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NEWCRESTIMAGE RECENTLY ACQUIRED the TownePlace Suites by Marriott Dallas Las Colinas in Irving, Texas. It is the most recent acquisition for the Dallas-based investment firm led by Mehul Patel as managing partner and CEO, and the company plans to fully renovate the property, which opened in 1998 and was last renovated in 2014. The 3-floor, 135-suite property offers three types of guestroom: studio, one-bedroom, and two bedroom, according to NewcrestImage. It is near two major airports, Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and Love Field, and two major convention centers, the Irving Convention Center and the Gaylord Texan Convention Center. Amenities at the hotel include a fitness center and an outdoor pool. "This extended-stay property is in the heart of a high-traffic corridor that's a popular destination for both corporate and leisure travelers," Patel said. The acquisition of the TownePlace Suites is important to Marriott, said Loren Nalewanski, the company's vice president franchising for the Element, Residence Inn, Fairfield, TownePlace and SpringHill Suites brands. "Our industry is built on strong partnerships between brands and owners," Nalewanski said. "This acquisition enhances the long, valued, and successful partnership between Marriott and NewcrestImage, which has owned and operated 30 Marriott-branded properties since 2013."

THE U.S. HOUSE of Representatives recently unveiled the 'No Hidden FEES Act of 2023' (H.R 6543), compelling the travel industry to enhance transparency regarding so-called "junk fees." This legislation is designed to improve pricing transparency for customers seeking short-term lodging, including hotels, motels, inns, and privately-owned vacation rentals. Meanwhile, the American Hotel & Lodging Association extended its support for the bill, which was introduced by Reps. Young Kim and Kathy Castor on Friday. "As Americans grapple with persistent high inflation, the last thing families need after budgeting for trips is to be hit with costly last-minute fees," Kim said. "The No Hidden FEES Act would rectify this issue, offering cost transparency for consumers so they know the upfront lodging expenses. I will continue the fight to make life more affordable for families in Southern California and throughout our nation."

ECONOMIC HEADWINDS AND geopolitical concerns are expected to affect U.S. hotel performance in 2024, according to PwC. The issues include continuing high interest rates and the Israel-Palestine conflict. Occupancy levels have consistently decreased over the past seven months compared to the same period in 2022. This downward trend is anticipated to persist for the remainder of this year and extend into at least the first quarter of 2024. However, PwC forecasts a 63 percent annual occupancy rate for US hotels this year. Hotels in the U.S. experienced a weakening in leisure demand during the latter part of this year, as global vacation destinations reopened, and leisure travelers regained confidence in traveling abroad, PwC said in its latest report titled U.S. Hospitality Directions: November 2023. Moreover, gains in individual and group business travel haven't completely counteracted this softening.

CHOICE HOTELS INTERNATIONAL is accusing the board of directors for Wyndham Hotels & Resorts of not being forthcoming with the company's shareholders regarding Choice's exchange offer to acquire Wyndham. In its counter to the Wyndham board's rejection of the offer, Choice took issue with Wyndham's concerns about getting regulatory approval for the deal and said Wyndham shareholders support the "industrial merits of a transaction." In its original proposal, made public in October, Choice said it sought to acquire all the outstanding shares of Wyndham at a price of $90 per share and shareholders would have received $49.50 in cash and 0.324 shares of Choice common stock for each Wyndham share they own. Choice claimed that is a 30 percent premium to Wyndham's 30-day volume-weighted average closing price ending on Oct. 16, an 11 percent premium to Wyndham's 52-week high, and a 30 percent premium to Wyndham's latest closing price. Wyndham's board unanimously rejected Choice's proposal, calling it unsolicited, "highly conditional" and not in the best interest of shareholders. On Nov. 14, however, Choice sent a letter to the Wyndham board with an "enhanced proposal" intended to address Wyndham's concerns about clearing federal regulations. On Dec. 12, Choice launched its public exchange offer to acquire Wyndham and on Dec. 19 the Wyndham board officially rejected the offer and urged shareholders not to tender shares for the deal.

MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND is back and almost as strong as pre-pandemic levels, with 39.2 million people forecast to travel 50 miles or more from home during the holiday period, according to AAA Travel. Despite record high gas prices, a majority of travelers, 34.9 million, are expected to drive, but air travel also is seeing resurgence. The total forecasted number of travelers is 8.3 percent higher than 2021's 36.2 million and comes closer to 2017 levels. Last year, U.S. hotels saw occupancy hit nearly 62 percent over that Memorial Day weekend, according to STR. "Memorial Day is always a good predictor of what's to come for summer travel," said Paula Twidale, senior vice president, AAA Travel. "Based on our projections, summer travel isn't just heating up, it will be on fire. People are overdue for a vacation and they are looking to catch up on some much-needed R&R in the coming months."

THE RevPAR OF U.S. hotels in the third week of May was the highest it has been since mid-July 2019, according to STR. Also, all metrics in April as a month improved compared to March, and hotels reported all-time high room rates during the period. Occupancy was 68.6 percent for the week ending May 21, up from 66.5 percent the week before and down 3.5 percent from 2019. ADR was $151.75 for the week, increased from $148.31 the week before and up 13.4 percent from three years ago. RevPAR reached $104.06 percent during the week, up from $98.59 the week before and rose 9.5 percent from 2019. STR's top 25 markets saw their highest weekly occupancy, ADR and RevPAR levels of the pandemic-era during the week.

THE U.S. TOPS the global hotel construction pipeline in terms of project count, according to Lodging Econometrics. Overall, the pipeline increased 5 percent by projects and 4 percent by rooms over the same time last year with several stages of the pipeline hitting peaks by project and rooms counts. LE's most recent Global Hotel Construction Pipeline Trend Report released Thursday found the pipeline contains 14,779 projects with 2,412,736 rooms. There were 1,230,572 rooms in 6,896 projects under construction, all-time high. Another peak is in projects scheduled to start in the next 12 months with 4,599 projects and 651,133 rooms at the end the second quarter. There are an additional 3,283 projects and 531,031 rooms in the early planning stage of the pipeline. U.S. projects made up 38 percent of the pipeline with 5,582 projects and 687,801 rooms. China was second with 3,574 projects and 647,704 rooms, or 24 percent of the pipeline, meaning both countries make up 62 percent of the total pipeline.

A STRONGER THAN expected performance by U.S. hotels in the fourth quarter of 2021 led CBRE Hotels Research to upgrade its forecast for the rest of 2022. CBRE now forecasts RevPAR will reach 2019 nominal levels by the third quarter of this year, one year earlier than the previous forecast. Occupancy is expected to rise 6.7 percent to 61.3 percent this year, then rise 5.2 percent to 64.4 percent in 2023. ADR is forecast to rise 10.1 percent to $133.94 in 2022 and go up 6 percent more to $141.99 in 2023. CBRE expects RevPAR to rise 17.5 percent in 2022 overall to $82.04 and then rise 11.5 percent to $91.46 in 2023. Positive trends, such as high employment and the return to the office for many workers who had been working from home contributed to the revised forecast, CBRE said. Other factors contributing to the improvement include below-average supply growth, strong domestic leisure trends, the resumption of inbound international travel and a predicted return to office later this year. However, ongoing inflation and geopolitical tensions connected to the war in Ukraine still threaten progress.

A CHANGING OF the guard is taking place at Marriott International as chairmanship of the company transitions from J.W. "Bill" Marriott Jr. to his son David Marriott. The senior Marriott has led the company for more than 60 years. Marriott announced the change in February. J.W. spent his high school and college years working in a variety of positions in the family's Hot Shoppes restaurant chain. He became a full-time associate in 1956, and soon afterward began overseeing the first Marriott hotel. He became president of the company in 1964 and CEO in 1972, a role he held for 40 years before stepping down in 2012. He was elected chairman of the board in 1985. "On behalf of the board and the hundreds of thousands of people who wear a Marriott name badge around the world, I'd like to thank Mr. Marriott for his outstanding leadership throughout his tenure with the company. He is truly an industry icon," Anthony Capuano, Marriot's CEO.

U.S. HOTELS WILL generate $46.71 billion in state and local tax revenue, more than ever before, according to a survey from the American Hotel & Lodging Association and Oxford Economics. Occupancy is expected to continue its recovery, the report said, but challenges remain. Average U.S. hotel occupancy is projected to reach 63.8 percent in 2023, just under 2019's level of 65.9 percent, according to AHLA. However, the labor shortage is expected to continue this year as hotels seek to fill jobs lost in the pandemic. As of December, national average hotel wages were at historic highs of more than $23 an hour and hotel benefits and flexibility are better than ever. Nearly 100,000 hotel jobs are currently open across the nation, according to job search site Indeed. "Hotels are making significant strides toward recovery, supporting millions of good-paying jobs and generating billions in state and local tax revenue in communities across the nation," said Chip Rogers, AHLA president and CEO. "To continue growing, we need to hire more people. Fortunately, there's never been a better time to be a hotel employee, with wages, benefits, flexibility and upward mobility better than ever before."

