With more than $1 billion committed to
hotels under construction and expansion and renovation projects at
existing hotels, Puerto Rico is poised to accommodate its expanding
meetings business one year after the opening of the Puerto Rico
Convention Center.
The convention
center, which opened in December 2005, focused new attention on
Puerto Rico as a convention venue.
The facility, the
largest of its kind in the Caribbean and the most technologically
advanced, already has generated substantial economic impact for
Puerto Rico, according to Ana Maria Viscasillas, president and CEO
of the Puerto Rico Convention Bureau.
The convention
center's first year of operation netted 17 groups and a total of
14,050 attendees, which generated an economic impact of $4.3
million to Puerto Rico.
The momentum has
carried into 2007 with one of the largest conventions to date
arriving in August. The National Guard Association of the U.S. will
welcome 5,000 attendees from Aug. 21 to 28, representing 7,914 room
nights at hotels throughout San Juan for a potential economic
impact of $2.8 million.
The following are
updates on hotels under development in Puerto Rico:
" The beachfront Renaissance La
Concha Hotel & Casino in the Condado section of San Juan will
open this fall with 248 rooms, 15,000 square feet of meetings
space, a casino, three restaurants, an oceanfront pool and a
fitness center.
" The 300-room Condado Vanderbilt
Hotel is scheduled to open in the third quarter of 2008 with 20,000
square feet of meetings space, a gourmet restaurant, a bistro, a
spa and two oceanfront pools.
" Sol Melia plans to open a ME by
Melia, the company's new luxury hotel brand, in Old San Juan. The
350-room hotel will be located across from the cruise ship
terminal.
" The Paradisus Puerto Rico, an
hour's drive east of San Juan, will become a Gran Melia resort on
May 1, ending its run as Puerto Rico's only all-inclusive
resort.
" In the Convention Center District,
construction has begun on a 500-room Sheraton that will serve as
the anchor hotel for the Puerto Rico Convention Center. The $209
million hotel is scheduled to open in 2009.
The new Ficus Cafe
near the Convention Center offers open-air dining to convention
delegates and visitors. Hours of operation are Thursdays through
Saturdays from 5 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.
" Empresas Santana is investing $150
million over the next two years to build four properties in Puerto
Rico under Starwood-owned brands.
A 250-room Sheraton
in Ponce will become an anchor hotel for a 60,000-square-foot
conference center that is under construction. The property will
include a casino. The hotel and the conference facility is expected
to open in March 2009.
Other Empresas
Santana properties in development are a 200-room Sheraton with a
casino in Barceloneta on Puerto Rico's north coast; a 200-room Four
Points by Sheraton in Manati, also on the north coast, opening in
2010; and a 125-room Aloft in Isla Verde in San Juan.
The following are
recently completed and planned renovations and upgrades in Puerto
Rico:
" The Hilton Ponce Golf & Casino
Resort opened its expanded casino in October. The facility has
11,600 square feet of gaming and entertainment space and is the
largest casino in Puerto Rico's south coast region.
The $900,000
project included the installation of new slot machines, massage
chairs and a large, theater-type screen for sporting
events.
" The Four Points by Sheraton Caguas
Real Hotel, Casino & Country Club, located south of San Juan in
the mountains, opened a casino in November. Also new is event space
in three meetings rooms for groups of up to 100.
" Over the past year, the
Ritz-Carlton San Juan Hotel, Casino & Spa has opened two
restaurants. Il Mulino, specializing in northern Italian cuisine,
opened in August, and BLT Steak, overseen by French-trained
celebrity restaurateur Laurent Tourondel, opened in
November.
" In December, a casino opened at
the Best Western San Juan Airport Hotel & Casino at Luis Munoz
Marin Airport in San Juan. Games of chance include blackjack,
roulette, poker and slot machines.
The property, which
caters to business travelers, offers complimentary continental
breakfast, high-speed Internet and wireless connection, free local
calls, a business center, a fitness center and a lounge.
B.J. Bristol
restaurant, adjacent to the hotel lounge, will open this spring,
offering seating for 40 patrons.
" In December, the 382-room El San
Juan Hotel & Casino completed its guest room update, which
features upgraded bath and sleep space and new decor.
Still to come are a
refurbished lobby, new restaurants and upgrades to the hotel's
35,000 square feet of meetings space. These projects are part of a
$52 million property renovation.
A redesign of the
pool area will feature a new sound system, an aromatherapy
treatment area, new landscaping, poolside beds, umbrella pod areas
for lounging, hammocks, swings and multitiered beach
showers.
New tiki hut
cabanas will have wireless Internet access, plasma-screen TVs,
refrigerators and safes.
" The San Juan Marriott Resort &
Stellaris Casino completed the first phase of a $35 million
renovation, including an update of the 402 rooms in the tower wing,
the hotel's public spaces, casino, ballroom and lobby.
In August, the
property's 123 cabana rooms will undergo the same rigorous overhaul
with a planned reopening two months later.
" A $65 million investment at the
570-room Condado Plaza Hotel & Casino in San Juan includes the
refurbishment of the hotel lobby skybridge, public areas and
mezzanine-level casino, which will be completed in the
fall.
Opening this summer
is an outlet of the Strip House, a steak restaurant chain. It will
feature have private dining rooms and a banquet room in addition to
general seating.
" LXR Luxury Resorts & Hotels'
983-room El Conquistador Resort & Golden Door Spa east of San
Juan will unveil its $32 million conference center in
June.
The
22,560-square-foot ballroom will be the largest in Puerto Rico and
will be complemented by 16 breakout rooms.
Other property
enhancements at El Conquistador include design and decor updates to
all guest rooms, two high-speed catamarans to serve the resort's
private Palomino Island and the addition of a Strip House
restaurant.
The total
investment for the property, including the new conference center,
is $103 million.
" The Normandie Hotel near Old San
Juan and the Condado area will be reflagged as a W hotel in
December following major property enhancements that began this
month.
These enhancements
will include a new pool area, a Bliss-owned and managed spa and a
new signature restaurant.
" The Martineau Bay Resort in
Vieques will begin $18 million in renovations in August to become a
W hotel next spring.
" The Caribe Hilton's $14 million
property investment includes a gut renovation of the hotel's 107
guest rooms in the Garden Wing and its 305 rooms in the main
building.
Also, the lobby,
bar, entrance and shopping arcade will be updated. The project is
scheduled to be completed in December.
" In addition to the four new hotels
that will join its Puerto Rico portfolio, Empresas Santana is
investing $32 million to build 110 condo-hotel units at the Four
Points by Sheraton at Palmas del Mar in Humacao. That project is
scheduled for completion in early 2009.
" Wyndham is investing $36 million
to upgrade the former Westin Rio Mar in Rio Grande, an hour east of
San Juan.
Another $300
million will go toward the construction of 1,613 timeshare units on
the property. Construction will begin in January 2009 with
completion set for late 2010.
"
More than $390 million has been allocated for upgrades and
expansion projects at San Juan's airport, including $77 million for
a new charter flight terminal.
The facility will
become Terminal A upon completion late this year, adding seven
gates to the airport.
Among the
additional projects are a new landing strip and renovations to
American Airlines' Terminal D, including a $15.3 million on-site
shopping center.
The new 20,000
square feet of retail space will include a spa, a drugstore and a
bookstore.
To
contact reporter Gay Nagle Myers, send e-mail to [email protected].