Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide has sold The St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort in Miami to Al Rayyan Tourism Investment Company (ARTIC), a unit of Qatar’s Al Faisal Holding Co., for $213 million. Starwood will continue to manage the 207-room property.
The purchase price represents about $1.03 million per key.
“The sale of this trophy asset marks another step forward in Starwood’s pursuit of an asset-light strategy as we look to sell owned real estate at the right time to the right owners,” Simon Turner, president of global development, said in the statement. “We continue to see strong interest in our remaining assets from investors around the world.”
Miami continues to be a hot market for transactions. Earlier this month, New York City-based HFZ acquired the 309-room Shore Club for $175 million, or $570 per key.
Al Faisal has been busy of late. Last February, it signed purchase agreements on the Grand Hyatt Hotel and the Maritim Hotel, both in Berlin. With this agreement, the company’s portfolio of hotels in operation or under development has reached 25 properties across the Middle East and North Africa, Europe and North America.
In 2012, ARTIC, which is a wholly-owned Al Faisal Holding Company subsidiary, acquired the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel in Chicago.
The St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort is located at 9703 Collins Avenue, opposite the Bal Harbour Shops and near South Beach. The 27-story oceanfront property also featuress the St. Regis Bal Harbour Residences, branded private residences and condo-hotel units.
H.E. Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani, chairman of ARTIC, commented on this acquisition: "We are proud to add this iconic resort to our growing property portfolio; the St. Regis brand represents a symbol of uncompromising elegance and bespoke service. This acquisition complements our investment focus on world class assets in prime locations as we continue to expand our presence around the globe. We enjoy a strong relationship with Starwood Hotels & Resorts, are delighted to be working with them again and look forward to continuing this relationship in the future."
Sergio Rivera, co-president of the Americas for Starwood, added: "At the height of the economic downturn when nearly everyone stopped building on the high-end, we believed luxury would endure and continued with this ambitious project to create a spectacular luxury resort and residences. The St. Regis Bal Harbour was a success from the start, commanding record-breaking residential pricing and among the highest rates of all Miami Beach's top luxury hotels, and consistently selling out during peak travel periods."
For its part, ARTIC reportedly will continue to look for more deals, as its CEO claims. "We will continue to look for new investment opportunities that are in line with our strategy and will help us achieve our vision to be a global enterprise of uncompromising, superlative quality and the partner of choice in the hotel and hospitality industry," said Rutger Smits, CEO of ARTIC.