Hotel and Resort News and Notes for May 2024

While most big hotel news is covered by TMR’s team and hosted on its Hotels and Resort homepage, some smaller news bits deserve attention. Below you can find rolling hotel news bites from the last four weeks that travel advisors, industry professionals, and frequent travelers should know about.

This month, the list is highlighted by a new executive team at an iconic New York hotel, a rebrand for an award-winning Jamaica hotel chain, and an expansion in Saudi Arabia for one major hotel chain.

•  The Waldorf Astoria New York announced a new executive team that includes a new managing director in Luigi Romaniello and a new executive director of sales in Jasmin Howanietz. The 375-room hotel will reopen later this year after a multi-year restoration. 

•  The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco has named Nicholas McDermott as its new general manager. He joined the property after spending time at The St. Regis Houston, where he served as general manager for the past four years.

•  The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco also this month announced it was bringing back Solaire Terrasse in collaboration with Veuve Clicquot. The program will run from June 1 through Oct. 27, 2024

•  InterContinental Hotels & Resorts has partnered with Timeshifter to bring the technology to all of its guests. Timeshifter builds personalized jetlag mitigation plans to allow guests to beat jetlag. 

•  Crissa Hotels in Jamaica is rebranding to S Hotels Jamaica. The S Hotels portfolio includes S Hotel Montego Bay (formerly S Hotel Jamaica) and S Hotel Kingston (formerly Spanish Court Hotel). The Montego Bay property ranked high on Tripadvisor’s 2024 Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best Hotels (top 1%) in three major categories: Top All-Inclusive Hotels in the World; Top 25 Hotels in the Caribbean and Top 25 All-Inclusive in the Caribbean.

•  Pendry Park City has named John Rolfs as its new general manager. Rolfs has over 28 years of experience in hospitality, including over two decades with The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, most recently as general manager of St. Regis Bal Harbour Hotel. 

•  Dusit Hotels and Resorts’ flagship property, Dusit Thani Bangkok, announced it will reopen on Sept. 27, 2024. Bookings have opened.

•  Shangri-La Group has named Kieran Twomey as its new regional head of operations for the Middle East, India, Indian Ocean, Europe, and the Americas (MEIA). Twomey has spent over 25 years with Shangri-La, including holding leadership roles in China, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand.

•  Radio Hotel in New York City’s Washington Heights neighborhood has named Danielle Dymond as its new General Manager. Dymond previously served as the hotel’s director of sales and marketing.

•  Pendry Natirar in New Jersey, opening late in the summer of 2024, announced the addition of The Natirar Club, a members-only club that guests will have access to. The club will offer outdoor sports and recreational pursuits such as tennis, hiking, biking, and fly-fishing, as well as live music.

•  Nobu announced it will open its 40th property in Ho Chi Minh City in 2026. The hotel will sit in a 40-story, mixed-use complex that is currently under construction.

•  Fontainebleau Miami Beach is adding a convention center sometime in Q4 2024. The space will span five stories and include 45,000 sq. ft. of meeting space.

•  Four Seasons Hotel Toronto in the Yorkville neighborhood officially wrapped up its multimillion-dollar guest room renovation that includes a redesign for all 259 guest rooms, including the hotel’s 42 suites.

•  Roomza, a hotel startup, opened its first luxury boutique hotel in New Orleans—the Roomza New Orleans at Melrose Mansion. The hotel sits on Esplanade Avenue, steps from the French Quarter and Bourbon Street, offering 20 suites with a courtyard and a pool.

•  Omni Hotels and Resorts has named Michael Innocentin as its new chief marketing officer. Innocentin previously served as the senior vice president of commercial projects at Fairmont Hotels. He has also held various leadership positions at Accor.

•  Naples Grande Beach Resort has named David Cesario as its new general manager. He previously served as vice president and opening general manager of Margaritaville Beach Resort in Fort Myers Beach.

•  The Four Seasons announced plans to expand its Saudi Arabian portfolio with the addition of the Four Seasons Hotel Madinah, anticipated to open in late 2024. The property will include 246 guest rooms and suites, multiple distinct restaurant and lounge concepts, expansive meeting and event space, a fitness center, and a spa in the heart of Madinah.

•  Accor announced that Hotel Stratford in San Francisco will be the U.S. property in its Handwritten Collection. The hotel will open later this summer. According to Accor, the Handwritten Collection is “a portfolio of carefully curated addresses, each resonating the warmth and character of its dedicated hosts.”

•  Marriott’s AC Hotels opened AC Hotel Chengdu North, its debut in Southwest China. The hotel features 240 guest rooms in the Phoenix Mountain Sports Park, a multi-functional commercial center integrating sports, art, business, and entertainment.

•  The New Orleans Marriott Courtyard and Springhill Suites Hotels was sold for $73 million to a group led by Robert J. Guidry, the chairman and CEO of Guidry Enterprises.

•  Vail Resorts closed on the acquisition of Crans-Montana Mountain Resort in Switzerland. The resort is Vail’s second strategic investment to own and operate ski resorts in Europe.

• The Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin is celebrating 200 years of operations this year with a reimagined 1824 Bar, new afternoon tea, new food items, and more. One of the new food items is inspired by Bram Stoker, acclaimed Irish author and one of the many literary legends who spent time at the hotel.

If you want your property or announcement to be featured, email dmccarthy@travelmarketreport.com