Radisson Hotel Cebu targets to open in June

CEBU, Philippines - The opening of the SM-owned Radisson Hotel Cebu is tentatively scheduled on June this year, which would translate to an additional of 400 five-star accommodation rooms in Cebu.

SM Prime Holdings Inc., president Hans Sy said in an interview that the hotel is currently 25 percent completed, in terms of interior finishing, and the company will turnover the hotel to the Radisson management team by March of this year.

The SM Group, through the SM Investments Corporation (SMIC) invested about P2.5 billion to rehabilitate the structure which was originally built supposedly for another hotel management partner.

According to Sy, Radisson Cebu Hotel will provide beyond five-star service accommodation requirement once it will open in the middle of this year.

 Aside from Radisson, Sy said that the company is also looking at building two more hotels at its 30-hectare property at South Road Properties.

The hotel plan is still part of this long term target, while the company will prioritize the construction of one of the top 10 largest malls in the world at SRP.

The company will invest at least P21 billion for Cebu in the next eight years, this after SM Prime Holdings sealed the deal with the Cebu City government to buy 30-hectares of the SRP.

Next to Metro Manila, Sy said Cebu is now becoming one of the top priorities of the company. Simultaneously, the company will also spend another P1 billion in establishing another shopping mall at the northern part of Cebu.

Radisson Hotel Cebu is owned by the SM Investments Corp. (SMIC), the hotel investment arm of the SM Group but will be managed and operated by the Carlson Hotels Worldwide-Asia Pacific.

Radisson Cebu Hotel will employ 340 staff to man hotel operations.

Situated across the SM City Cebu Mall, Radisson Hotel Cebu will cater 50 percent to the commercial market composed of the business and corporate clientele and another 50 percent for the leisure or travel market segment.

Radisson Hotel Cebu is still applying for DOT accreditation and when it finally opens on the middle of this year, the hotel will be the first Radisson Hotels & Resorts property to open in the country.

SMIC and Carlson also have agreements for the management of two SM hotels in the Mall of Asia complex in Pasay City and these will be the Regent Manila Bay and Radisson Manila Bay which are scheduled to open within 2010.

Carlson Hotels Worldwide-Asia Pacific is one of the world’s ten largest hotel operators and it runs five hotel brands in the region including the Regent Hotels & Resorts, Radisson Hotels & Resorts, Park Plaza Hotels & Resorts, Country Inns & Suites By Carlson, and Park Inn and it manages 9,000 rooms and has more than 10,000 more under development within the Asia-Pacific.— Ehda M. Dagooc