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1. Brookfield acquires Generator Hostels’ European assets for €776M
Brookfield Asset Management has acquired the Generator Hostels’ European brand and its 15 hotels for €776 million ($869 million) from Queensgate Investments. Generator properties have a combined 2,800 rooms in Amsterdam, Berlin, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Dublin, Hamburg, London, Madrid, Paris, Rome, Stockholm and Venice.
Queensgate, which retains ownership of Generator’s two U.S. properties, acquired Generator in 2017 for approximately €450 million ($504 million) from Patron Capital in a deal that was seen as the first major acquisition and investment in the hostel niche. As of February 2025, former Generator CEO Alastair Thomann became CEO of serviced-apartment brand Edyn, which has investment from Brookfield.
2. UK first-quarter growth exceeds analyst predictions
The United Kingdom’s gross domestic product for the first quarter of 2025 came in at 0.7%, which the government is hailing as a sign that the country is “beginning to turn a corner” and “stronger than the 0.6% that analysts had forecast,” the BBC reports, based off comments made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves. If her assumptions are accurate, it is good news for the government, which has been under attack for its handling of the economy, imposing increases in business costs around national insurance contributions and the cancellation of winter fuel allowances for certain groups of citizens.
A news release from the U.K.'s Office for National Statistics, stated “export volumes increased by 3.5%, following three consecutive quarterly declines. The increase in the latest quarter was mainly driven by a 5.6% increase in goods exports and a 2% increase in services exports … caused by rises in other business services and travel.”
3. US posts negative hotels metrics across the board
U.S. hotel performance for the week ending May 10 saw negative performance metrics almost across the board. Occupancy fell 2.3% to 64.6%, average daily rate fell 0.7% to $162.57 and revenue per available room fell 3% to $105.08, according to data from STR, CoStar’s hotel analytics division. Across all metrics for chain-scale performance, only one data point showed any positivity, luxury ADR, which showed an increase of 2.5% to $446.28. The largest decline of any metric was RevPAR in economy, which saw a 4.7% fall to $38.42.
The Canadian hotel industry saw the reverse, with a full sweep of percentage increases in its metrics — occupancy up 3.3% to 68.4%, ADR up 3.8% to 207.20 Canadian dollars ($148.5) and RevPAR up 7.2% to CA141.63. In terms of its chain scales, the only double-digit increase was in luxury RevPAR at 11.5%, which stood at CA257.55. The lowest increase was 1.1% in midscale ADR, which stood at CA$147.24.
4. Mining-construction show sees record Munich hotels’ April numbers
Attendees at the International Trade Fair for Construction Machinery, Building Material Machines, Mining Machines, Construction Vehicles & Construction Equipment, known as Bauma, led to record Munich hotel metrics for the month of April in ADR and RevPAR when it took place from April 7-13. According to STR, ADR reached €453.21 ($507.54) and RevPAR reached €440.61. Both records were for April 8, a Tuesday, which saw occupancy of 97.2%.
The event helped Munich not have a single night in April with less than 60% occupancy. Held at the Neue Messe München, the seven-day show was the event’s 35th edition, which will return to Munich in 2028. In 2026 it will be in Shanghai.
5. Wyndham announces 100-hotel plan in Saudi Arabia for economy brand Super 8
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts has signed a development agreement with Le Park Concord Company to launch its Super 8 by Wyndham brand in Saudi Arabia, with the initial plan to open 100 hotels over the next 10 years. In addition to what emerges from the deal, Le Park Concord also currently manages 13 hotels in Saudi Arabia and has a pipeline of an additional 13.
Fiaz Talal Alenezi, Le Park Concord’s CEO, said, “Saudi Arabia’s tourism growth under Vision 2030 presents a clear need for more branded economy hotels. Our partnership with Wyndham … allows us to address this gap.”
The news release added that in 2024, Saudi Arabia saw 30 million international tourists, a year-on-year increase of 9.5%. Vision 2030 strategists plan on there being 150 million visitors by 2030, a 400% increase.