The Sherwood Taipei (西華飯店) is to exit the market on Feb. 15, bowing to effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has wreaked havoc on lodging facilities heavily reliant on foreign business travelers.
The 320-guestroom hotel yesterday morning issued a statement to confirm the decision, which was made after it obtained preferential development terms to rebuild the 32-year-old facility on Section 3 of Minsheng E Road.
“While reluctant, the hotel arrived at the decision in light of lingering border controls and uncertainty over the virus outbreak,” the hotel said in a statement.
Photo: Lin Tsui-yi, Taipei Times
The hotel in 2020 filed an application to redevelop the premises and in November won a 40 percent award of future floor space, Sherwood Taipei board director Mark Liu (劉恆昌) told reporters.
The hotel has to halt operations to take advantage of the situation, Liu said, adding that it has not yet decided whether to develop luxury homes, office space or a mixed-use complex.
Recipients of favorable building terms must submit construction details within six months of approval.
Older facilities such as Leofoo Hotel (六福客棧) in Taipei, Ambassador Hotel Taipei (台北國賓飯店) and Taipei Fullerton Hotel East (馥敦飯店南京館) have also applied for the terms, citing similar headwinds.
International tourist hotels have been hit hard by COVID-19 restrictions, with no end in sight.
A boom in domestic tourism has been of limited benefit for facilities in Taipei, as most people prefer to vacation in southern and eastern Taiwan.
The Sherwood sits on a 1,050 ping (3,465m2) plot of land. It has 20 floors above ground and five basement levels.
Since it opened in 1990, the Sherwood Taipei has received guests of international renown such as former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, former US president George Bush, film director Ang Lee (李安), and Hong Kong movie stars Chow Yun-fat (周潤發) and Andy Liu (劉德華).
The hotel said that its customers could stay at the Marriott Taipei (台北萬豪酒店), which is run by the same management team.
People with unused hotel and restaurant vouchers can call the Sherwood Taipei to redeem them, it said.
Hamp Court Palace
Separately, Hamp Court Palace (寶璞大飯店) in Taipei’s Zhongshan District (中山) has converted into a quarantine facility right after its opening earlier this month.
The hotel of 129 guestrooms on Jianguo North Road (建國北路) is the latest adventure of United People Co (韋樺實業), a garment and bedding retailer that recently forayed into the hospitality industry.
The company spent NT$30 million (US$1.08 million) taking over the property and plans to pour another NT$200 million renovating the facility in preparation for border reopening, it said.
The company inked a 12-year lease from the property’s owner Yu-shang Development Co (御上建設) on expectation the hospitality industry would soon emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic.
This story has been updated since it was first published to add information about Hamp Court Palace hotel.
NOT JUSTIFIED: The bank’s governor said there would only be a rate cut if inflation falls below 1.5% and economic conditions deteriorate, which have not been detected The central bank yesterday kept its key interest rates unchanged for a fifth consecutive quarter, aligning with market expectations, while slightly lowering its inflation outlook amid signs of cooling price pressures. The move came after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady overnight, despite pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut borrowing costs. Central bank board members unanimously voted to maintain the discount rate at 2 percent, the secured loan rate at 2.375 percent and the overnight lending rate at 4.25 percent. “We consider the policy decision appropriate, although it suggests tightening leaning after factoring in slackening inflation and stable GDP growth,”
DIVIDED VIEWS: Although the Fed agreed on holding rates steady, some officials see no rate cuts for this year, while 10 policymakers foresee two or more cuts There are a lot of unknowns about the outlook for the economy and interest rates, but US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled at least one thing seems certain: Higher prices are coming. Fed policymakers voted unanimously to hold interest rates steady at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent for a fourth straight meeting on Wednesday, as they await clarity on whether tariffs would leave a one-time or more lasting mark on inflation. Powell said it is still unclear how much of the bill would fall on the shoulders of consumers, but he expects to learn more about tariffs
Greek tourism student Katerina quit within a month of starting work at a five-star hotel in Halkidiki, one of the country’s top destinations, because she said conditions were so dire. Beyond the bad pay, the 22-year-old said that her working and living conditions were “miserable and unacceptable.” Millions holiday in Greece every year, but its vital tourism industry is finding it harder and harder to recruit Greeks to look after them. “I was asked to work in any department of the hotel where there was a need, from service to cleaning,” said Katerina, a tourism and marketing student, who would
i Gasoline and diesel prices at fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.1 per liter, as tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week rose for the third consecutive week due to an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, as the market is concerned that the situation in the Middle East might affect crude oil supply, CPC and Formosa said in separate statements. Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — rose 3.75 percent to settle at US$77.01
RSS