The Quality Inn & Suites by the Parks in Kissimmee, Fla., was purchased for $10.6 million by Sarasa Hotels. (Photo: Choice Hotels)

The 113-key hotel, located close to Disneyland, was bought from Orlando-based company Rosemont Hotels in a deal executed by HVS Brokerage & Advisory.

Despite the fact that many hotel transactions and developments have ground to a halt amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis, there are always some stories of hope that breaks through the clouds that dominate much of the hospitality news cycle. We take a look inside the latest acquisition by Japanese hotel group Sarasa.

Where there’s a will, there’s a way

Ingenious thinking always finds a way to thrive in times of crises, and the current global upheaval is proving to be boosting people’s creativity in terms of staying afloat in business. One such instance is the collective power behind the sale of a Florida property, the Quality Inn & Suites by the Parks, to Japanese hotel group Sarasa Hotels.

The group bought the 113-key hotel, which is located close to Disneyland and other entertainment facilities and amenities, from Orlando-based company Rosemont Hotels for the sum of $10.6m. The deal was executed by HVS Brokerage & Advisory, who were praised by the Rosemont president for their nifty manoeuvring in order to make the deal happen.

Alex Ekbatani, president of Rosemont Hotels, said, “The HVS Brokerage & Advisory team did an excellent job marketing the hotel and focusing their efforts on international buyers. Through their industry relationships, a Japanese buyer was secured and closed the transaction in less than two months, despite all the recent challenges with coronavirus. Without their creative thinking, it would have been difficult to get this deal done.”

Banking on future demand

Ekbatani’s reasoning behind the sale of the property was that Rosemont was shifting its focus towards a different sector of the hospitality industry. Regarding the sale of the Quality Inn & Suites by the Parks, he said, “As our focus shifts to upscale hotels, it made sense to divest this asset, our first U.S. hotel.”

Potential buyers were plentiful, despite the shutdown of hotels, theme parks and water parks in the area. Eric Guerrero, managing director of HVS, said, “This was an excellent team effort leveraging three different HVS offices across the U.S. to sell this property. We had over 100 confidentiality agreements within a few weeks. Despite the financial markets in turmoil due to coronavirus toward the end of the process, we overcame several obstacles to bring it to a positive conclusion. Our national marketing campaign yielded a significant amount of buyer interest, given the high-quality asset and strong location.”

The hotel is just a short drive from the Walt Disney World Resort, Margaritaville and the ESPN Wild World of Sports, as well as a number of golf courses, two waterparks and various entertainment venues. The lockdown can’t last forever, and Disneyland is sure to be around for a long time to come, so the purchase of the Florida hotel is no doubt a sound investment for Sarasa Hotels.