It looks like King & Grove have finally made a move on the third property in their rapidly-growing portfolio of US boutique hotels. With emmediate effect the Hotel Williamsburg will be known as King & Grove Williamsburg, with a bunch of other changes on the way: a fresh re-design of the rooms, plus a new restaurant and bar concept. Hopefully, something beyond the whole farm-to-table gimmick, which is not only played out, but will also be featured in King & Grove Williamsburg’s new neighbor, the Wythe.

Alila Hotels & Resorts is to open two new properties in Indonesia in 2014 – Alila Villas Bintan and Alila Seminyak in Bali. Ground-breaking ceremonies have been held at both properties as work gets underway. Both are scheduled to launch in 2014. Set in a beautiful hillside location on the idyllic Lagoi bay on Pulau Bintan only 45 minutes by ferry from Singapore, Alila Villas Bintan will become the third addition to the Alila Villas brand, which has established itself as a leader in design and style at award-winning sister properties Alila Villas Soori and Alila Villas Uluwatu in Bali. Alila’s second project, Alila Seminyak, will become the fifth Alila managed property on the island, joining Alila Villas Uluwatu, Alila Villas Soori, Alila Manggis and Alila Ubud. Alila Seminyak will be set in the hippest hub of Bali and is planned to be a prime beach frontage resort comprising of 72 suites, 69 residences, extensive events space, a Spa Alila and restaurants. The resort will be distinguished by its innovative design and architecture based on a rice paddy field concept, with green spaces dominating the interiors and exteriors to create both a natural and stylish oasis.

Interstate Hotels & Resorts announced the opening of the 252-room Holiday Inn Express Amsterdam-Sloterdijk Station in the Netherlands. The hotel is the second of a nine-hotel portfolio currently being developed jointly with TVHG Budget Group Beheer BV (TVHG) across the Netherlands under Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express or Hampton Inn by Hilton flags. Located adjacent to Sloterdijk Station, one of the main train stations of Amsterdam, the Holiday Inn Express offers convenient access by rail to Amsterdam City Center, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport and Amsterdam RAI Convention Center. Hotel amenities include extensive lobby level lounge spaces for work or relaxation, a lobby bar, complimentary Wi-Fi and continental breakfast served daily.

IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) has signed an agreement with the Rayadah Investment Company to open two new hotels in Riyadh’s King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD), including the first Hotel Indigo in the Middle East. Hotel Indigo KAFD will feature 225 rooms, an all-day dining restaurant, a speciality restaurant and a lobby lounge café. The hotel will also include a business centre, three meeting rooms, fitness facility, swimming pool, secret garden and a double-height royal suite with a panoramic balcony that soars over KAFD. KAFD, announced in 2006, is a 400-acre development north of central Riyadh. The 32 million square feet district will be a major financial centre in the Middle East and is part of Riyadh’s overall economic diversification plan. KAFD will include premier office space, housing, a financial academy, Saudi Arabia’s stock exchange, GCC Central Bank, seven museums and other recreational facilities.

Meliá Hotels International announced that it signed a 12-year lease agreement with Union Investment Real Estate, Hamburg, Germany, to manage a new-build hotel in Paris set to open in the fourth quarter of 2014. The 369-room Meliá Defense is to be located in a 20-story building located in the La Défense business district.

This summer, Hong Kong-based Amanresorts will open its 25th property overall and its fourth in Europe. The group’s latest addition to its portfolio, Amanzoe, is located near to the town of Porto Heli on Greece’s Peloponnese peninsula. Amanresorts is also planning to open a number of luxury villas at the site in the near future. The 38-suite resort takes its name from the Sanskrit-derived word for peace aman and zoe the Greek word for life.

Two name changes this week. Still the same management, but the Diva Resort in the Maldives is now Lux* Maldives and the The Tides Riviera Maya is now Viceroy Riviera Maya (see the blog item January 12).

Two prestigious city palaces on Vienna’s Schubertring will be transformed into the The Ritz-Carlton, Vienna and will open in the second quarter of this year. Schubertring is part of the Ringstrasse which encircles the old town of Vienna and houses the Vienna State Opera and the Museum of Fine Arts. Ritz-Carlton, Vienna will have 202 five-star rooms.

The Peninsula, Hong Kong, one of the world’s iconic hotels will be refurbishing all of its 297 rooms. The two-phase operation already started in the Peninsula Tower, so not to disturb the guests in the original Peninsula building, and will be finished by August 2012. The last phase, that of the original Peninsula, will last untill early 2013.

