership with The Ritz-Carlton further demonstrates Palm Hills Developments’ commitment as a company that seeks to partner with the very best from the hospitality industry in order to offer the highest quality of service to our residents and guests.”

Designed by renowned architecture firm OBM International, each exquisite guestroom in the 160-room resort will feature spacious accommodations to showcase contemporary design with uninterrupted panoramic views of the legendary pyramids, enabling guests to experience a unique interpretation and view of the local lifestyle and culture.

Exclusive privileges at the signature Golf Club will include a dedicated concierge service and generous meeting space. Dining rooms will have a stylish and contemporary feel with an upscale approach to cuisine. Distinctive interiors and exquisite menus highlighting regional cuisine will bring the social ambiance of an all-day dining room, a lobby lounge, a poolside grill and two specialty restaurants, to life.

At the spacious 1,115-square-meter (12,000-square-feet) spa, the concept is simple and yet exudes style and luxurious levels of comfort. The tranquil environment will provide a complete escape within an exclusive environment that fuses healing therapies and relaxation. Additionally, a health club and two outdoor swimming pools will provide recreational areas for both refreshing and vigorous activities.

And to complete the total hotel experience for corporate travelers, the resort will boast sizable meeting and function space to include a 1,400-square-metre (15,000-square-feet) grand ballroom, a junior ballroom and five multi-purpose function rooms.

Palm Hills Golf Club and Resorts is an exclusive community, encompassing a world-class golf course and deluxe homes, blending both comfort and luxury. This gated neighborhood is situated adjacent to the company’s flagship project, Palm Hills October in 6th of October City in the west axis of Greater Cairo, and consists of 480 villas which are spread over two million square meters. It also features Egypt's first 27-hole golf course, exclusively designed by the renowned golf course design firm, Nicklaus Design.

Palm Hills Developments is one of the premier real estate companies in Egypt. Founded in 2005 by Mansour and Maghraby Investment and Development (MMID), the company was the result of a vision to create self-sufficient communities through the utilization of integrated tools. Presently PHD possesses one of the largest land banks in the country, and an impressive roster of projects in residential, commercial and destination tourism, fashioned to reflect the country’s culture as well as our clients’ lifestyles and prerequisites.