Construction World June 2015

PROPERTY

The Radisson Red in the Silo District is on track to welcome its first guests towards the end of 2016. The new upscale lifestyle V&A WATERFRONT’S newest hotel Cape Town’s V&A Waterfront will soon be home to international hotel group Carlson Rezidor’s first new concept in Europe, Africa and the Middle East (EMEA). >

said Wolfgang M. Neumann, president and CEO of Rezidor. “We are delighted to announce the first Radisson Red in EMEA in a location as prom- inent as the V&A Waterfront – giving our new brand both local and global visibility, and being a perfect match with the brand’s values: Radisson Red is inspired by the trends and lifestyle of the Millennium and is totally tapped into modern, high-octane and high-tech travellers”, said Neumann. Martin Kearns, development executive at the V&A Waterfront, said, “The hotel will add to the mixed-use appeal of the Silo District, and will offer convenient and acces- sible accommodation to not only the inter- national business traveller, but locals alike.” The V&A is currently home to 6 five-star hotels, 2 four-star hotels and 2 three-star hotels. The Radisson Red will be the first new build since the One & Only in 2009. The newest of the Waterfront hotels is the Queen Victoria, the result of the refurbishment of an existing building in 2011. Carlson Rezidor currently operates five hotels offering almost 800 rooms globally, all under the Radisson Blu, Radisson Red and Park Inn by Radisson brands.

new research released recently by the World Travel and Tourism Council. Nestled between the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MOCAA) and the office and housing developments that will comprise the Silo District, the Radisson Red will be tech and design savvy, relevant and pragmatic, and focus on creating an experience that is truly guest-centric. The hotel’s offerings will include flexible, functional guest rooms, paperless check-in, and 24/7 deli and bar, and will total 235 rooms. Developed in partnership with dynamic international hotel group Carlson Rezidor, ‘Radisson Red’ is a new upscale lifestyle select brand in the group’s portfolio, and is perfectly suited to Cape Town’s most visited destination, the V&A Waterfront. “With more than 24 million visitors annually, we believe the V&A Waterfront is an attractive prospect for this new hotel,”

select concept hotel is being developed and funded by the V&A Waterfront at a total capital cost of R380-million. David Green, CEO of the V&A Water- front, said, “A concept as fresh, exciting and innovative as Radisson Red will perfectly complement the existing hotel offering at the V&A Waterfront. I have no doubt that the proposed innovations of the concept will be incredibly well received by business and leisure travellers alike and make their hotel experience unlike any other.” This hotel straddles the 3 and 4 star segments. According to a Pam Golding Hospitality Hotel Market Overview, the 3-star market in Cape Town is the best performing, with an annual occupancy of 71,5% while the 4-star market remains the largest in terms of room nights sold. The 3-star sector has seen uninterrupted occupancy growth, with minimal supply entering the market in recent years. While Cape Town is going into a period of intensive supply development, the number of rooms that would enter the market would still be marginally less than the supply that entered between 2007 and 2010, when almost all supply was positioned in the 5-star category. The report concludes that with the addi- tional supply, the market will enjoy almost uninterrupted demand growth, increasing to 71% in 2016. Ideally positioned for the business trav- eller, the leisure traveller is not discounted. South Africa’s tourism industry is expected to grow 3,4% this year, faster than the fore- cast 2% in the wider economy, according to

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CONSTRUCTION WORLD JUNE 2015