News & Stories

Paris/London. The sale of individual hotels from Starwood Capital/Société du Louvre’s portfolio, among them Concorde Hotels, to JJW Hotels is finally off. JJW suffered a severe defeat in court – and has to pay a massive fine.

Augsburg. The recent US press release on the sale of Aman Resorts has been denied by the owners. The sale of Regent, however, has obviously been concluded. Prince Al-Waleed also again has plans.

St. Moritz. From May on, "Mister St. Moritz" no longer exists. Kurverein St. Moritz informed its long-standing Director Hanspeter Danuser, 63, who retired early, that it no longer needed him as “brand ambassador”. And now his critics are beginning to emerge.

Munich. Every trend has a counter-trend: In the era of the iPod and eBooks, two literature-enthused German journalists have founded a new consortium: Reading Hotels & Resorts.

Nuremberg. Last year, a total of 34.1 million Germans aged between 14 and 69 bought goods and services on-line. These are the findings of a current online shopping survey. Buying hotel nights online is very popular.

Bonn. The publicity effect for the young Kameha Grand in Bonn is currently enormous. Though quite apart from celebrity show, the extremely creative hotel opening event two weeks ago gives just a small taste of what the unconventional lifestyle and event hotel might provide in future. The flower design by Marcel Wanders lends the hotel quite a unique image. In order to discover the finer details of this hotel concept, unparalleled in Europe, a lot of time would be required - be that for the multi-touch fish pond or the finery of the rooms. Carsten Rath, Founder and CEO of Lifestyle Hospitality & Entertainment Group, which operates the Kameha Grand Bonn, answers our questions. As announced last week at the ITB, the LH&E Group is pushing forward with another hotel project: The urban designer hotel brand "K-Stars Living".

Berlin. The vibration of the world economic crises shook the hospitality market in the US more than in other regions. May be this is the reason why Marriott International now started a global reorganization with a special focus on Europe. The company announced plans to double its portfolio in Europe by 2015.

Bonn. The Grand Kameha Bonn opened with a spectacular laser show, perfectly fitting for what is to be a unique lifestyle and event hotel. Laser flashes, dancing letters and Beethoven's 9th symphony, the "Ode to Joy" formed the backdrop to fireworks in front of the Rhine river. A unique acoustic and visual experience. After 111 days in the run-up, the first project of the new hotel group has now opened. Architecture and design concept form new dimension among "convention hotels".

New York. The world’s population of High Net Worth Individuals suffered significantly from the global crisis; Ultra-HNWIs suffered even more. Though the U.S. remains the single largest home to HNWIs, they also spent significantly less at home – and also started to downgrade or cut back on service experience while travelling. The hotel industry is deeply affected - and challenged to watch carefully the wealthy customers' demands and travel habits. Welf Ebeling, partner of The Syngenuity Group in New York collected facts and figures about the recent development in the luxury market. A guest article.

Brest/Frankfurt. In its 20th year, B&B Hotels, headquartered in Brest, France, is now set to expand in Italy and Poland as well as in Germany and France. The plan is to take advantage of high current interest from investors in Germany in the budget market and to conclude sale-and-lease-back agreements. The cooperation with Tank & Rast has hit difficulties. The group intends to massively reduce collaboration with indirect booking channels. The group also announced its results 2009.