Minor Hotel Group ' s Anantara

Peace Haven

Tangalle , on Sri Lanka ’ s southern coast , opened in late 2015 .

travelers that make up an estimated 15 % of visitors . Hong Kong-based Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts last year opened a 300-room resort in the southern district of Hambantota and is close to completing a luxury property in the capital , with 466 rooms , an office tower , residences and high-end shopping mall .

Hilton has seven projects in the pipeline . In April it announced an agreement with local partner Melwa Hotels & Resorts to manage three Hilton and three DoubleTree hotels . In June , it signed a management agreement with local partner KDU Adventures to manage a DoubleTree resort in Weerawila on the southern coast , near popular wildlife sanctuaries . The hotel is scheduled to open early next year ; the Melwa properties are slated to open between 2019 and 2025 .

“ We want to be where our guests and global travelers want to be , whether for leisure or business ,” Guy Phillips , senior vice president , development , Asia and Australasia at Hilton , said in an email . “ Sri Lanka offers unrivalled potential for travel and tourism that has so far been largely untapped .”

COLONIAL RENOVATIONS Other hoteliers are staking out different slices of the market . Sri Lanka-based Cantaloupe & Co . is developing boutique hotels and is looking to renovate

Source : Lodging Econometrics

colonial-era properties . Cantaloupe operates two hotels on the south coast and plans to open two southwest coast beach properties this year , says Nadeem Rajabdeen , director of marketing and sales . Cantaloupe recently teamed with one of the country ' s oldest engineering firms to secure a 105-year-old former department store in a historic district of Colombo that has been earmarked for tourism development . The partnership plans to restore and develop the property into a 50-room luxury boutique hotel .

Cantaloupe also is bidding for two more historic properties in the area . “ There ’ s a movement to protect our heritage ,” Rajabdeen says .

Others say there ’ s only so much room for 4- and 5-star properties . Bali , Indonesia-based Le Pirate is looking to build three or four 3-star resorts over the next few years . “ We want to be the first to get into undeveloped areas and create a vibe ,” says Louka Taffin , managing director at Le Pirate . The operator is targeting millennials , whom it believes are looking for experiences and prefer a room in the US $ 75 range — nothing fancy . “ They ’ re surfing , backpacking or canoeing ,” Taffin says , “ and they ’ re steering away from conventional hotels .”

There ’ s a lot of segmentation , he adds . “ Sri Lanka is a diverse culture waiting to be opened up .”

Rezidor Hotel Group hired what it says is the industry ’ s first Saudi female general manager , Maram Kokandi . Kokandi will manage the Park Inn by Radisson Jeddah Madinah Road in Saudi Arabia , set to open later this year .

On the milestone : " I hope that I can be an inspiration to many other Saudi women looking to develop a career in hospitality ." On engagement : " As women we need to step out of our comfort zones and challenge ourselves ... Our society needs us , our country needs us , and the country ’ s economic development depends on female participation ."

On company culture : " Men play a hugely important part in creating the right culture and environment to support women in a company . ( At Rezidor ) we do not look at this as a women issue . Rather , it is about gender balance ."

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