Latest HITs: New Hyatt all-inclusive brand; Holiday Inn Vacation to Mexico; CBRE's new forecast

Hyatt luxe all-inclusive. Hyatt Hotels Corp. has launched an Inclusive Collection brand, Impression by Secrets, with the opening of Impressions by Secrets Isla Mujeres in Mexico. The 125-suite luxury resort marks the 120th property in the all-inclusive space and the introduction of the ultra-exclusive, adults-only Impression by Secrets brand, which Hyatt said is defined by the highest level of luxury all-inclusive service possible.

Holiday Inn Club to Mexico. Holiday Inn Club Vacations Inc. has acquired from Royal Resorts four beachfront resorts with a collective 850 villas located in Cancun, Playa del Carmen and the Riviera Maya, Mexico. The acquisition also includes most of Royal Resorts’ related companies and its corporate operations. These resorts will be Holiday Inn Club Vacations’ first properties located outside the United States. The company expects it will take approximately one year to fully integrate the resorts, and during this process, the resorts will continue to operate normally. As part of a separate agreement, Tortuga Resorts UK Ltd. is acquiring the entities which own and operate the two remaining Royal Resorts properties.

Changes atop Dorchester. Dorchester Collection has announced that current CEO Christopher Cowdray will move to the role of company president, effective July 1. The company’s Chief Customer Experience Officer Helen Smith and Chief Culture and Operations Executive Eugenio Pirri will be promoted to the positions of joint chief executive officer.

CBRE's US forecast update. CBRE has raised its 2023 performance forecast for the U.S. based on strong demand and more modest supply growth. RevPAR is forecast to hit $97.89, up 6% year-over-year, and an increase of $0.43 from its previous forecast. The positive revision is predicated on a 65-basis-point (bps) increase in expected occupancy compared with the previous forecast issued in February. ADR is now expected to increase by 3.7% in 2023, down from the previous forecast of 4.2%, owing to slightly lower inflation expectations and a bigger mix of group travel and shoulder-period demand, which are often at a lower rate. CBRE’s baseline-scenario forecast anticipates 0.8% average GDP growth and average inflation of 4.6% in 2023. CBRE expects Q1 to be the high point of the year for RevPAR growth. The growth rate is expected to decelerate to the 4% to 5% range over the next few months before further decelerating to the 2% to 3% range in Q4 2023. CBRE forecasts that supply will increase at a 1% compound annual growth rate over the next five years, below the industry’s 1.6% long-term historical average.

Six Senses to Greece. Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas will open at the end of 2027 its first Greek resort in partnership with Grivalia Hospitality, one of the most significant investors in the ultra-luxury hospitality sector in Greece. It will be located on a southerly white-sand cove on Megalonisos, one of the 10 Petalioi islands and islets in the “Greek Maldives.” Six Senses Megalonisos will be a short boat ride from the port of Rafina, just across the mainland from Athens, or Marmari on Evia’s West coast. There will be 75 guest villas and 20 branded residences for sale. Six Senses said it was chosen for this project in part for its eco-credentials in terms of energy, materials, and operations. The development will be powered by its own solar electric farm.

Two deals for MOHG. Mandarin Oriental is developing a hotel and residence in Athens, Greece, set to open in 2027 on the shoreline of the city. The project is being developed by Belt Riviera S.A., a company established by Temes S.A. and Hellinikon S.Μ.S.A. (a 100% subsidiary of Lamda Development). The €8 billion redevelopment will include a 123-room hotel and 17 branded residences, including waterfront villas and apartments. Mandarin Oriental, Athens will be the second Mandarin Oriental property to launch in Greece, following the partnership with Temes SA for the development of Mandarin Oriental, Costa Navarino which opens this summer. Mandarin Oriental also revealed a residential project in Madrid’s Salamanca neighborhood, which will feature 30 apartments, expected to open in January 2025. After the recent signing of Mandarin Oriental Punta Negra, Mallorca, this will be the second project in collaboration with Blasson, a prominent Spanish development company, and the first with Pictet Alternative Advisors (PAA), the alternative investment division of Swiss private bank Pictet.

