Where in the world will you find the editors of HotelNewsNow.com? Well, today it’s Sydney, Australia. I’m in town for the ANZPHIC, and my schedule promises to deliver some interesting news from the region.
Outside of the conference programming, I’ve got meetings lined up with some prominent names in Australian hospitality and beyond.
Here’s a sneak peek at what I’ll be bringing back:
Pan Pacific Hotels Group: The company announced it acquired two hotels that will operate under the ParkRoyal brand in Sydney and a third hotel in Perth to operate under the Pan Pacific flag. I will sit down with Patrick Imbardelli, president and CEO, to chat about this and other growth vehicles.
Onyx Hospitality Group: Fresh off launching two new brands and reorganizing the company, Peter Henley, president and CEO, will share with me the company’s plans for Saffron, OZO and Amari offerings in its home base of Thailand and other Asian markets.
StayWell Hospitality Group: The Australia-based owner and operator of the Park Regis and Leisure Inn brands announced that it will develop a Park Regis hotel in Singapore. The company also plans to further expand outside of Australia, including a possible acquisition in China, according to published reports. I’ll talk to executive director Richard Doyle about the strategy.
Lend Lease: One of Australia’s largest real-estate developers is in the midst of mega projects in Sydney, (Barangaroo) Melbourne (Victoria Harbour) and Brisbane (Royal National Agricultural and Industrial Association of Queensland). David Rolls, CEO-development of Lend Lease, will give us more insights.
Other interviews with representatives from Accor, InterContinental Hotels Group, STR Global and Horwath HTL promise to make mine a newsworthy trip—if I’m going to travel 23 hours for a conference, I might as well make it worthwhile, right?
Stay tuned for Asia/Pacific hotel news from Sydney.