News & Stories

Munich. Can social media affect the value of hotels? “Yes, they can!” says Bruno Wolf in front of a surprised audience at Expo Real in early October. With several decades of experience in the world of hotels, the distribution and Internet expert explained to financiers and investors the importance of this young distribution channel. Similar to being present in classic reservation systems and online reservation portals, opinions of guests have a deciding effect on reservation behaviour. Factors deciding on reservations thus affect turnover and profit. Bruno Wolf in an interview with Maria Puetz-Willems on this new, young topic of “real estate and reputation management”.

Berne. In Switzerland, there are new hotel projects on the horizon: in Vals in Graubuenden, a new hotel will be developed in addition to a thermal bath and a hotel; in Appenzell, a health hotel is planned and another one at the Derby area in Davos Dorf.

Duesseldorf. WGF Westfaelische Grundbesitz und Finanzverwaltung AG feels comfortable in the class of asset hotels. A few weeks ago, the project developer sold the Holiday Inn Express Frankfurt City Hauptbahnhof. Moreover, it is interested in the boarding house segment.

Munich. The darkening mood surrounding the state of the global and in particular the EU economy was still not felt at Expo Real 2011: The mood among exhibitors and guests was good with all sides praising the event as an intensive working trade fair at which a whole range of projects could be launched and pushed further forward. Hotel exhibitors also benefitted from the first joint hospitality stand "World of Hospitality" this year. The stand also enjoyed much positive attention and benefitted from synergies both to the hotel conference "Hospitality Industry Dialogue" as well as to the hospitalityInside event "BRICKS & BRAINS". The following provides an initial summary of the trade fair. Individual reports on the events will follow.

Dubai. Dubai’s property sector, battered by the financial crisis of 2008, is beginning to stabilize, but Saudi Arabia and Qatar will be grabbing attention with their multi-billion dollar projects, said speakers at Dubai’s "Cityscape" real estate fair held end of September. Dubai’s real estate market is on the mend from the estimated 60 percent price drop thanks to the Arab revolution, which has highlighted the emirate’s status as a politically stable market that is backed by the oil-rich emirate of Abu Dhabi. But continuity of property recovery in Dubai hinges on bank lending appetite, the outcome of the Western world debt crises, and the development of regulation in the emirate to control and monitor property projects.

Munich. A new performance report has caused furore at the Expo Real this week. The analysis concluded exactly the opposite of what hotel investors often feared.

Munich. In the latest Treugast "Investment Ranking" that will be introduced at the Expo Real the next week, the assessments this year remain widely stable. However, by the end of the year, Treugast CEO, Stephan Gerhard expects the first bad news from the German resort hotel industry.

Augsburg. What’s on the mind of developers at the moment? The unanimous answer: restrictive banks. In addition, they are on the lookout for reliable partners and focused concepts. On the occasion of the commercial real estate fair Expo Real 2011 which will start next Tuesday, hospitalityInside asked five nameable developers and project managers what they think.

Augsburg. The foreigners are coming – and they are most welcome. Foreign investors increasingly regard both Germany and Switzerland as safe havens for hotel investments. Currently, Germany is the country with the most hotel property on the market, and a large number of deals are going on in the background. A great number of foreign investors do not require any German bank for funding purposes. Moreover, their interest in hotels focuses on more than just the budget segment. A recent survey among consultancies about the desires and behaviour of investors.

Berlin. Once again, Berlin will be the capital of project development. However, the total volume of planned projects is on the decrease. In the metropolitan region of Berlin and Potsdam, the hospitality sector`s share in total development volume is almost 15 percent.