A luxury 5-star Apulia hotel with 266 rooms and 110 suites under the Meliá brand in Polignano a Mare will be the heart of the new luxury tourist hub to be built on the northern coast of the Apulia region.

The Spanish hotel company, reports Il Sole 24 Ore, has in fact signed a management agreement with Andidero, the Bari-based  real estate financial group. Andidero is apparently conducting further talks with real estate investors and developers to complete the project which will amount to some € 80 million.

Work on the complex is due to start in the third quarter of 2022

The new luxury property will be about 40 minutes from Bari, which is the regional capital and the largest urban and metro area on the Adriatic (it also has the Karol Wojtyla International Airport) and will join the already substantial offer in the region. In fact international brands such as Belmond, Four Seasons and Rocco Forte have been investing for quite some time in Apulia. The new Meliá will join the San Domenico - Borgo Egnazia group belonging to the Melpignano family. Andidero's plan is to start the works in the third quarter of 2022, and then complete them before the end of 2024.  

Plans for an agricultural park and training facilities

The project involves an area of some 1.2 million square metres and in addition to the area for the hotel there are plans to develop an agricultural park on the sea with the recovery of some historical trullo houses and the realization of  a beach club. There are also plans to develop training facilities for tourism.

Private British equity fund Icon Infrastructure is investing in Sestriere. But will be become Italy’s Aspen? The project, which aims at replicating what has already been successfully done in winter destinations such as Vail or Aspen in Colorado, as well as in Calgary in Canada, will feature Sestriere’s ski facilities, hotels and mountain refuges, which are the true heart of the Vialattea ski area.

The company, owned by two private partners, was purchased from Fiat 

According to the Italian financial daily Il Sole 24 Ore negotiations for the acquisition of the Sestriere spa group are already well advanced. The company is currently owned by two private partners, who acquired it for €30 million from Fiat in 2006, at the time of the Winter Olympics and of the Turin motorcar company’s recovery plan under Sergio Marchionne. Behind the takeover are President Giovanni Brasso, with his Publi Gest that controls 65% of the group, and Alessandro Perron Cabus, who holds 35% through Abc.

The takeover should amount to around €100 million

The offer put on the table by Icon Infrastructure would be one of the most attractive, so much so as to amount, according to rumours, to a figure of around €100 million. In the pre-pandemic era, the Sestriere Spa group boasted a turnover of around €30-35 million annually, with a return on equity fluctuating between 20% and 30%. 

The deal is expected for the middle of January

Negotiations are currently in the due diligence phase with the conclusion of the deal is expected as early as the middle of this month. Icon currently has a portfolio of real estate assets under management of around €4.3 billion. It also recently launched a new fund, with a financial commitment of over €1.9 billion. 

Amedia Hotel Milano is the first Milan location for the Austrian brand, part of the Ahc International Consulting company founded by Udo Chistee in 1983.

Located in the Lorenteggio district, the hotel has 148 bright and soundproofed rooms, each with a photographic work featuring either the city of Milan or an animal theme. The photos, all of which are grey with a touch of red, were taken by the Berlin-based artist Gutsche Sikora who favours colourful, fictitious-realistic scenarios.

Business facilities and charging stations for electric cars

The Amedia Hotel Milano is also a business facility with a 24-hour reception, room service, restaurant, a meeting room for up to 70 people and a lounge bar which is also open to non-residents. The property is also dog friendly and a lot of effort is made towards sustainability, with private parking and a garage with charging stations for electric cars.

Metro, train and trams into the centre of Milan

Lorenteggio is a residential and commercial district, about half an hour from Milan’s central Piazza del Duomo cathedral square. The densely packed streets are lined with laid-back bars and pizzerias, shops and businesses. The area is well-connected to the centre of Milan, with several  Metro stops as well as a number of tram and bus lines. It also has some green areas like the walking paths in the leafy Giambellino Public Park.

“I believe in this city and its continuous development”

Amedia’s CEO Udo Chistee states: “I am very pleased to have invested in Milan as I firmly believe in this city, and its continuous development.  I never had any doubts about this choice, even during the difficult period we have gone through worldwide.”

The new Club Med resort will be in San Sicario, less than two hours from Turin, in the same Vialattea area of the Italian Alps as the Club Med Pragelato Resort, which hosted many events during the 2006 Torino Winter Olympics.

