Wyndham Acquires Dolce Hotels for $57 Million, Expanding Meetings Business and European Footprint

Date: February 2015

Location: 24 properties across meetings and resorts properties in locations such as Aspen and Napa Valley in the U.S. and other international destinations, including Barcelona, Brussels, Munich, Frankfurt, Paris and Provence,

Name: Dolce Hotels & Resorts – mainly four & five star

No.of Keys: 5,500

Seller: Dolce International, founded by Andy Dolce in 1981. He was a major player in US associations where he was responsible for venue bookings and couldn’t find the ideal conference venue, so proverbially started his own.

Buyer: Wyndham Hotels, headed up by Geoff Ballotti, Wyndham Hotel Group CEO; this acquisition boosts Wyndham’s portfolio of managed properties by 40 percent, which highlights Wyndham’s asset-light strategy.

Price per Key: US$10,364

THPT Comment: Following IHG’s acquisition of Kimpton Hotels, the is consolidates the Big Six going after smaller such hotel groups, especially expanding their meetings focus.

First Seen: The Skift