Latest news: Blackstone acquires in NYC; Wynn delays renovations; Hilton to double in India

Blackstone acquires NYC Kimpton. Blackstone's BRE Hotels unit has closed on the acquisition of the 292-key Kimpton Hotel Eventi in New York City from New York City-based DLJ Real Estate Capital Partners for approximately $175 million. The hotel was built in 2010 in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood. It’s set to be joined by a third Kimpton-branded property in Manhattan that will open later this year.

Wynn delays renovation. Wynn Resorts is delaying its remodeling project at the Encore tower on the Las Vegas Strip because of uncertainty about the impact of tariffs. CEO Craig Billings said during the company’s first-quarter earnings call that the renovations, estimated in the upper-$200 million range, would wait until things settle. Wynn is delaying $375 million in capital expenditure projects in Las Vegas. “The current tariff rates have driven us to delay about $375 million of cap-ex projects, including the Encore tower remodel. Once tariff rates have settled, we will thoroughly re-spec and re-source the most severely affected items,” Billings said. Operating revenues in Las Vegas were down in the first quarter, dropping $11.3 million compared to the first quarter of 2024. Las Vegas produced $625.3 million in operating revenue. That’s just over a third of Wynn Resorts’ revenue worldwide, including Wynn Macau, Wynn Palace, and Encore Boston Harbor. Overall, company revenues hit $1.7 billion in the first quarter, down $162.5 million compared to the first quarter of 2024.

Hilton to double in India. Hilton announced plans to double its brand presence in India in the next five years. The announcement was made at the country’s first-ever hospitality Brand Showcase, an event held at Hilton Bengaluru Embassy Manyata Business Park that featured 10 of Hilton’s 24 brands. Hilton also announced its first LXR Hotels & Resorts property in India – which is slated to debut in Bengaluru in 2026. The company highlighted 10 of its brands, with five trading brands: Conrad Hotels & Resorts, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, DoubleTree by Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn and Hampton by Hilton and soon-to-debut brands, spanning luxury (Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, LXR Hotels & Resorts, Signia by Hilton), to lifestyle (Curio Collection by Hilton) and select-service (Spark by Hilton).

Disney adding theme park, resort in UAE. Disney is adding a new theme park and resort to Abu Dhabi. The Walt Disney Co. announced Wednesday that it has reached an agreement with Abu Dhabi-based Miral to bring a park and resort to Yas Island in the United Arab Emirates. This will be Disney’s seventh theme park resort and it will be fully developed and built by Miral. The development in Abu Dhabi is not part of the $60 billion that Disney has pledged to invest in its theme parks over the next decade.

Hotel Milo rebrand. The 121-key Hotel Milo, a boutique beachfront property in Santa Barbara, California, has embarked on a multi-million-dollar renovation and rebranding. The first phase of the renovation is underway and the hotel will unveil its refreshed identity as The Milo in June. The Milo occupies a prized parcel of land once home to the legendary 400-room Potter Hotel, a premier seaside resort in the early 1900s. Four separate hotels later occupied the land and were rebuilt into one, which was eventually reintroduced as Hotel Milo in 2014. Second Wave, an in-house boutique agency that is part of Aimbridge Hospitality, is leading the rebranding. San Clemente, California-based Evolution Hospitality operates the hotel.

Adaptive reuse in Alabama. Shawnee Mission, Kansas-based Wood Development has secured financing, including a $10.5 million New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) allocation, for an adaptive reuse of the former First National Bank Building, known as the Timmerman Building, in Andalusia, Alabama. It will be turned into a 58-key boutique hotel.

Ennismore adds residential brand. Ennismore has introduced a new residential brand called Our Habitas, which adds to its is more than 45 residential projects launched and under development across 20 countries, including the U.S., Spain, Mexico, Saudi Arabia and UAE. Ennismore has seen significant growth in its branded residences, having recently signed and launched flagship standalone properties, including 25hours Heimat Dubai, SLS Madrid Infantas Residences, Rixos Financial Center Road Dubai Residences, Rixos Tersane Istanbul Residences, Hyde Residences Dubai Hills and SLS Residences at Palm Jumeirah.

Largest hotel portfolio sale in New Zealand. Auckland, New Zealand-based NZ Hotel Holdings (NZHH) is divesting its seven hotel assets, becoming the largest hotel portfolio ever brought to market in the nation. The NZHH portfolio of internationally branded hotels includes three Auckland properties, as well as Rydges Rotorua and Rydges Wellington, Sofitel Queenstown Hotel and Spa and BreakFree on Cashel in Christchurch. NZHH is a partnership between NZ Super Fund, Russell Property Group and Lockwood Property Group and was formed in 2019 to develop hotel assets in New Zealand. CBRE is managing the sale.

Ashford Trust earnings. Dallas-based REIT Ashford Hospitality Trust said its comparable RevPAR for all hotels increased 3.2% year-over-year as part of its first-quarter earnings, which included a 2.4% increase in ADR and a 0.8% increase in occupancy. Comparable hotel EBITDA was $77.2 million, an 8.7% increase YOY. The company also said it expects its “GRO AHT” initiative to contribute more than $30 million per year in incremental EBITDA. During the quarter, Ashford Trust completed the sale of the 315-key Courtyard Boston Downtown in Massachusetts, refinanced 16 hotels for $580 million, and said it had fully paid off its strategic financing, including the exit fee.

First Vignette in Japan. IHG Hotels & Resorts is introducing its luxury and lifestyle Vignette Collection to Japan by rebranding the 1,000-plus-key RIHGA Royal Hotel Osaka. Now operating as RIHGA Royal Hotel Osaka, Vignette Collection in Nakanoshima, known as the “City of Water.” The Vignette Collection was introduced in 2022 and is IHG’s 10th brand in Japan. The brand is expected to hit 100 open and pipeline hotels in its first 10 years.