China’s HNA Group has given up bidding for Indian’s DLF Group Amanresorts portfolio, Reuters reports. DLF Group was seeking bids in the range of $4m. Reports say that biddings came not higher than $3m-$3.15m and DLF is stalling the sale.

Hotelier Andre Balasz of The Standard Hotels, The Mercer and Chateau Marmont fame also lost out on his bid to acquire New York’s Temple Court Building. The 1883-vintage, nine-story palace at Beekman Street  near NYC’s City Hall, encloses a breathtaking, glass-topped central atrium and is ringed on each floor by Victorian iron balustrades. The building was vacant for a decade, but became the talk of the real estate world after the owners removed the drywall and uncovered the majestic interior. The building is to be turned into a 200-room hotel. Balasz is said to have lost his $5m deposit after struggling to get the project financed.

What is opening in New York is the Out NYC, the city’s first gay-oriented hotel. The hotel’s website is taking reservations from March 1 and the renderings look very good indeed.

After it was forced to shut down a decade ago, the 1875 Grand Hotel in Birmingham (UK) may once again rise to its iconic status as Birmingham’s premier hotel. Property company Hortons has revealed plans it will reopen the Grand as a five star, 152 room hotel  before Christmas 2013, if plans are approved by the Birmingham City Council.

In London, Edinburgh-based Apex Hotels will open its third London property on April 1 (no joke) on famous Fleet Street. The 184-room Apex Temple Court will be located in a 12th century building which Apex acquired from professional law association Honourable Society of the Inner Temple.

It is rumoured that Dubai-based Jumeirah Group is close to signing a management agreement with Turkish business woman and entrepreneur Demet Sabanci Centindogan for its first hotel in Turkey: the Pera Palace Hotel in Istanbul, which was acquired by Ms Çetindogan at the end of last year. The 115-room property is Turkey’s oldest hotel; it opened in 1895 to provide luxury accommodation to travellers after the city became the last stop on the legendary Orient Express. In April 2008, the hotel closed for a US$30 million restoration project and reopened in September 2010.

In Miami Beach Kimpton Hotels has (re)opened the Surfcomber Hotel. Kimpton brands itself as a boutique operator. With 186 rooms we think the Surfcomber is a bit to big to be boutique, but goodlooking it certainly is. With size comes a range of five-star facilities and a location right on the beach on South Beach’s Collins Avenue.

DLF to HNA. Indian real estate giant DLF is finalizing its sale of the Amanresorts group to China-based HNA Group. HNA is reported to be one of the five bidders for the 25-unit ultra-luxury group and is expected to pay $449 million for it. Aman is a household name in the boutique hotel operators market and considered a real trophy assett.

Scandic, the Nordic countries biggest hotel operator has been opening some very interesting hotels lately in Stockholm and Oslo. Maybe Stavanger, Norway, will be on the list to in 2013 when a second Scandic is open, a 210-room “architectural unique” property near the city centre.

For the W Jakarta we will have to wait untill 2015. Located in the Ciputra World Jakarta 2 mixed-use complex, the W Jakarta will feature the well-known W Hotels amenities. It will have 300 rooms and will be Starwood’s 12th W hotel in the Asia-Pacific region and 60th worldwide.

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA (LVMH) is reported to be among the companies interested in acquiring Amanresorts International, according to a Bloomberg story today that cites two people with knowledge of the matter. Spokespeople for Paris-based LVMH, the world’s largest luxury-goods maker, and DLF declined to comment on the deal, according to the report.

Indian real estate developer DLF Ltd., which has owned the 25-unit Amanresorts since 2007, has received at least five non-binding bids, including those from private-equity firms, between US$400 million and US$450 million, one of the sources said.

New Delhi-based DLF is seeking to raise as much as 100 billion rupees (US$2.2 billion) through asset sales to repay debt, according to its latest annual report. It may sell part of its stake in the Amanresorts to a “strategic partner,” Executive Director Saurabh Chawla said in late July. The company plans to keep the Amanresort in New Delhi, two people with knowledge of the matter said.

LVMH said in April 2010 it plans to open two luxury property developments on islands in Oman and Egypt under the Cheval Blanc brand. The first Maison Cheval Blanc hotel was built by LVMH Chairman Bernard Arnault at the French ski resort of Courchevel in 2006.