Latest news: Four Seasons to Puerto Rico; Blackstone adds in Japan; Hard Rock collab in KSA

First Four Seasons in Puerto Rico. Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts is partnering with San Juan-based Paulson Puerto Rico, which will manage a resort and residences in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico. The property will mark the entry of Four Seasons into Puerto Rico and continue its expansion of the luxury brand in the Caribbean. The Four Seasons Resort and Private Residences Puerto Rico will undergo renovations, have 139 hotel rooms and 85 private residences and is scheduled to open in late 2025. Four Seasons has resorts and residences in the Caribbean, such as Anguilla, The Bahamas, and Nevis, and upcoming projects in Belize and the Dominican Republic.

Blackstone acquires large Japanese asset. Blackstone has entered into definitive agreements to acquire Tokyo Garden Terrace Kioicho in Japan, a 2.4 million sq. ft. mixed-use asset, from affiliates of Tokyo-based Seibu Holdings for $2.6 billion (around JPY 400 billion), which marks the largest real estate investment by a foreign investor in Japan. The development has two high-rise towers which are currently 100% occupied and include 135 residential units and a 250-key luxury hotel, conference and wedding venues, retail and over 30 cafes and restaurants, and goods and services stores.

Palladium, Hard Rock partner in KSA. Ibiza and Madrid, Spain-based Palladium Hotel Group is partnering with Orlando-based Hard Rock International to operate hotels under Hard Rock Hotels and Reverb Hotels in Saudi Arabia. The collaboration builds on a decades-long relationship with Palladium, which manages three Hard Rock hotels in Spain. Palladium has a portfolio of over 40 hotels in seven countries under 10 brands.

US hotels positive last week. The U.S. hotel industry reported positive year-over-year performance comparisons, according to the latest data from CoStar. For the week of December 1-7, occupancy was 59% (up 0.5%), ADR was $159.77 (up 3.8%) and RevPAR was $94.31 (up 4.3%)  Among the top 25 markets, Chicago reported the largest year-over-year increases in occupancy (up 17.8% to 67.6%) and RevPAR (up 42.9% to $110.59) while Las Vegas posted the highest ADR lift (up 27.1% to $261.33). The steepest RevPAR declines were reported in San Francisco (down 16.7% to $114.86) and New Orleans (down 14.7% to US$83.16).

Qatar surges during F1 race. Qatar saw a spike in hotel performance, which was helped by the Formula 1 Qatar Airways Grand Prix 2024, according to November’s preliminary data from CoStar.  For November, Qatar saw occupancy was 83.6% (up 17.5%), ADR was QAR488.31 (up 20.9%), and RevPAR was QAR408.24 (up 42.0%). This was the highest occupancy in Qatar since 2014.

Madrid has a great November. Madrid’s hotel industry recorded its highest November ADR and RevPAR, according to preliminary data from CoStar.  For the month, occupancy was 80.2% (up 2.8%); ADR was EUR174.44 (up 13.7%) and RevPAR was EUR139.88 (up 16.8%). In addition to the monthly records in ADR and RevPAR, occupancy was the highest for November in Madrid since 2019. Performance gains were attributable to a number of fairs organized by IFEMA Madrid, including Veteco, Matelec, and Construtec.

G20 pushes Rio to new heights. The 2024 G20 Summit pushed Rio de Janeiro’s hotel industry to its highest ADR and RevPAR since August 2016, according to November preliminary data from CoStar.  Occupancy was 76.3% (down 0.3%), ADR was BRL 1,164.76 (up 45.0%) and RevPAR was BRL888.64 (up 44.5%)