PHUKET: Singapore-based Real Estate Equity Partners (Recap), an Asian-focused real estate equity fund, bought the Laguna Beach Resort last year for 723.6 million baht.
More than 350 staff were made redundant when the resort closed in May. Outrigger has not disclosed how much it will eventually pay for the resort, which is now being renovated.
Observers say it's likely that several more large Phuket resorts will change hands as the original brands from the 1990s are rejuvenated to meet 21st century competition.
Here's today's media release:
Outrigger Hotels and Resorts announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the 254-key Laguna Beach Resort, located in the renowned Laguna Phuket integrated resort on Bang Tao Bay in the northwest coast of Phuket, Thailand.
The transaction is scheduled to close in the first quarter of 2013.
''The Laguna Beach Resort will be one of the brightest jewels in the Outrigger portfolio and we look forward to completing the renovations and opening this resort early next year,'' said Darren Edmonstone, managing director of Outrigger Enterprises Group - Asia-Pacific.
''The addition of this iconic resort positions Outrigger extremely well in the growing Asia-Pacific region. The combination of the Laguna Beach Resort, with our existing management of the Outrigger Laguna Phuket Resort and Villas and the idyllic Outrigger Phi Phi Island Resort and Spa, creates exciting opportunities for guests who desire a luxury experience in premier leisure destinations in Asia.''
Originally opened in 1991, the Laguna Beach Resort is nestled between a tropical lagoon and the Andaman Sea.
The resort features amenities that include a spa, tennis courts, meeting and conference rooms, a wedding chapel, extensive water features and a resort pool.
Each of the 254 rooms features a private balcony. A fully-equipped kids club makes the resort a perfect spot for families.
The resort is just 20 minutes from the airport and Patong Beach, and 25 minutes from Phuket City.
The property is currently undergoing a major renovation of all of its rooms and public areas and is expected to reopen early in the second quarter of 2013.
The Laguna Beach Resort will be the second Outrigger property in Laguna Phuket, joining the Outrigger Laguna Phuket Resort and Villas, which it has managed since August 2009.
Since starting its Asian expansion a few years ago, Outrigger has grown its presence to include properties currently open or under development in Baliand Phuket, the two most popular resort destinations in Asia, as well as in Phi Phi island, Thailand; Sanya, Hainan Island, China; and Quy Nhon, Vietnam.
''After managing a property in the Laguna Phuket destination resort for nearly three years, we are confident that the Laguna Beach Resort is a perfect fit for our first major investment in the Asia-Pacific region.
''We look forward to continuing to expand the Outrigger brand to other major resort destinations as well,'' added Edmonstone.
''The Laguna Beach Resort is one of six deluxe resort hotels within the 1000-acre Laguna Phuket integrated resort, widely recognised as one of Asia's finest destination resorts, with five miles of pristine sandy beaches, the Laguna Phuket Golf Club, spas, restaurants and a retail shopping center.
Laguna Resorts and Hotels Public Company Limited, a public company listed on the Thai stock exchange, developed the Laguna Phuket integrated resort starting in the mid-1980s from the remains of an abandoned tin mine once thought to be too polluted to develop.
Laguna Phuket has since won numerous environmental awards as a result of that successful effort.
More than 350 staff were made redundant when the resort closed in May. Outrigger has not disclosed how much it will eventually pay for the resort, which is now being renovated.
Observers say it's likely that several more large Phuket resorts will change hands as the original brands from the 1990s are rejuvenated to meet 21st century competition.
Here's today's media release:
Outrigger Hotels and Resorts announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the 254-key Laguna Beach Resort, located in the renowned Laguna Phuket integrated resort on Bang Tao Bay in the northwest coast of Phuket, Thailand.
The transaction is scheduled to close in the first quarter of 2013.
''The Laguna Beach Resort will be one of the brightest jewels in the Outrigger portfolio and we look forward to completing the renovations and opening this resort early next year,'' said Darren Edmonstone, managing director of Outrigger Enterprises Group - Asia-Pacific.
''The addition of this iconic resort positions Outrigger extremely well in the growing Asia-Pacific region. The combination of the Laguna Beach Resort, with our existing management of the Outrigger Laguna Phuket Resort and Villas and the idyllic Outrigger Phi Phi Island Resort and Spa, creates exciting opportunities for guests who desire a luxury experience in premier leisure destinations in Asia.''
Originally opened in 1991, the Laguna Beach Resort is nestled between a tropical lagoon and the Andaman Sea.
The resort features amenities that include a spa, tennis courts, meeting and conference rooms, a wedding chapel, extensive water features and a resort pool.
Each of the 254 rooms features a private balcony. A fully-equipped kids club makes the resort a perfect spot for families.
The resort is just 20 minutes from the airport and Patong Beach, and 25 minutes from Phuket City.
The property is currently undergoing a major renovation of all of its rooms and public areas and is expected to reopen early in the second quarter of 2013.
The Laguna Beach Resort will be the second Outrigger property in Laguna Phuket, joining the Outrigger Laguna Phuket Resort and Villas, which it has managed since August 2009.
Since starting its Asian expansion a few years ago, Outrigger has grown its presence to include properties currently open or under development in Baliand Phuket, the two most popular resort destinations in Asia, as well as in Phi Phi island, Thailand; Sanya, Hainan Island, China; and Quy Nhon, Vietnam.
''After managing a property in the Laguna Phuket destination resort for nearly three years, we are confident that the Laguna Beach Resort is a perfect fit for our first major investment in the Asia-Pacific region.
''We look forward to continuing to expand the Outrigger brand to other major resort destinations as well,'' added Edmonstone.
''The Laguna Beach Resort is one of six deluxe resort hotels within the 1000-acre Laguna Phuket integrated resort, widely recognised as one of Asia's finest destination resorts, with five miles of pristine sandy beaches, the Laguna Phuket Golf Club, spas, restaurants and a retail shopping center.
Laguna Resorts and Hotels Public Company Limited, a public company listed on the Thai stock exchange, developed the Laguna Phuket integrated resort starting in the mid-1980s from the remains of an abandoned tin mine once thought to be too polluted to develop.
Laguna Phuket has since won numerous environmental awards as a result of that successful effort.
Outrigger needs the will and strong local support to remove the unsightly row of traders' shacks squeezed between the hotel and the beach. The beach is far from being pristine. Nothing will change until local authorities recognise the importance of keeping the beach clean and stopping encroachment. At present the authorities only want to stop hearing about these problems from the media - tourists don't need to be told - they will go somewhere else.
Posted by Local resident on July 25, 2012 06:24