IHG grows in Japan. IHG Hotels & Resorts and Mori Trust Co. Ltd. have signed a partnership to open Hotel Indigo Nagasaki Glover Street with approximately 70 rooms in late 2024. The hotel will be Japan’s fifth Hotel Indigo when it opens, continuing the growth of the brand that already includes hotels in Hakone Gora, Karuizawa and Inuyama, along with the upcoming Hotel Indigo Tokyo Shibuya, which is scheduled to open later in 2023. IHG has 44 hotels open in Japan under six brands with eight more scheduled to open in the future.

Hyatt grows in Frankfurt. Hyatt Hotels Corp. has signed a franchise deal with SIC Hospitality GmbH for the 181-room Kennedy 89, a luxury hotel currently under development in Frankfurt, Germany’s Sachsenhausen district, as part of its Unbound Collection by Hyatt brand. Expected to open later this year, the hotel name is inspired by its location on Kennedy Allee, a street name paying homage to the legacy of John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, and his well-documented stay in Frankfurt in 1963. Kennedy 89 will mark the second Hyatt-branded hotel in Frankfurt and marks the second hotel in Germany under The Unbound Collection by Hyatt brand.

Crescent adds to Latitudes. Crescent Hotels & Resorts has added The Mission Inn Hotel & Spa to its Latitudes: Lifestyles by Crescent portfolio. The 238-room property in Riverside, California, is owned by Kelly and Duane Roberts.

McKibbon gets into development. McKibbon Hospitality, Tampa, Florida, has appointed Matthew Ram as senior vice president of acquisitions and promoted James Merrihew to senior asset manager as the company expands its focus to include hotel acquisitions and new development projects in addition to third-party management.

New Peachtree COO. Peachtree Group, Atlanta, Georgia, has appointed Melissa Ross Smith as chief operating officer responsible for the overall performance, strategy and organizational development of Peachtree and its operating businesses. She will report to Greg Friedman, managing principal and CEO. Previously, Smith was managing director for OS National, managing more than 250 professionals and responsible for evaluating performance management systems and devising improvements to strengthen controls and optimize results.

Middle East pipeline. The hotel construction pipeline in the Middle East for 1Q23 increased to 581 projects/147,356 rooms, up 8% by projects and 6% by rooms year-over-year (YOY), according to Lodging Econometrics. New project announcements rose by 51 projects/9,033 rooms. Construction starts also experienced an increase in Q1, to stand at 37 projects/11,844 rooms. At the close of 1Q, there were 327 projects/93,217 rooms under construction, down just 1% by projects YOY and up 2% by rooms YOY. Projects scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months increased 33% by projects YOY to stand at 104 projects/24,483 rooms. Projects in early planning hit a record high, at Q1, with 150 projects/29,656 rooms, up 18% and 17% YOY, respectively. Countries with the greatest number of projects in the construction pipeline in the Middle East at 1Q are Saudi Arabia with a record 260 projects/70,069 rooms and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with 108 projects/28,973 rooms.

Europe pipeline. Europe’s hotel construction pipeline at the end of 1Q23 stood at 1,776 projects/266,901 rooms, according to Lodging Econometrics. Projects under construction stood at 814 projects/125,657 rooms, while projects scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months account for 419 projects/62,625 rooms. Projects in the early planning stage have hit a record high 543 projects with 78,619 rooms, up 17% by projects and 12% by rooms year-over-year (YOY). New project announcements experienced a healthy increase in Q1, to close the quarter at 203 projects/26,740 rooms. Construction starts were also up over the last four quarters, in Q1, with 126 projects/17,163 rooms. The top countries in the pipeline by project count are led by the United Kingdom with 340 projects/47,551 rooms, Germany with 238 projects/40,368 rooms, and France with 139 projects/15,889 rooms. Next, is Portugal with 130 projects/15,419 rooms, and Turkey with all-time highs of 108 projects/15,862 rooms. Cities in Europe with the largest pipelines by project count are London with 90 projects/15,393 rooms, Istanbul with a record 42 projects/7,360 rooms, and Dusseldorf with 38 projects/7,080 rooms. Next is Lisbon with 35 projects/4,073 rooms.