Carlson, Private Equity Fund Team To Develop Asia/Pacific Hotels

Carlson Hotels Worldwide plans to expand its presence in the Asia/Pacific region through an alliance with a $1 billion private equity fund that is targeted for hotel development, the company announced today.

The alliance with London-based Lotus Hotel Investment Fund will focus on both major business and leisure markets across Asia, particularly China, India, Thailand and Vietnam. Lotus provides capital both for new hotel construction and for refurbishing and rebranding existing hotels.

Carlson claims to be the international hotel group with the largest number of hotels in India and has more than doubled its presence in China in the past four years. Recent openings have included Regent Hotels & Resorts in Shanghai and Beijing.

"Over the last five years, Carlson Hotels Worldwide has built a fantastic foundation in Asia, and with this new alliance, we are poised to accelerate rapidly into the future," Carlson Hotels Worldwide's Asia/Pacific region president and managing director Martin Rinck stated.