Aperture

🏡 Oliver Winter, CEO of a&o Hostels, opened a&o Firenze Campo di Marte in Florence, featuring 119 rooms with a central location near Campo di Marte station. The hostel is equipped with seven self-check-in terminals in 13 languages, cleaning robots, a mobile key app, electric vehicle charging stations, and 40 parking spaces. The building will be redesigned by BWM Architektur & Design, adding a multifunctional courtyard for sports and recreation. The Florence hostel has 466 beds and is the second a&o in Italy after Venice (2017), contributing to the chain's total of 42 hostels across Europe.

🏨 Radisson Hotel Group in 2024 added nearly 40,000 rooms globally. Elie Younes highlighted a successful year despite geopolitical changes and plans for 2025 focusing on growth and new business models. The Radisson Collection expanded to 70 hotels, including first-time acquisitions in Paris, Madrid, and a third in Riyadh, with new flagships in Rome and Srinagar, India. In collaboration with PPHE Hotel Group, they launched art'otel London Hoxton in May, with an art'otel Rome slated for early 2025, marking the brand's debut in Italy. Radisson Blu brought over 20 new properties, like those in Casablanca's financial district and Conakry, Guinea. Radisson RED entered markets such as Danang, Berlin, Auckland, Vientiane, and Abuja, with significant openings in Galway and Phuket Patong Beach. Launched in 2020, Radisson Individuals rapidly grew in the Apac region with nearly 15 new properties, including in India, Oman, Sardinia, Turkey, France, and the UK. The mid-scale brand prizeotel was rebranded to Prize by Radisson, with upcoming openings in Gdansk and Berlin. An Eastern Mauritius coast hotel is under development.

✈ Royal Air Maroc transported 500,000 passengers in Italy in 2024, eyeing a new African destination, Dakhla. In January, they inaugurated routes from Rabat and Madrid to Dakhla. Mohammed Adil Korchi, Italy's General Manager, anticipates an additional 11 aircraft by June, potentially exceeding the current 40 weekly flights from six Italian airports. By 2037, the airline aims to increase its fleet from 70 to 200, serve over 100 global destinations, 46 domestic routes, and target €9 billion in turnover with 31.6 million passengers, up from 7.2 million in 2024.

🏠 Raro Villas and Raro Realty, part of the Nicolaus group, are experiencing significant growth in market recognition, managed properties, and business turnover. The Raro brand includes Raro resorts and high-end tailor-made offerings, expanding into the Raro Rooms Collection for luxury room and service offerings in charming dwellings. Raro Villas' portfolio exceeds 3,000 villas, with strong American market demand (30%) and bookings from 57 countries. In 2024, Raro Villas saw a business turnover increase of 12% over 2023 and 69% over 2022. Bookings for September and October 2024 grew by 55% and 28%, respectively. Raro Realty's total property values and commission from sales increased by 95% in 2024 over 2023, with the opening of a new office in Savelletri and plans for iconic Italian locations. The success of both divisions is attributed to strategic positioning, innovative approaches, and international market visibility through prestigious events.

🏡 Gruppo Ginobbi's management company enters the villa market, partnering with Torre Sponda, a collection of five private residences in Positano, Amalfi Coast. President Giacomo Crisci aims to offer an authentic experience embodying customer care, respect for local history, and a commitment to sustainability. The villas range from one to five sea-view rooms, reflecting designer Fausta Gaetani's distinctive style. Torre Sponda, acquired by Alfred Pattinson in 1905 and now owned by Raimonda and Fausta Gaetani, blends historical charm with natural beauty. The villas, adorned with local ceramics, artisan textiles, and fine furnishings, feature Mediterranean gardens, panoramic terraces, and private pools. Highlight villa “La Torre,” a meticulously restored UNESCO World Heritage site, offers an exclusive look at Positano. Bookings for Torre Sponda villas start February 2025, with options for reserving the entire property.

🏖️ The JW Marriott Kaafu Atoll Island Resort opened in Kaafu Atoll, Maldives, featuring 80 private pool villas, including 47 overwater pool villas, and 7 restaurants and bars. It's 15 minutes by boat from Velana International Airport. Designed by architect Cuneyt Bukulmez, the resort emphasizes sustainability through a collaboration with INVENA and MIT's Self-Assembly Lab, introducing a 30-meter underwater coastal structure to mitigate wave action and support marine ecosystems.

🏗️ Sunset Hospitality Group (SHG) will manage the residences of Torre Velasca in Milan under their METT brand, as announced by the global investment, development, and management company Hines. METT Suites & Residences will feature 72 suites and residences across 7 floors, totaling approximately 10,000 square meters, restored in accordance with the original plans by studio BBPR. Set to open in the second half of 2025, the Milanese METT will also include two restaurants, SUSHISAMBA and MIA. The 17th floor will host the METT Suites & Residences reception and a membership club, while a wellness area of over 1,000 square meters with a Spa and gym will be located in the basement. The regeneration project is led by Asti Architetti, with collaboration from ARS Aedificandi, studio CEAS, and ESA Engineering, maintaining dialogue with the Soprintendenza Archeologica, Belle Arti e Paesaggio of Milan.

🏖️ Mandarin Oriental announces the opening of Mandarin Oriental Esencia in Porto Rico for 2028. Located at Cabo Rojo on the southwestern coast in Boquerón Bay, the resort will feature 106 rooms and suites, each with a balcony, terrace, or private garden with pool. Additionally, there will be a collection of 83 branded villas along the beach, hills, and cliffs, plus over 200 private residences within six-story buildings. Facilities include five restaurants, a beach club, a poolside bar, an elegant lounge bar, and an 18-hole golf course designed by Rees Jones. The resort will also offer a spa, a fitness center with an outdoor swimming pool, a beauty salon, a kids club, and an adventure park. The project is a collaboration between Reuben Brothers, Three Rules Capital, and Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, with architecture by Studiomk27.

🏖 Falkensteiner Michaeler Tourism Group (Fmtg) will manage the former Hotel Alpine Palace, now rebranded as Falkensteiner Hotel Saalbach-Hinterglemm, set to reopen in winter 2026/2027 after a €40 million renovation by BWM Architecture & Design. In Italy, three new Falkensteiner openings are planned from 2025 to 2027 including a 5-star hotel with 97 rooms and 170 Premium Living apartments at Lake Garda by Matteo Thun and Joao Nunes, Falkensteiner Hotel Bozen Waltherpark with 113 rooms, and a family resort in Licata, Sicily with 125 rooms.

🏨 Minor Hotels plans to add 285 new hotels and 47,000 rooms by the end of 2027, aiming for 850 properties globally. Over 50% of current properties are in Europe, with expansion including over 100 in Asia, 60 in the Middle East and Africa, and 40 in Australia and New Zealand. Key markets include Morocco, Egypt, Turkey, and India, where the Anantara Jewel Bagh Jaipur Hotel recently opened. Luxury and upscale segments drive growth, with Anantara, Tivoli, and Elewana Collection brands. Upcoming openings in 2025 include nhow Rome in Q2, Tivoli Kopke Porto Gaia Hotel in Portugal, and Avani+ Barbarons Seychelles Resort in Q3. Anantara enters the luxury tented camp market with Anantara Kafue River Zambia Tented Camp, and NH Collection Maldives Reethi Resort will reopen after a six-month renovation.