The resort, designed by architectural company Chiodin, will have a 180-degree views over the valley and 400 rooms, 25 of which will be suites. The investment is slated to be €110 million and construction will begin in 2022, with the opening planned for December 2024.

Sports, entertainment and gastronomic experiences

The aim is to build a modern resort with all-inclusive amenities, and the new San Sicario resort will be open both in the summer and winter, providing a variety of sports, including skiing, Nordic walking, snow sports, and yoga, as well as entertainment and gastronomic experiences. Guests can also enjoy an indoor pool, a spa with a sauna and a hammam, as well as excursions to see the sights in the surrounding area. The resort will also be a perfect alternative for families due to the extensive range of amenities and activities planned for children, including kids’ clubs for children from the ages of 4 months to 17 years old.

60 ski instructors and 35 guides 

In terms of economic impact on the region, the San Sicario project is planned to generate a €10 million annual income, 400 direct and indirect jobs, and will have 60 ski instructors daily throughout the season. During the winter, and again in the summer there will be around 35 guides, One of the goals of the new property is to attain the Breeam certification for the construction of environmentally sustainable complexes

A totally new look, a revamped mini club and the affiliation to the Dolomiti Walking Hotel brand. This is how the Hotel Monzoni in Pozza di Fassa, in the northern Italian Trentino region, which is part of the Garibaldi Hotels Group, presents itself this winter. Renovations, which started in 2019 and involved the entire property from the plant engineering to a new design, have now ended and the hotel has a new look with colours reflecting the changing seasons in the mountains, and natural materials and modern furnishings in the rooms and public areas.

The Hotel Piaz in the Val di Fassa is now open all year round 

"We chose to do the renovations over several years so that we could still be operational without causing inconvenience to our customers," says Garibaldi Hotels’ General Manager Fabrizio Prete. “In addition to the Monzoni, the Hotel Piaz and the Fratazza, all located in the Val di Fassa, have undergone seasonal adjustments this year, with the Piaz now open all year round, a move that has already shown encouraging results.”

“Repeaters come several times a year”

"The work done in recent years has brought back many repeaters who appreciate the scenery and our services and choose to stay in our facilities several times during the year. This winter season we worked very well with groups in the programming stage, and we have an excellent level of occupancy for the coming weeks."

Resorts, hotels and clubs throughout Italy

Garibaldi Hotels started in 2013 in Ostuni in the Apulia region, the brainchild of a team of young entrepreneurs. It is a young and dynamic company with a range of hospitality from resorts to hotel and clubs in some of Italy’s most beautiful destinations With the company mission expressed in the pay-off All the Italy you want, there are 12 Garibaldi Group properties in Apulia, Sicily, Sardinia, Trentino Alto Adige, Latium and Umbria. 

The Oetker Collection’s first Italian hotel will open its doors in April on the island of Capri. Built in 1882 La Palma is the oldest hotel on the island and, having been acquired by the Reuben Brothers, it has been completely renovated under interior designer Francis Sultana. 

All rooms and suites have balconies or terraces

Located a few steps from Capri’s legendary little Piazzetta square, La Palma Hotel will have a restaurant and a bar on the terrace, a beach club, a new swimming pool, a spa, a fitness center and three boutiques, with the kitchens helmed by chef Gennaro Esposito. During the renovation the number of rooms was radically reduced from 80 to 50, and now all the rooms and the 18 suites have a balcony or a terrace.

“The new La Palma hotel will be a tribute to La Dolce Vita”

"I can't think of anything more exciting than opening a hotel in one of the world's most beautiful and glamorous destinations," says Oetker Collection CEO Timo Gruenert. "The new La Palma hotel will be a tribute to La Dolce Vita and its strong connection to this island. We have revitalized the hotel to make it the new social epicenter of Capri, without forgetting, as with all of our hotels, our commitment to creating timeless hospitality, marked by a strong sense of family and genuine kindness."

A favourite haunt with artists

Hotel La Palma started out as the Pagano Inn, a name that recalls the first owner, the notary Giuseppe Pagano who was famous for hosting artists, poets, writers, painters and musicians in his private villa. In return for his hospitality his illustrious guests left indelible signs of their passage by painting the walls, composing poems, playing music and singing in what was known as the Artists' Hotel. 

