Overseas travelers still have a strong desire to visit Japan, and we believe demand for accommodation in Japan will steadily return after the pandemic subsides due to dissemination of COVID-19 vaccines. The number of tourists visiting Kyoto in 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, was about 53.25 million, exceeding 50 million for the seventh consecutive year, and Kyoto is expected to recover more quickly than other areas.
Given this background, it was decided to jointly implement this project in Kyoto together with the Shangri-La Group, operator of a world-wide hotel chain.
The Shangri-La Group has five-star luxury hotels located mainly in the major cities of the Asia-Pacific, Middle East, North America, and Europe. The group moved into Japan for the first time with the Shangri-La Tokyo in 2009, and this project will be their second in Japan.
We will carry out development together with hotel operators, while contributing to society, showing concern for the neighborhood and site, and emphasizing sustainability, health, and safety.
This hotel will be located on the north side of Nijo Castle—registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994—with good access to the Kyoto Imperial Palace, other tourist sites in Kyoto, and the city center. It will be a low-rise hotel suited to Kyoto, blending in well with the subdued townscape.
After the hotel begins operation, the SAMTY Group will own it for a fixed period, and in the future we will also consider incorporating it into a hotel REIT our group is preparing to establish.
