NEW HOTELS & PROPERTIES

The Hard Rock International group announced the opening of three hotels in Mexico under the protection of the Palace Resorts group, a company that acquired the rights to the brand for that country and plans to transform three of its ten hotels towards this concept.

According to the directors of Palace Resorts, its objective is to adapt properties in Cancun, the Riviera Maya and Banderas Bay. They also said they expect Hard Rock Cancun to open its doors in 2012 with 601 rooms, five restaurants, five bars, a spa, pool area and meeting rooms.

Also, in April 2012 they plan to start operations at the Hard Rock Vallarta, located in Banderas Bay, with 384 rooms, four restaurants, four bars, spa and swimming pools. While the Hard Rock Riviera Maya would finish its first stage of renovation by December 2012.

The officials also explained that the success of the "Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Punta Cana", located in the Dominican Republic, boosted the expansion of the brand to other destinations in Latin America, including Mexico and Panama, where the construction of the Hard Rock Panama Megalopolis is underway.

Hilton Hotels & Resorts said November 15 will be the opening date of its new branch in Bogota. The return of this brand to the Colombian capital ratifies Hilton Worldwide's strategy to expand its portfolio in Latin America and specifically in Colombia where there is already a hotel in Cartagena.

The first Hilton managed by the brand in Bogotá is located in zone G of the city 25 minutes from El Dorado International Airport; It has 15 floors and 245 rooms, including 13 suites with furniture and high-definition televisions.

Hilton Bogotá will offer around 1000 m2 distributed in services for various social activities such as the gym, the pool, a massage room and an executive floor to receive business travelers from all over the world.

Additionally, the lobby area will have an atrium that incorporates four meeting rooms, restaurant, gourmet café, bar and a lounge overlooking the pool which is surrounded by an outdoor hanging garden.

With the opening of the new Holiday Inn Cartagena Morros hotel, the hotel offer of the Walled City increases, as well as the presence of InterContinental Hotels Group in Colombia.

The new establishment, located in the north of the city four (4) kilometers from the Rafael Núñes International Airport, is made up of 140 rooms and 14 floors decorated in a fresh and elegant way, in tune with the contemporary atmosphere of the hotel and the location area.

The Holiday Inn Cartagena Morros has a total area of 372 square meters, has five conference rooms and two meeting rooms, business center, gym and swimming pool. A full-service restaurant called Blue Lounge, which offers Mediterranean and Caribbean cuisine. In the rooms guests can find cable TV, coffee maker, iron, desk, data port and complimentary wireless high-speed internet.

The property, of Sundacer S.A.S., a division of Conceptos Urbanos S.A., a real estate development firm, is led under a licensing agreement with a company of the InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG).

Alvaro Diago, IHG's COO for Latin America and the Caribbean, said the hotel has been created to offer guests a place where they feel safe and enjoy good service.

For his part, José A. Villegas, spokesman for Sundacer S.A.S said: "We are very happy with the inauguration of this Holiday Inn in Cartagena. Its location is very convenient for business travelers arriving at Rafael Núñez International Airport and tourists visiting the beautiful city of Cartagena."

The hotel company Hilton agreed with the development group HH Development to build five new hotels; approximately US$100 million will be invested in this project. The premises will be built in Mendoza, Zárate, Santa Fe, Neuquén and Pilar.

The Zárate hotel, which is already under construction, "will be one of the most ambitious developments in this series, since in addition to the five-star Hilton and 160 rooms, a convention center and a housing complex will be built. It is a property of 5.4 hectares, "said the representative of HH Development, Raúl Naftalí.

The construction of this hotel line is estimated to begin at the end of this year and it is expected that the respective openings will be made throughout 2013. This expansion of Hilton in Argentina will also bring other brands such as Hampton and Hilton Garden Inn.

In October, work will begin on the first of the 12 Bacatá Express hotels to be built in Colombia. This format is aimed at business tourists and aims to offer executives and professionals from different areas an extension of the office or their workplace.

The complex, which is expected to be open to the public in March 2013, will have 108 rooms, parking basement, restaurant, bar, swimming pool, conference room, gym and terrace. Its design will be framed in the Colombian Kogui culture and will include pictorial, gastronomic and ornamental samples of Colombian artists and designers.

According to Juan Carlos Galindo, general manager of OxoHotel, a consultancy that seeks to identify the operator of the chain, this type of hotel will not only worry about providing a quality service, but will focus on customers who prefer the modern and current. "The goal is to offer guests cutting-edge design and efficient, agile service."

Additionally, through efficiency in the use of energy and water resources, the project aims to reduce environmental impact, reduce operating costs and achieve LEED environmental certification.