A Rare Boston Hotel Site Is Up for Sale

The DJIA fell 99 points, the Nasdaq was down 133, the S&P 500 fell 36 points, and the 10-year treasury yield was up .02 to 4.34%. Lodging stocks were modestly lower on the day.

Park Hotels & Resorts reported an earnings beat but lowered guidance for the rest of the year. Besides all the macro stuff impacting hotels, PK has construction disruption as well. PK bought back 3.5 million shares in 1Q for $45 million. RLJ Lodging Trust beat 1Q estimates while also reducing guidance. RLJ bought back $21 million worth of stock in 1Q and another $3 million so far in 2Q for a total of 2.7 million shares.

Broadstreet Global announced the official opening of the Element by Marriott Charleston Airport, a new extended-stay hotel in North Charleston, South Carolina. Developed in partnership with Contender, the multimillion-dollar project is operated by Hospitality America and features 123 guestrooms, flexible meeting spaces, a fitness center, and an all-natural saline pool.

The effort to reopen a historic Chautauqua Lake landmark in Bemus Point, New York, has taken a major step forward. Ownership of the Hotel Lenhart has officially been transferred to William and Jill Curry, doing business as Bemus Point Holdings, LLC. With the transfer of ownership complete, the effort to redevelop and reopen the iconic building can now get underway. The full renovation of the hotel will include the installation of an elevator and other ADA-compliant improvements, and the complete renovation of the guestrooms and common areas. The final project will result in a total of 40 guestrooms, an expanded dining area, an event space, a spa, and a pool. The total cost of the project, which includes the purchase price, is an estimated $9.9 million. Chautauqua Lake Hospitality, LLC will manage the property. The hotel is planned to reopen for the start of the 2026 summer season. Three adjacent guesthouses will be available for weekly rentals on a year-round basis, beginning in the 2025 summer season.

In Portsmouth, Virginia, the Rivers Casino Portsmouth will break ground this year on a new hotel, with completion expected by 2027. Once constructed, The Landing Hotel will have 106 rooms, including 32 expansive suites, a lobby bar near the reception area, private executive boardrooms, and a sundries shop. The eight-story hotel will sit directly adjacent to the casino and overlook the property’s water feature.

IHG Hotels & Resorts’ Crowne Plaza Foster City - San Mateo, located in San Mateo, California, has commenced a comprehensive renovation, with work begun in December 2024 and projected for completion in late 2025. The transformation will include new exterior signage and an enhanced arrival experience. All guestrooms and corridors will undergo a renovation, while public spaces, including the lobby and atrium, will be redesigned. The renovation will also introduce a new marketplace, social workspaces, and a CP Studio. Dining areas will see significant updates, with a full redesign of the Atrium Café and a modernized Clubhouse restaurant and lounge. Additionally, the hotel’s meeting spaces and pre-function areas will be re-imagined.

A site in South Boston where a 72-room hotel has been approved for construction is listed for sale. The seller is seeking $6.5 million for the site, which stands directly across from the back parking lot for the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center. The developer City Realty first proposed the hotel to city officials in 2022, and it was approved by the Boston Planning and Development Agency a year later.

Mesa West Capital provided $45.36 million in first mortgage debt to a joint venture of Reade Hotel Capital and an affiliate of Westport Capital Partners to acquire the 208-room Embassy Suites Nashville at Vanderbilt.

