Fusioni & Acquisizioni

🏖 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.

🏦 Hotelbeds, part of Hbx group, aims to launch an IPO on Spanish stock exchanges aiming to raise €750 million. Indicative offer price ranges from €10.50 to €12.50 per share, targeting a market capitalization between €2.66 and €3.03 billion. Final price determination set for February 10, with the official listing scheduled for February 13.

🏂 In Roccaraso, following an influx of tourists from Campania, a cap of 100 buses per day has been introduced. After disruptive tourist behavior escalated post-viral videos by a well-known TikToker, the Prefecture of L'Aquila implemented a filtering system on state road 17. Concerns over overtourism pertain only to non-skiers; Roccaraso remains a prestigious ski destination.

🏖 Giovanni Tamburi, through Asset Italia 1, exercises pre-emption rights to acquire the entire stake in Alpiholding from ‘Dal 1802’ and secures financial means for Alpiholding to buy shares in Alpitour from ‘Dal 1802’ and ‘Parabensa’. This raises Asset 1's stake in Alpitour to 94.661%, with the total pre-emption holdings representing 36.027% of Alpitour's capital. Alpitour is valued at €565 million. The move follows Alpitour's revenue report showing €2.1 billion, a 7% increase, an EBITDA of €138 million, and projected growth of +15-20% for the current year. Tip's potential total investment could reach €207.2 million.

🏠 Castello Sgr, through the Intracento investment fund, acquired a historic 22,000 square meters building on seven floors at Via Cavour, Rome. The deal is valued at €45 million. Francesco Salamone, co-head of Real Estate & Credit at Castello, highlighted international investor interest and strategic collaboration with Invel, a leading European operator. Shares were subscribed by a major Greek institutional investor and Invel Real Estate, Castello’s partner and Intracento's asset manager. Davide Madini, Invel's partner and country head for Italy, credited success to ongoing dialogue with Greek market lenders aiding efficient capital access.

🏡 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.

🏨 In 2023, Gruppo ABC, with 14 properties and over 800 rooms, partnered with traveltech startup Hotiday, yielding a €500,000 revenue increase and a 94% occupancy rate, up 4-7% over two years. Hotiday's model involves buying a selected number of rooms (5% of total capacity) and optimizing them with technology like virtual assistants and smart TVs. The partnership expanded in 2024 to seven ABC properties. The Italian hotel sector grew in 2024 with a 54% increase in sold nights and a 63% rise in economic value.

📌 Invel Real Estate & YellowSquare's strategic partnership involves a €200 million investment targeting Italy and Southern Europe to manage 5,000 beds. Invel has experience with over 2,000 keys in the Mediterranean, while YellowSquare has 20+ years in the industry. The new investment vehicle, 100% owned by Invel, will develop assets in Italy, Spain, Greece, and Portugal. The deal is expected to close by Q1 2025. YellowSquare hosted over 100,000 guests in 2023, generating €14.4 million in revenue, a 37% increase from 2022. Upcoming YellowSquare openings include Turin, Venice, and Bologna.