Essential news from around the world...
Hilton invests £8m in websites
Hilton International, the 400-strong hotels division of UK-based Hilton Group, is to develop a series of eight websites for its markets in the UK, Germany, Japan and Scandinavia at a cost of £8m. The sites will be aimed at individual business and leisure travellers.
Spanish slump
Hotels in Madrid saw revenue per available room fall by 8.9% during the first five months of 2003, according to the European edition of the HotelBenchmark Survey by consultants Deloitte & Touche. Barcelona saw revpar fall by 4.6%, while the Balearic Islands, Canary Islands and the Costa del Sol saw declines of 7.9%, 2.6% and 8.6% respectively.
Orbis buys properties from Accor
French-owned hotel group Accor has sold the hotels it owns in Poland to Polish hotel and tourism group Orbis for €92m (£64m). The 11 hotels comprise eight Ibis and three Novotel properties. Accor is the largest shareholder in Orbis, with a 30% stake. The hotels will be run by Orbis under a franchise contract.
Russie joins Leading consortium
The 125-bedroom Hotel de Russie in Rome, Italy, has joined the Leading Hotels of the World consortium. The property is part of the Rocco Forte Hotels group.
InterContinental sells 16 Staybridge properties
InterContinental Hotels has sold 16 Staybridge Suites hotels in the USA to hotel property investment firm Hospitality Properties Trust for $185m (£112m) in cash. The properties will continue to be managed under the Staybridge banner as InterContinental has signed a 20-year management contract.
Starwood completes Milan sale
Starwood Hotels & Resorts has completed the previously announced sale of the Hotel Principe di Savoia in Milan, Italy, to the London-based Dorchester Group for €275m (£192m). Starwood expects to sell two further groups of hotels in the USA later this year.
Florida introduces restaurant smoking ban
A ban on smoking in restaurants in the US state of Florida came into effect on 1 July. But smoking is still allowed on outdoor terraces and in stand-alone bars where food accounts for less than 10% of total sales.
Le Méridien adds US resort
Le Méridien Hotels & Resort has added the Le Parker Méridien Palm Springs in southern California to its American portfolio. The 107-bedroom hotel and villas complex, formerly the Givenchy Resort & Spa, will be owned and operated by the Jack Parker Corp, which bought it from an investment group.