Frescoed ceilings and playful colours

In the foyer of the renovated property there is a manifesto designed to pay homage to the artists who once graced the historic building, while the frescoed ceilings by Roberto Ruspoli and the blues, greens and turquoises throughout create a unique and stylish ambience. 

Castello sgr continues its commitment to the world of hotel real estate. According to a report in Il Sole 24 Ore, the asset management company led by Giampiero Schiavo, and controlled since June 2020 by the U.S. group Oaktree Capital Management, will invest a further €400 million. This will go to acquire eight hotel properties with a total  2,000 rooms, with a further 100 million to be spent on  upgrading and redevelopment.

Four Points by Sheraton Milan Center becomes a Marriott Tribute

The news comes after Castello sgr acquired the Four Points by Sheraton Milan Center through its Star fund in December. The transaction is believed to have closed for some €60 million, to which another eight million will be added for a light refurbishment in view of the rebranding of the 329-room property which will become a Marriott Tribute.

Investments in hotels are soaring again

Castello sgr currently manages a portfolio of Italian hotel assets worth €800 million, some 37 properties with 5,000 rooms , including the latest acquisition. This portfolio is well distributed throughout Italy, with 30% in  the north, 39% in the central regions and 31% in the south and on the islands. The acquisition of the Milanese hotel was one of the last in a year that has seen investment in the hospitality sector return to rise after the difficulties of 2020. Latest estimates show that the volume of investments in Italian hospitality should close 2021 with a total of €1.5 billion, a significant rise over the previous year even if still far from 2019’s record €3.2 billion.

Following the completion of the first phase of a series of restyling and expansion works, the Club Med Pragelato Sestriere, which is west of Turin, has just reopened. For a total investment of some €20 million by the property’s owner, Hsbc Assurance vie, the public areas, the La Tana and Piemonte restaurants, the Club Med spa by Payot, and the fitness facility, have all been remodelled and enlarged. With work due to start after the end of the next winter season on 17 new chalets, which will then total 88, there will then be a total of 388 keys, of which over 130 are at least 70sqm in size.  

Skiing, snowboarding and snowshoeing

Tucked away in a peaceful valley at 1,600 metres Club Med Pragelato Sestriere resembles a pretty hamlet of ski chalets set around a village fountain. At this all-inclusive family resort guests can ski or snowboard down the Olympic slopes of the Via Lattea and Sestriere ski domains and also enjoy snowshoeing through winter landscapes with snow-dusted pines.

“We have every chance this will prove to be a good season”

"Despite the strong impact of the health crisis on tourism Club Med has continued with its development programmes, which include 16 new openings by 2023,” says Henri Giscard d'Estaing, the Group’s president during the official presentation of the new Pragelato resort.  “We never stopped work, and we opened new resorts like the Club Med Charlevoix in Canada and La Rosière  which is in the French Alps between Italy and France. We perceive the desire of families from all over the world to rediscover what has been lost due to the pandemic, and I think we have every chance that this will prove to be a good season.”

This is the Rome debut for the Hilton Tapestry Collection brand. The American group has in fact signed a franchising agreement with G&W Invest, owner and manager of the property, for the partnership with the Cosmopolitan. After some renovation work the hotel will be rebranded Cosmopolita Rome Tapestry Collection by Hilton and will consist of 76 rooms, a panoramic rooftop, a gym and an area for small business meetings.

“A perfect location for the first of this upscale Hilton brand in Rome”

CEO of G&W Invest, Walter Pecoraro explains: “The Cosmopolita Rome will be our second hotel in partnership with Hilton and the first in Rome. We have been in the hospitality industry for over a century and have been the owners and managers of this hotel for 25 years. It is a perfect location for the first of this upscale Hilton brand in Rome.”

Close to the Coliseum and the old centre

Located in the heart of the historical centre of Rome and in the outstanding surroundings of the central Piazza Venezia square and close to the Forum and the Coliseum, the new Rome property is the latest addition to the Tapestry Collection, which is rapidly expanding in Europe. 

Plans for eight more Tapestry Hilton hotels in Italy

The brand's first hotel on the continent opened this year in Spain, while another four will be arriving soon in France, the United Kingdom and Portugal. Globally, the brand currently boasts a portfolio of over 65 properties. But the plans of the Hilton group in Italy do not end here. “In the coming years we will open eight new Italian hotels, significantly expanding our presence in key cities and locations,” confirms Patrick Fitzgibbon, Senior Vice President EMEA.