Global Highlights

The latest Latin America Construction Pipeline Trend Report by Lodging Econometrics revealed substantial growth in the region’s hotel construction sector. At the close of Q1 2025, the total hotel construction pipeline in Latin America stands at 715 projects and 112,598 rooms, marking an 18% increase in projects and an 11% increase in rooms year-over-year. At the end of the first quarter, there are 287 projects/49,570 rooms under construction in Latin America. Additionally, projects scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months stand at 190 projects/29,084 rooms, while those in early planning stand at 238 projects/33,944 rooms. Chain scales with the largest pipelines in Latin America at the Q1 close include the upscale chain scale with 139 projects/20,122 rooms, the luxury chain scale with 135 projects/26,440 rooms, the midscale chain scale with 128 projects/15,772 rooms and the upper upscale chains scale projects with 119 projects/22,567 rooms. Countries in Latin America with the largest number of projects in the pipeline at Q1 are Mexico, with 254 projects/39,163 rooms, Brazil, with 112 projects/15,134 rooms, and the Dominican Republic, with 78 projects/18,331 rooms. Key cities in Latin America with the largest construction pipelines include Mexico City, Mexico, with 26 projects/3,068 rooms; Riviera Maya, Mexico, with 16 projects/1,846 rooms; Lima, Peru, with 14 projects/2,192 rooms; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, with 13 projects/1,546 rooms; and Georgetown, Guyana, with 12 projects/1,664 rooms. Hotel renovation and brand conversion activity remains strong in Latin America at the end of Q1 2025, accounting for 137 projects/26,015 rooms. Construction starts in the quarter totaled 36 projects/5,353 rooms, while new project announcements totaled 58 projects/9,364 rooms. The first quarter of 2025 saw 8 new hotels/1,319 rooms open throughout Latin America. The LE new hotel openings forecast for the remainder of the year expects an additional 89 new hotels/14,761 rooms to open by year-end. Looking ahead, LE analysts expect new hotel openings in Latin America to increase in 2026, with 133 new hotels/20,345 rooms forecast to open.

The Villas at Half Moon is opening soon at the iconic Jamaica resort, a re-imaging of the resort’s Rose Hall Villas, with 19 new-look villas, according to Caribbean Journal. The property is part of the 400-acre Half Moon complex. Every villa ranges from five to seven bedrooms, with either oceanfront or garden views, private infinity pools, and expansive outdoor living spaces. Inside, they’re fully air-conditioned with in-unit laundry. Villa guests also have access to the full range of amenities at Half Moon Resort, including the golf course, tennis courts, spa, fitness center, and watersports. Each villa comes with its own set of golf carts for getting around the expansive resort grounds.

Europe Highlights

A city center hotel with a waterside location plans to increase its capacity by over 50 rooms. Supreme Hotels LLP has submitted a bid to extensively remodel and refurbish the Brigstow Hotel on Welsh Back, in Bristol, UK, increasing its room count from 116 to 174. The planning application outlines a series of changes to the existing building, including a reconfiguration of the internal layout and the formation of a lightwell within the existing structure. The proposals also include the conversion of part of the ground floor into a new commercial unit, which will be able to operate independently of the hotel.

EasyGroup has an agreement to sell its EasyHotel brand's share capital to Tristan Capital Partners’ discretionary fund Europe Property Investors Special Opportunities 6. An EasyGroup news release on this ‘recommended mandatory cash offer” stated approximately 189.5 million shares or 81% of the entire share issue, were being transferred at an aggregate price of €196.13 million. The deal includes the 17.38% of EasyHotel that is owned by the Haji-Ioannou family office, thus placing an overall value of the entire EasyHotel firm at approximately €242 million. According to the news release, EasyGroup will continue to provide the easyHotel.com brand to the new owner under license in return for a reasonable royalty. EasyHotel has 43 hotels in Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, with a total of approximately 4,900 rooms. Of its open portfolio, EasyHotel has 17 franchise hotels with approximately 1,200 rooms and 32 owned-and-leased hotels with approximately 3,700 rooms. In its development pipeline, EasyHotel has four hotels coming to Spain in 2025 and 2026, properties in Alicante, Barcelona, Madrid, and Valencia. In October, the firm opened the 111-room EasyHotel Marseille Euromed, and the company has another hotel opening in France in 2027. For more context, read Skift's Tristan Capital to Buy EasyHotel in Bet on Budget Travel.

Anantara Palais Hansen Vienna Hotel has emerged from a refresh and the official debut of the brand in Austria. The renovation has revitalized the hotel’s 152 guestrooms and suites, three dining concepts, and the Anantara spa. The hotel also features Vienna’s largest ballroom, executive boardrooms, a private reading room,  and eight additional meeting spaces. It's run by Minor International.