Latest news: Soft June in Hawaii; W grows in China; RLJ lowers guidance

Softer June for Hawaii. Hotels across Hawaii saw occupancy and room rates decline in June, according to the Hawaii Tourism Authority. Hawaii's statewide occupancy was 75.5% in June, off 1.2 percentage points year over year, while ADR dropped 3.7% year over year, to $373, across the Islands. Hawaii's hotel room revenue totaled $470.8 million in June, a drop of 5.1% from the same month last year. Through the first half of this year, statewide hotel occupancy was 74.7% and essentially unchanged year over year, while statewide hotel room revenue was $2.8 billion, down 2.3% year over year. As Maui continues to recover from last year's wildfires in Lahaina, hotels there posted occupancy of 66.7% in June, down 9.2% year over year. Meanwhile, ADR at Maui hotels was $562.9 in June, off nearly 10% year over year. That June 2024 Maui ADR of $562.9 still represents a nearly 43% jump over the ADR Maui hotels were charging before the pandemic in June 2019.

W brand grows in China. Marriott International has signed an agreement with Zhong An Commercial Group, part of China New City Group, to bring the 270-room W Hotels brand to Hangzhou. Anticipated to open in 2031, W Hangzhou will be in Hangzhou’s new CBD. Marriott now boasts more than 70 luxury hotels in Greater China.

Andaz mixed-use for Jakarta. Hyatt Hotels Corp. has entered into a management agreement with PT Central Sudirman Development for the first Andaz hotel in Jakarta, Indonesia. Slated to open in early 2028 and currently under construction, the hotel will be a part of Two Sudirman Jakarta, a mixed-use two-tower development poised to be amongst the tallest skyscrapers in the country. The hotel will be the first Andaz-branded urban hotel in Indonesia with Andaz Jakarta Sudirman occupying the 40th to 72nd floors of Tower A with 198 hotel rooms and 167 serviced apartments.

RLJ lowers RevPAR guidance. RLJ Lodging Trust reported 2Q24 earnings with 2.6% RevPAR growth, 0.6% ADR growth and 2.1% occupancy growth for a total revenue increase of 3.4% due to slightly better total revenues and margin performance, especially in June. However, RLJ reduced guidance, cutting the RevPAR growth midpoint by 225 bps (now 1.0%-2.5% vs. 2.5%-5.5% previously) and the Hotel EBITDA midpoint by >4%. The full-year RevPAR growth range implies flat to 3% growth in 2H24, wrote R.W. Baird analyst Michael Bellisario. He said the corresponding reductions to full-year Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted FFO/share were ~5% and ~8%, respectively. RLJ also reported the acquisition of the Hotel Teatro in downtown Denver for $35.5 million and the sale of the 78-room Residence Inn Merrillville in Indiana for $8.1 million. It also increased its quarterly dividend payout by 50% to $0.15/share.

Booking.com reports. Booking Holdings (booking.com) reported 2Q24 earnings with total revenue of $5.9 billion up 7% year over year and gross travel bookings of $41.4 billion up 4%. The company’s adjusted EBITDA in Q2 was $1.9 billion, an increase of 7% from the same period in 2023. Room nights booked in Q2 were up 7% year over year, down from 9% growth in Q1 and with a continued slowdown expected in Q3 to 3% to 5%. Europe and the U.S. had increases in the mid-single digits, Asia was up in the mid-teens and the rest of the world was in the high single digits. The company reported the mix of total room nights coming through direct channels was in the mid-50% range. The company’s alternative accommodation business, which now totals 7.8 million listings globally, is up about 11% compared with the second quarter of 2023 and second quarter room nights were up 12% in the space.

Greenbrier heads to auction. The Greenbrier Hotel in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, one of the largest assets belonging to the state’s Governor Jim Justice, is reportedly set to go to public auction later this month because of loan default. The property being auctioned totals 60.5 acres and excludes several amenities, including golf courses and other pieces of land. At auction, the property will go to the highest bidder with cash-on-hand. Justice bought the resort in 2009. Its longtime previous owner, CSX Corp., had laid off half the staff and filed for bankruptcy, disclosing that it had lost $90 million over the previous five years. In a statement, the Justice Companies called the foreclosure “another political stunt by the Democrat machine.”

Two resorts in Greece trade. Premia Properties has made a deal with Nordic Leisure Travel Group for €112.5 million to acquire two hotels in Greece, including one in Kallithea, Rhodes, and the other in Ierapetra, Crete. The properties are the 534-room Sunwing Kallithea Beach and the 262-room Sunwing Makrigialos & Ocean Beach Club in Ierapetra. The seller will continue to operate the hotels but will lease the properties from Premia for an initial period of 15 years with an option for a further 10. Premia will finance the deal with its own funds plus a corporate bond to be underwritten by National Bank of Greece. The deal, which will be finalized by the end of the year, will raise the value of Premia Properties’ portfolio above €500 million with rent income of more than €35 million.

Lemon Tree growth. Lemon Tree Hotels Ltd. has signed a deal in Gujarat, India, under its upscale Aurika Hotels & Resorts with Aurika, Sasan Gir .The new-build is slated to open in FY 2029. Carnation Hotels Pvt. Ltd., a subsidiary and the management arm of Lemon Tree Hotels Ltd., will operate the 82-room hotel.