STARWOOD Hotels & Resorts Worldwide is set to grow its presence in China further, after surpassing its 100th hotel milestone in the country following recent openings in Ningo, Sanya, Yangzhou and Xian.
“About 70 per cent of our hotel openings in Asia this year are in China,” said Simon Turner, president of global development, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. The hospitality giant plans to open 15 more properties in China by year-end, in addition to the eight hotels already opened in 1Q2012.
The 3,863-room Sheraton Macao Hotel, Cotai Central – the largest Starwood hotel in the world – will be unveiled in mid-September, while Westin properties will be added to China’s second- and third-tier cities, including Ningbo, Xiamen, Changbaishan and Taiyuan. Starwood will also debut two hotels under its Luxury Collection brand – Twelve at Hengshan in Shanghai and The Royal Begonia on Hainan Island.
“We’ve signed 12 new deals in the first three months of 2012 and Greater China accounts for 44 percent of our global pipeline driven by an ever-increasing Chinese domestic travel market, as well as the fast-growing international inbound market,” said Frits van Paasschen, president & CEO, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide.
According to a press statement by the hotel group, China is now Starwood’s second largest market after the US, fuelled by the growth of its Sheraton and Westin brands.
