New Sheraton Hotel to rise in Pasay

MANILA, Philippines - Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc. has signed a deal with Resorts World Manila to open a new hotel in Pasay City.

“We signed the letter of intent with Resorts World for a Sheraton Hotel in their project near the airport this morning,” Matthew Fry, Starwood Hotels and Resorts senior vice president for acquisitions and development in Asia Pacific said in an interview yesterday.

Under the deal, Starwood Hotels and Resorts will be the operator of the new hotel, while the other party will be the owner and developer.

The Sheraton Hotel, which will open in two to three years, marks the re-entry of the brand to the country as there used to be a Sheraton Hotel in Manila.

The hotel, which will have 350 rooms, would be constructed in the lot beside the Star Cruises building in Resorts World Manila.

Fry declined to give details on the amount of investment to be made citing that the funds for the construction would come from the developer of the hotel.

Starwood Hotels and Resorts president for Asia Pacific Stephen Ho said in the same event the new hotel would employ a minimum of 350 employees.

“The number would depend on the number that would be needed for food and beverage, for the restaurants,” he said.

Starwood Hotels and Resorts is moving to establish its presence in the country, citing demand from its members for its hotels here.

“For outbound travel to the Philippines, many of our members are asking if we have hotels here. There are many indicators that there is demand for our hotels that is not being met in the market,” Frits Van Paasschen, Starwood Hotels and Resorts president and chief executive officer said.

Given favorable economic fundamentals, the government’s promotion of the country as a tourist destination, as well as increasing travel to and within the country, Van Paasschen said the Philippines is seen to present opportunities for the hotel business.

“The Philippines is the largest market where we don’t have a presence right now and it points to opportunities here,” he said further.

Fry said that even as work for the new Sheraton Hotel has yet to start, the firm is looking to open hotels in other locations such as Manila, Makati, Fort Bonifacio in Taguig and Cebu.

“We are in discussions with other parties both here in Manila and elsewhere in the country,” he said.

“We are not yet ready to communicate these plans... In five to six years, we could have a number of brands present here,” Van Paasschen said.

Starwood Hotels and Resorts’ other hotel brands are St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, W, Westin, Le Méridien, Four Points by Sheraton, Aloft, and Element.

Starwood Hotels and Resorts currently has 1,112 properties in nearly 100 countries and has 154,000 employees.

Resorts World Manila is the first integrated tourist hub in the country. Behind it is Travellers International Hotel Group Inc., a joint venture between Alliance Global Inc. and Genting Hong Kong.