Hotel Leelaventure promoters pledge stake

According to a report in The Financial Express, Hotel Leelaventure said three of its promoters have pledged 7.98 Crore shares representing a 21.13 per cent stake in the company with lenders. Hotel Leelaventure said in a filing to the BSE that Leela Lace Holdings, a promoter of the luxury hotel chain operator, has pledged 6.12 Crore shares representing a 16.21 per cent stake in the firm.

SIHRA welcomes luxury tax reduction

An unlikely move that comes as a post budget surprise has been welcomed by the South India Hotel and Restaurant Association (SIHRA). As per the announcement made by the Karnataka state government, 10 per cent luxury tax will be levied on actual tariffs as opposed to published rates and the 12 per cent luxury tax levied earlier. The declaration was made during the state interim budget that was announced recently.

A SIHRA official informed Hospitality Biz that the reduction in luxury tax was highly anticipated by south India's hotel fraternity, but the government needs to address the disparate tax structure problem, especially when the industry business is observing a relative slowdown. Likewise, the announcement also suggests a reduction in luxury tax declared on daily rent; from four per cent (room rate within Rs 500 to Rs 100) and six per cent for rooms priced between Rs 1000 to Rs 2000.

Further, the official also spoke about the issue regarding private membership club owners in Karnataka. Previously the state government had included these players under the hotels umbrella and levied luxury tax to the tune of 12 per cent.

Accor SA's Chairman and five Directors quit

Accor SA's Chairman and five other Directors have abruptly quit the company, apparently in protest over a plan to expand the role of CEO Gilles Pelisson. The majority of Accor's board—led by Colony Capital LLC and Eurazeo, which jointly hold about 30 per cent of Accor—wanted Chairman Serge Weinberg's role merged with Pelisson's. Weinberg quit in response, as did five directors: Baudouin Prot (chief of Accor shareholder BNP Paribas SA, France's biggest bank), Aldo Cardoso, Isabelle Bouillot, Roderic Lyne and Augustin de Romanet.

According to Bloomberg News, Weinberg said he and the other former directors were unable to carry out their duties after Colony and Eurazeo moved to unite Accor's top two roles. Pelisson now holds the title of CEO and Chairman of the board for Europe's largest hotelier.

According to the company's official statement, “The Accor Board of Directors met today to approve the resolutions to be submitted to the Shareholders Meeting on May 13th, in particular those concerning the renewal of the Board whose three─year term is coming to an end.

Puri launches new luxury boutique hotel chain

After over three decades in the industry, hotelier MPS Puri has embarked on his latest venture, the development and launch of Nira Hotels & Resorts, a London─based boutique luxury hotel management company. Nira has already signed two projects ── Nira Diwa in Manila, Philippines, and Nira Lahari in Kerala, India ── both of which will open in 2011. Additional projects in the pipeline include existing properties in Brazil, the Maldives and London.

“Nira Hotels & Resorts is a natural progression of my vision of a nomadic, bohemian─chic, hospitality brand. Here, luxury is about your way, a touch of our hand and the passion that binds the two,” says Puri, Chief Executive of Nira.

Nira is looking to expand its portfolio of properties in key global markets. The Nira Diwa in Manila will be located at Fort Bonafacio at the crossroads of business and entertainment in Manila. The hotel will consist of 154─rooms, a rooftop swimming pool, a fully─equipped gym on each floor, and an entire floor of meeting studios. Nira Lahari in Kerala, India, will be a laid─back luxury resort located on Vembanad Lake.

Marriott hotel revenue down 17 per cent : CFO

Room revenue at Marriott International Inc is running 17 per cent below year─ago levels, at the lower end of the hotel operator's recent forecast, according to Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Arne Sorenson. The company forecast last month that its revenue per available room would fall by 12 per cent to 17 per cent in 2009. Sorenson said that during the last months of 2008 and heading into 2009, Marriott has seen fewer new commitments for group bookings than in the past.

