Latest news: Atlanta Hilton sells; Four Seasons Prague trades; Accor, Valor deal

Highline acquires in Atlanta. New York City-based Highline Hospitality Partners purchased the 510-key Hilton Atlanta Airport from Greenwich, Connecticut-based Wheelock Street Capital for $111.3 million, according to the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Wheelock paid $101 million for the hotel in 2019. As part of the transaction, Highline secured a nearly $67 million loan from Equitable Financial Life Insurance Co. Renovations are planned for the hotel and Norwalk, Connecticut-based HEI Hotels & Resorts will manage the property.

PPF acquires in Prague. Amsterdam-based PPF Real Estate Holding is acquiring the Four Seasons Hotel in Prague from Northwood Investors for an undisclosed amount. Investor Tomas Otruba will also acquire a minority stake in the hotel. Investor Michal Strnad, owner of Czechoslovak Group (CSG), will also become a partner and co-owner of the project with a minority stake. CSG is not involved in the transaction.

JW Marriott to debut in Portugal. JW Marriott has announced plans to open its first property in Portugal, the 172-key JW Marriott Algarve Palmares Hotel & Spa, which is scheduled to open in early 2028. The hotel will also have 133 JW Marriott-branded residences.

Accor adds two in India. Accor and Jaipur, India-based Sukhani Ventures are partnering to bring two of Accor’s luxury brands – Raffles Hotels & Resorts and Sofitel Legend – to the region of Rajasthan in Northern India. Raffles Ranthambore will be a 63-villa luxury resort located in the Ranthambore National Park. The Sofitel Legend Sukh Bagh Jaipur will be a 300-plus key urban property in the Kukas Amer region of Jaipur. Raffles Ranthambore is expected to open by mid-2027 and Sofitel Legend Sukh Bagh Jaipur by late 2028.

Four Seasons adding in Wuhan. Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts and Wuhan Jianzhuo Real Estate Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of Wuhan, China-based Wuhan City Construction Group Co., Ltd. (WCCG), have partnered to create a luxury hotel together in Wuhan. Four Seasons Hotel Wuhan is set to open in 2029 and will be Four Seasons’ 11th hotel in China.

Ong Beng Seng to step down. Property tycoon Ong Beng Seng is set to step down as managing director of Singapore-based Hotel Properties Limited (HPL) at the conclusion of the company’s annual general meeting on April 29. HPL said the move would allow Ong to “devote more time to manage his medical conditions.” It was reported in February that Ong, who is often credited with bringing Formula 1 to Singapore, had been diagnosed with bone marrow cancer. His health condition came to light amid his ongoing court case linked to former transport minister S Iswaran. Ong was charged with two offenses in October 2024. He is accused of abetting the former minister to obtain an all-expenses paid trip to Doha, Qatar, and obstruction of justice.

Travelodge acquires 11 in the UK. Budget hotel chain Travelodge has boosted its U.K. presence by acquiring 11 existing properties across the country. The brand, which already has 588 hotels operating in the U.K., said it was taking over nine former Hotel Campanile properties in locations such as Birmingham, Bradford, Leicester, Manchester, Northampton and Milton Keynes. Travelodge has also agreed a 25-year lease for a former Ibis hotel in Bromsgrove, which is due to reopen in May following renovations.

Accor, Valor, ICD partnership. Accor, Atlanta-based Valor Hospitality Partners and ICD (Investment Corp. of Dubai), the principal investment arm of the Government of Dubai, have strengthened their partnership with the launch of a six-hotel cluster in Dubai Deira Waterfront as part of the Deira Enrichment Program. Under the new agreement, Valor will manage the six-hotel cluster with 999 keys. This expansion integrates three Accor properties under the ibis Styles, Aparthotel Adagio, and Mercure brands, along with three new properties that will be branded as Novotel, ibis Styles, and Mercure in Dubai. The cluster officially opened on April 1.

Crerar secures £40M refi. Edinburgh, Scotland-based Crerar Hotels has secured approximately £40 million of funding with HSBC UK to refinance nine hotels in Scotland and one in the Lake District. Owned by private funds managed by London-based investment manager Blantyre Capital, Crerar operates a collection of hotels and spas throughout Scotland. The refinancing will also be supplemented by additional, targeted investment from Blantyre for refurbishment and expansion.

UAE hotel performance. During Eid al-Fitr celebrations in the United Arab Emirates, Ajman was the only hotel market to top 95% occupancy and Ras Al Khaimah was the only market where ADR surpassed AED 1,000, according to the latest data from CoStar. Occupancy levels peaked across all UAE markets on March 31, with the highest level seen in Ajman (95.8%). The market’s ADR and revenue per available room RevPAR peaked on the same night at AED698.59 and AED669.23, respectively. The UAE’S highest ADR and RevPAR levels were posted in Ras Al Khaimah, also on March 31, at AED 1,184.36 and AED 1,100.43, respectively. That night, the market’s occupancy climbed to 92.9%.