HVS Monday Musings: Rebooting Inbound Tourism in India

By Mandeep S Lamba and Dipti Mohan
This article highlights some measures which can help India become a preferred tourist destination once again for global travelers in the post-COVID era.

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Browns Investments Acquires Luxury Hotel in Mauritius

Sri-Lanka-based Browns Investment PLC (“Browns Investments”) has entered into a Share Sale and Purchase agreement to acquire 100% of PL Resort Limited (“PL Resorts”) which owns a luxury resort in Mauritius. Operated by US-based Raddison Hotel Group, the 100-key Radisson Blu resort is valued at USD12 million. The purchase consideration of this acquisition was valued at USD3.7 million, after deducting the existing debt of PL Resorts. This move follows a series of acquisitions by Browns Investments, where the company has been aggressively investing in various overseas hotels over the past few years. These acquisitions include the Nasandhura Maldives, a luxury mixed-use development that consists of a 136-key hotel, 118 apartments, and a retail mall, and another 100-key property on the island of Bodhufarufinolhu, in Ari Atoll, Maldives. In addition, Browns Investments has also signed a shareholder’s agreement with Spain-based Barcelo Hotel Group (“Barcelo”) to develop Bodufaru Beach Resorts, a 470-key three-hotel complex located in North Male Atoll, Maldives. The total value of this development is estimated to be at USD150 million with Barcelo having a 33.3% stake. In addition, Barcelo has entered into a management agreement to manage five Browns Investments’ properties in Sri Lanka and Maldives. The Browns Investments’ portfolio is estimated to hold 2,000 keys across Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Mauritius.

Vingroup’s VinWonders Shop at Phuo Quoc United Centre Officially Launched

On 13 July 2021, Vietnam-based Vingroup officially launched the VinWonders Shop Phu Quoc (“VinWonders Shop”) project in its tourism-resort-entertainment complex, Phu Quoc United Centre. The gigantic complex officially opened on 21 April 2021 and has a scale of more than 1,000 hectares with a variety of tourist attractions and entertainment facilities. This includes a number of hotel brands, the largest theme park in Vietnam - VinWonders Phu Quoc, and the VinPearl Convention Centre. VinWonders Shop is in the theme park and features a Medieval European architectural design. It has three commercial subdivisions: Fairy Town, Greek Town and Palma Town. Located at the heart of the complex, Fairy Town will first open for sale this July with a limited number of 242 shops, divided into four sub-zones namely, Colmar Town, Garish Town, Grimm Square and European Avenue. This launch comes amidst plans to begin COVID-19 vaccination for Phu Quoc residents from 15 July 2021 as the island prepares to welcome back foreign tourists. Phu Quoc is Vietnam’s top tourist destination and is planning to trial a six-month vaccine passport programme starting this October, welcoming 40,000 visitors back onto the island.

Asset World Corporation and Nobu Hospitality Announces Joint Venture for Thailand Expansion

Thailand-based real estate group, Asset World Corporation (“AWC”), announced a joint venture with US-based hotel and restaurant management company, Nobu Hospitality (“Nobu”), to launch Nobu Hotels and Restaurants in Thailand. The joint venture involves an exclusive agreement where AWC and Nobu would oversee the launch of multiple Nobu hotels and restaurants in the area. The first phase of the venture involves the opening of the first-ever Nobu restaurant, which is slated to open in Empire Tower, AWC’s flagship mixed-used office development located in the central business district of Bangkok. Following this launch, AWC has stated that they would invest in one to two Nobu Hotels within the next five to six years. The partnership is expected to drive AWC's commitment and development plans for Empire Tower to be a hub that attracts business executives and travellers from all over the world. This is also part of its long-term business plan to expand their portfolio by partnering with experts in various fields worldwide to create value and unique offerings.

Lisboeta Macau To Open New Attractions

Lisboeta Macau, new resort development in Cotai has partially opened on 17 July 2021, with new attractions, shopping, and dining facilities. The three new attractions include Macau’s first GoAirborne Indoor SkyDiving, the Night Market at Lisboeta, and the 388-metre-long ZIPCITY Macau. ZIPCITY is the world’s first audio-visual zip-line attraction and offers a panoramic view of Cotai. The Lisboeta night market is situated next to the Macau Palace, a replica of the historic floating casino. Currently, the hotel portion of the development is still used for medical observations. Once fully opened to the public, the four-star hotel will include 820 guestrooms with three unique themes including the Lisboeta, Line friends’ CASA DE AMIGO, and Maison L’Occitane. The resort is developed by Macau-based Macau Theme Park and Resorts Limited, headed by Arnaldo Ho Yau Heng, the son of the late gaming tycoon Stanley Ho and legislator, and SJM Holdings managing director, Angela Leong On Kei. Other entertainment attractions which will open in the future include Emperor Cinemas, Guia Electric Karting Macau’s first mega indoor electric karting, an outdoor event space, as well as Lisboeta’s shopping mall.

Absolute Share Price Performance, as on 16 July 2021