Marriott, which typically manages hotels instead of owning them, expects to open 30,000 new hotel rooms this year, near the 33,000 opened in 2008. The CFO also said that Marriott still expects this year to sell between USD 250 million and USD 350 million in notes tied to its time─share business.

Kurotel named again most excellent Spa Hotel in South America

Kurotel – Longevity Center and Spa has once again been recognised for excellence by readers, guests and inspectors of Conde Nast Johansens in the guide's 2009 Awards for Excellence. Kurotel was voted Most Excellent Spa Hotel in South America for the third year in succession.

“With an ever─growing list of the world's finest properties in the 2009 Recommended Hotels, Inns, Resorts & Spas – The Americas, Atlantic, Caribbean, & Pacific, the categories now cover 342 hotels, and so were very competitive. Conde Nast Johansens recommends only properties that meet our exacting standards, so the Excellence Awards winners represent the very best of the best,”said Lesley O'Malley─Keyes, Vice President & Publishing Director, The Americas.

Conde Nast Johansens is owned by Conde Nast Publications, a wholly owned subsidiary of Advance Publications and Conde Nast International, which publishes 72 magazines around the world, including Vogue, Conde Nast Traveler, House & Garden, Architectural Digest, The New Yorker, GQ, Tatler, Vanity Fair, Brides, Glamour and Wired.

MakeMyTrip introduces Holiday Homes for rentals for outbound tourists

Online travel agent, MakeMyTrip, now offers travellers the option of booking villas, serviced apartments and holiday homes spread over 60 countries across the world. Both leisure and business travellers can choose from over 110,000 options of vacation house rentals through a few clicks on MakeMyTrip.com. The website carries detailed information on location, property, facilities, activities offered and pictures of the property to enable travellers to make the their decision.

Travellers looking for a unique holiday can log onto the Holiday Homes section of the Hotel Booking section of the website. This option will appeal to vacationers who want to explore alternatives beyond a hotel room when planning their holiday. The serviced apartments will also serve as an option for business travellers who need to stay overseas for an extended period of time. MakeMyTrip offers holiday homes option across categories – ranging from budget properties (USD 70 a night) to luxury accommodations (USD 200 a night).

Millennium to open two hotels in Liverpool

International hotel group Millennium & Copthorne Hotels has completed a deal to open two new hotels in Liverpool's Central Village development. The Millennium and Copthorne hotels will be at the heart of the £160million Central Village joint venture between Merepark and Ballymore. The two establishments, which will create in excess of 360 new hotel rooms in the city, are prominently located within the new development.

The Copthorne Hotel Liverpool, will face onto Newington Square and the Boardwalk public spaces. The four─star deluxe Millennium Hotel Liverpool will be created in the refurbished and extended grade 2 listed Watson Building adjacent to the Lewis's building. The hotels will be aimed at corporate, meetings and leisure customers and will feature conference facilities and function space, a gym/spa, bars and restaurants for both residents and public use and car parking. Both hotels are scheduled to open in 2012 and create more than 200 new jobs in the city.

Goa Tourism Minister joins chorus against offshore casinos

According to a PTI report today, Goa's Tourism Minister Fransisco alias Mickky Pacheco has joined the chorus in protesting against the alleged illegalities by offshore casinos in the state. Pacheco on Monday said that there were gross violations happening on board offshore casinos in Goa.

"The provisions of the Goa Tourism and Trade Act will have to be invoked, if casino owners don't get their act right," stated the Tourism Minister, who is a NCP legislator. The BJP has begun a campaign against offshore casinos with Leader of Opposition, Manohar Parrikar alleging large scale illegalities in granting licenses to these casinos.

Goa has seven offshore casinos, all operating in the Mandovi River adjacent to the capital city of Panaji. "The offshore casinos have to be five nautical miles from the shore. All the casinos are releasing their sewerage in Mandovi River," Pacheco pointed out. The NCP legislator said that the Home Ministry which has given the gambling licenses to these vessels should monitor the operations.