Hyatt completes the purchase of ALG Group (~100 new properties coming to the World of Hyatt)

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It was back in August that Hyatt confirmed that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of Apple Leisure Group for $2.7 billion and we were told to expect the deal to close in the fourth quarter of this year. Well, true to its word, Hyatt has now announced that the deal is done and that approximately 100 new properties have now been added to its portfolio.

Following Hyatt’s absorption of the Apple Leisure Group properties, World of Hyatt members can now expect to be offered “the largest collection of all-inclusive luxury resorts in the world” across Europe, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America and it sees Hyatt entering European markets in which, right now, it does not have a foothold.

This is what Hyatt had to say as it announced the completion of the deal:

“Hyatt is doubling its global resorts footprint through the addition of ALG’s AMR Collection brand portfolio, which comprises approximately 100 hotels and resorts operating in 10 countries, as well as a pipeline of 24 executed deals in the Americas and Europe. As a result, Hyatt now offers one of the largest collections of luxury all-inclusive resorts in the world, including new destinations for Hyatt such as Acapulco, Curaçao, the Canary Islands, Menorca and St. Martin. Through this acquisition, Hyatt has added properties in 11 new European markets and expanded its European brand footprint by 60%, strengthening Hyatt’s growth potential in a critical region for global leisure travel demand.”

Hyatt has highlighted that Spain’s Balearic Islands will be back on the World of Hyatt map (good news for those of us still lamenting the loss of the Park Hyatt Mallorca) and that Greece is being added to the Hyatt map too, but a quick look at the portfolio the hotelier has purchased reveals that the Caribbean and Mexico are where most of the new properties are located.

Links to the various brands that make up Apple Leisure Group’s portfolio:

• Dreams Resorts
• Secrets Resorts
• Breathless Resorts & Spas
• Zoëtry Wellness & Spa Resorts
• Alua Hotels & Resorts
• Sunscape Resorts & Spas
• Now Resorts & Spas
• AMR Independent Properties

Interestingly, Hyatt continues to say that through the purchase of Apple Leisure Group it now has a footprint in “11 new European markets”, but my search of the group’s portfolio when this deal was first announced and further search today has failed to reveal any European properties outside of Spain and Greece.

Also, the press release we saw from Apple Leisure Group when this deal was originally announced clearly states that “ALG’s hotel portfolio consists of over 33,000 rooms operating in 10 countries” so, as the portfolios that I’ve looked through already cover 9 counties (Mexico, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Panama, Curaçao, Jamaica, St Martin, Spain, and Greece), that only leaves one country unaccounted for and no explanation as to where all the other European markets are. It’s a mystery.

Following today’s announcement, Hyatt has also confirmed that it plans to integrate all of the AMR Resorts collection into the World of Hyatt program in 2022 (~100 properties) with the chance for members to earn and burn points at all these properties on the way.

In addition, Hyatt has also said that it’s looking at how it can incorporate Apple Leisure Group’s “Ultimate Vacation Club” into what it offers World of Hyatt members, but as this is currently a membership program offering preferred rates at properties in Mexico and the Caribbean, it’s not immediately obvious where or how this will fit in.

Lastly, it’s worth noting that the purchase of Apple Leisure Group also means that Hyatt is now the proud owner of ALG Vacations (a charter flight and packaged vacations provider), Amstar (a company offering ground transfers and tours with private and luxury options in Mexico and the Caribbean), and Trisept Solutions (a provider of “industry-leading” travel technology), but Hyatt hasn’t said what plans it has for these subsidiaries.

All three of these entities appear to offer products and solutions that we don’t usually associate with Hyatt so it will be interesting to see they will end up being sold off (that’s my best guess) or if Hyatt will try to incorporate some or all of them into its business model (I’m having trouble working how this could work effectively and economically). I guess we’ll just have to wait and see what 2022 brings.

Bottom Line

Hyatt has announced that it has completed its purchase of Apple Leisure Group for $2.7bn. The acquisition sees Hyatt adding approximately 100 new properties to its portfolio and will see the hotelier expanding significantly, in Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, Spain, and Greece.

Featured image: Dreams Lanzarote courtesy of ALG