THE U.S. LED the global hotel construction pipeline in the fourth quarter of 2021, according to Lodging Econometrics. The global pipeline decreased 1 percent by projects during the period. The U.S. accounted for 35 percent of global construction pipeline with 4,814 hotels containing 581,953 rooms out of 13,770 projects containing 2,304,386 rooms in the global pipeline. The U.S. was followed by China at 27 percent of the global pipeline, and the two countries together account for 62 percent of all global projects, LE said in its latest trend report. During the fourth quarter, China's construction pipeline reached a new all-time high with 3,693 projects containing 700,567 rooms. This is followed by the UK with 313 hotels containing 48,770 rooms, Indonesia with 304 projects with 48,175 rooms, and Germany with 277 hotel projects with 48,827 rooms, the report said.

U.S. HOTEL PERFORMANCE increased in the final week of February from the previous week, according to STR. Occupancy saw a new high during the week. Occupancy was 64.2 percent for the week ending Feb. 25, up from 60.8 percent from the third week of February and 1.5 percent below the comparable week in 2019. ADR reached $156.51, up from $156.10 the week before and 22.2 percent over the same month in 2019. RevPAR stood at $100.43, up from $87.21 the previous week and 20.3 percent rise over 2019. The U.S. weekly occupancy level was the highest since the week ending Nov. 19, 2022, the STR data showed. Among the Top 25 Markets, Orlando saw the highest occupancy increase over 2019, up 6.2 percent to 86.9 percent, while Las Vegas reported the highest ADR, up 49.5 percent to $186.96 and RevPAR rose 51.8 percent to $148.61 over 2019.

U.S. EXTENDED-STAY hotels continued to perform well in November with recovery indices up compared to October and 2019, according to a report from The Highland Group. However, the market is showing signs of slowing. All extended-stay segments posted RevPAR gains in November compared to last year, the US Extended-Stay Hotels Bulletin: November 2022 report said. "Monthly gains in ADR and RevPAR have decelerated for most of the year and November increases were the lowest in 2022. Both economy and mid-price segments reported RevPAR increases well below the rate of inflation for the first time in November," the report said. "ADR growth is still High compared to long-term averages but with the economy segment reporting its eighth consecutive monthly decline in demand and mid-price extended-stay hotel demand also declining in November, rate resistance is building especially at lower price points."

Peachtree Group has named Jarred Bussert as vice president of information technology. In this newly created role, Bussert will be responsible for the company's IT infrastructure, including all business applications, information security and data integrity, the company said in a statement. "Jarred's experience and achievements demonstrate his commitment to supporting business strategies with technology infrastructure," said Greg Friedman, Peachtree's managing principal and CEO. "As Peachtree continues to grow, I am pleased to attract talented leaders to our best-in-class team. His leadership will be instrumental in building a successful and high-performing organization." Bussert has extensive enterprise-wide technical and IT leadership experience. Before joining Peachtree, he was vice president, information technology for Majors Management, an Atlanta-based retail operator. Bussert started his career with RaceTrac Petroleum holding numerous leadership positions, leaving as director, information systems. He has an MBA and Master of Technology from Georgia Tech and received his bachelor's degree from the University of Georgia.

At Mountain Hawk Trekking, we offer a diverse range of carefully crafted adventures, catering to all types of adventurers. Whether you crave the thrill of conquering high mountain passes or seek solace in the serene beauty of remote villages, we have the perfect trek for you. From iconic routes like Everest Base Camp, Langtang, Manaslu, Mustang, and Annapurna Circuit to off-the-beaten-path gems, we've got it all covered.

