Fusioni & Acquisizioni

🏖️ Hyatt, a hotel giant, may acquire Playa Hotels & Resorts, currently operating 24 resorts in Mexico, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic. The potential acquisition emerged during the exclusive contract extension talks, with the current contract expiring on February 3 and extended only until February 10. Discussions are ongoing without a guaranteed closing.

🏠 Libero Muntoni, General Manager of Delphina hotels & resorts, discusses their definition of luxury, focusing on quality and local territory discovery. Delphina's Hotel Capo d’Orso joined The Leading Hotels of the World, marking a significant development for North Sardinia. The company aims for sustainable luxury combined with genuine local hospitality, a crucial element for their five-star offerings. In 2024, Delphina recorded its best year, surpassing 2019 results, with all hotels, villas, and residences set to be operational in May, and bookings already open.

🏖️ Gianluigi Aponte's MSC Group, which includes brands such as MSC Cruises, Cisalpina, Blu Vacanze, and Going, made a pre-Christmas offer for Andrea Ruben Levi's approx. 36% stake in Alpitour. Last week, Tamburi Investment Partners (TIP) raised their stake in the tour operator to 94.661%. The acquisition cost roughly €200 million, with Alpitour's revenue reported at €2.1 billion, a 7% increase from the previous year. Estimates suggest a 15-20% increase in economic and financial prospects for the current year and beyond, with the group's 27 hotels valued at €900 million. This move intensifies the battle for Alpitour, with MSC potentially aiming for 100% ownership, including the acquisition of Neos.

🏠 Accor signed a franchising agreement for the Handwritten Collection brand's debut in Piedmont, with the Hotel Giacomo Morra Alba – Handwritten Collection opening in March. The renovated hotel features 92 rooms including 4 suites, combining modern comforts with local heritage. It has an internal courtyard, a Green House, a bar with a wide wine selection, 3 modular meeting rooms for up to 80 people, and a Fitness and Gym area. The Handwritten Collection launched in 2023 and opened 20 properties in the past year in cities like Paris, Malta, Sydney, Shanghai, Phuket, and Krakow. Italy's first was the Relais San Martino in Taviano. With about 25 hotels under development and over 150 projects in negotiation, the brand aims to be one of the fastest-growing globally.

🏨 Starwood, after a $13 billion merger with Marriott nine years ago, is set to re-emerge led by Barry Sternlicht, head of SH Hotels & Resorts. Starwood Capital Group confirmed a rebranding to Starwood Hotels in February, managing Baccarat, 1 Hotels, Treehouse, and a fourth brand in development. The new portfolio comprises approximately 40 hotels, with notable projects in Austin, Seattle, Crete, Miami, Manchester, Dubai, Maldives, Rome, and upcoming openings in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

🏡 Barry Sternlicht is set to relaunch the iconic Starwood brand by renaming SH Hotels & Resorts, of which he is the chairman. This move comes nearly nine years after selling Starwood Hotels and Resorts to Marriott for $13 billion. Starwood brand, retrieved by Sternlicht last year, will operate 1 Hotels, Baccarat, and Treehouse brands, with a development plan for around 40 properties worldwide. In Italy, the Baccarat Hotel Rome will be developed from the restoration of the Hotel Majestic, and the Baccarat Hotel Florence will be established near the Fiesole hills at the 14th-century Villa Camerata estate.

🏖 Emilia Romagna, Italy, saw an increase in tourism with over 40.5 million overnight stays (up 3.6%) and nearly 11.8 million arrivals (up 2.7%) in 2023 over the previous year. Foreign tourists' arrivals rose by 9.2% to 3,537,387 and their overnight stays by 9.8% to 12,171,605. Domestic tourism grew modestly by 0.2% in arrivals and 1.1% in overnight stays. Even compared to pre-pandemic 2019, there was a 1.6% increase in arrivals and a 0.5% in overnight stays. The Emilia-Romagna coast was the most popular destination with almost 6 million arrivals and 27.4 million overnight stays, while art cities recorded 3.7 million arrivals and 8 million overnight stays. Regional President Michele de Pascale and Tourism Officer Roberta Frisoni attribute this success to an integrated public-private strategy, aiming to further promote off-season tourism and improve international accessibility.

🏡 Juan Carlos Gonzalez, CEO of Avoris, considers Italy a strategic opportunity, with Travelplan and Welcombeds offering quality products and market adaptation. Eduard Bogatyr, tour operating Emea expansion director, aims to connect Italian airports like Rome, Milan, Venice (and more soon) to Caribbean destinations via Iberojet or partner airlines through Madrid. Avoris is focused on Italian travel agencies, offering B2B site Avoris Store, direct API connections, and Travel Compositor Marketplace. Giovanni Castelli leads the commercial team in Italy providing local support. Avoris plans to reveal future events across Italian cities and offers all-year flights to Punta Cana, Cancun, Havana, and San José, with summer operations to La Romana and Cayo Santa Maria in Cuba.