LEADING international lodging owner-operator The Ascott Ltd. (Ascott) announced on Thursday it is set to open the Citadines Cebu City next month, ushering its expansion plan in the domestic market, particularly in the Visayas and Mindanao (VisMin) regions.
The Ascott Ltd. Deputy Country General Manager Philip Barnes said this is the Group’s first property outside of Metro Manila, joining the three of their Apart’hotel properties, namely Citadines Salcedo Makati, Citadines Millennium Ortigas Manila and Citadines Bay City Manila.
“Cebu has been a destination we’ve always wanted to get into. It’s a fascinating destination. The city is great. The corporate world is really booming [here],” he told reporters during their media briefing held at the Rambla restaurant in Makati City.
In partnership with leading developer Cebu Landmasters Inc. (CLI), Citadines Cebu offers 180 rooms (mixed of studio and one-bedroom), with all the conveniences of a modern home and the services of a hotel.
Each unit boasts of its own serviced kitchen, wireless Internet access, and even a built-in-washer and dryer. Also, it offers concierge and housekeeping services, while a 24-hour reception and guest-service team guarantees safety and security.
Topnotch amenities include a pool, a gym and a launderette. The property’s food and beverage partner is Abaca, a premier food establishment in Cebu. It also has conference and meeting facilities catered specifically to business travelers.
Ascott sees a great interest in the Queen City of the South, especially among young professionals and business travelers, who combine their business and leisure goals at the same time.
“Citadines is like Armani Exchange,” Ascott City Manager Susan Salcedo said. “It’s our young or youthful brand.”
She said this up-and-coming serviced residence forms part of a whole complex that also includes their own hotel brand called lyf, a residential building, offices and retail establishments.
This latest development will soon pave the way for Ascott’s footprint growth as it plans to also penetrate further the VisMin areas, particularly Bacolod, Iloilo and Davao in the next few years.
“We actually feel the need to expand rapidly in the Visayas and Mindanao. There’s such an untapped area in that aspect,” Barnes said.
In Iloilo, Ascott’s redevelopment project with the 120-room Amigo Hotel is scheduled to open by end of the year. Tied up with Cebu Landmasters Inc., it will manage two Citadines brands in Bacolod (180 rooms) and Davao (200 rooms) as they open in 2021.
“So in VisMin, we’re envisioning four Citadines, one Somerset, and a lyf. The lyf in Cebu is one of the five confirmed lyf [brands to open here and abroad],” Salcedo said.
While the company has already signed up and operated 23 properties in the Philippines, Barnes is bullish to “do more than 30” for the next year or two.
“I think we aggressively feel that we can sign a few more this year,” he said, adding they now operate eight of the signed properties. “Citadines [Cebu] will be our ninth and Iloilo will be our 10th. The rest will come over the years as we progress. Hopefully, we hit that number within the end of the year or by the second quarter of next year.”
Ascott, a wholly owned subsidiary of real-estate firm CapitaLand Limited, is a Singapore company that has grown to be a leading accommodation owner-operator globally.
It has over 58,000 operating units in key cities of the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, as well as about 42,000 units which are under development, making a total of more than 100,000 units in 670 properties.