HYATT HOTELS CORPORATION plans to expand its brand portfolio in India and Southwest Asia, with eight new hotels set to open across various leisure and city destinations in 2024. The expansion will focus on Hyatt Regency, Hyatt Place and Hyatt Centric brands and is timed to coincide with an expected rebound of travel in the country and sub-continent, Hyatt said in a statement. "Southwest Asia continues to demonstrate high growth potential and is among the top global growth markets for Hyatt, said Sunjae Sharma, Hyatt's managing director for India and Southwest Asia. "We have strong expansion plans for 2024 across our portfolio encompassing our legacy brands like Hyatt Regency, Hyatt Place and Hyatt Centric across destinations that will strengthen our brand presence in key markets. This expansion represents our strong commitment and confidence in the Southwest Asia region." Hyatt is also expanding its luxury and lifestyle brands in India, including the recent launch of JdV by Hyatt with the opening of Ronil Goa, the statement said. JdV by Hyatt is the ninth brand introduced by Hyatt in India, reaffirming its commitment to expanding its presence in the country.

FRENCH HOTEL CHAIN B&B Hotels launched its U.S. expansion with the opening of its first property in Orlando, Florida. The 218-room hotel, located near Universal Studios, will be followed by additional hotels in Miami and Jacksonville, Florida. The mid-scale brand plans to establish 400 hotels across the U.S. within the next 10 years, representing $4 billion in real estate value, B&B Hotels said in a statement. "We are thrilled to bring B&B HOTELS to the United States and to offer travelers affordable high-quality accommodations," said Valerio Duchini, B&B Hotels' U.S. CEO. "We're also eager to engage with real estate investors here who share our vision for growth. Drawing from our success in Europe, we aim to establish ourselves as a prominent player in the U.S. market." B&B Hotels rebrands existing properties and constructs new ones, the company said. Batipart, a private equity firm based in Luxembourg, partnered with B&B Hotels for the Orlando property, with plans to renovate the hotel to improve the guest experience.

THE BAIRD/STR Hotel Stock Index rose 10.5 percent to 6,760 in December, according to STR. Moreover, the stock index closed the year with a 38.4 percent gain in 2023, driven by a favorable interest rate outlook boosting investor sentiment and valuation multiples. "Hotel stocks - like the broader market - finished 2023 on a high note as the 'soft landing' narrative and lower interest rate outlook continued to boost investor sentiment and valuation multiples," said Michael Bellisario, senior hotel research analyst and director at Baird. "Both the hotel brands and hotel REITs were up more than 10 percent in December and outperformed their respective benchmarks. For the year, the hotel REITs' 19 percent gain more than doubled the return of real estate stocks broadly, while the hotel brands' 44 percent increase nearly doubled the performance of the S&P 500." The U.S. hotel industry closed the year on a strong note, said Amanda Hite, president of STR.

STARWOOD CAPITAL GROUP, a US-based private equity firm, recently purchased10 Radisson Blu Edwardian properties in London, totaling 2,053 rooms, from Edwardian Hotels London, a U.K. hospitality group with Jasminder Singh as chairman. The financial details of the deal remain undisclosed, but a Bloomberg report estimated the transaction at around $1 billion (£800 million). Edwardian Group will continue to manage the portfolio during a transitional period, the company said in a statement. Edwardian Hotels London will retain operational control and continue managing The Londoner Leicester Square, launched in September 2021, along with its two Radisson Collection hotels-The May Fair in Mayfair and The Edwardian Manchester in Manchester. Jasminder Singh is chairman of Edwardian Group. "Following the successful launch of The Londoner and a period of strong trading across the portfolio, this sale represents an opportunity to refocus the group and position it for its next chapter," said Inderneel Singh, CEO of Edwardian Group and son of Jasminder Singh. "Our three landmark properties - The Londoner, The May Fair Hotel, and The Edwardian Manchester - are perfect showcases of our vision for the future, and we remain committed to investing in and delivering distinctive experiences for guests in high-end, purpose-built, city-centre hotels."

BARON HOSPITALITY, LED by president Sanjay Patel, recently acquired the Hampton Inn Birmingham/Mountain Brook in Birmingham, Alabama. The company plans a complete renovation of the 129-room property on the city's primary commercial corridor. The Hampton Inn is close to downtown Birmingham, the University of Alabama-Birmingham, Samford University and Birmingham Botanical Gardens. "Adding another Hampton Inn to our portfolio was a strategic move as part of our three-year plan, aligning with our goals for growth and setting the stage for success in the hospitality industry," said Patel. "By entering a market with high barriers to entry, you can benefit from the brand's recognition and reputation, attracting customers seeking quality accommodations. Initiating renovations to enhance the property will further differentiate it within the upper-midscale segment, making it a unique asset that stands out among competitors."