IHG Signs Kimpton Hotel in Hua Hin, Thailand

(23 May 2022, 11:00 +07)  IHG has signed the fourth Kimpton Hotel in Thailand.

The former Imperial Hua Hin, which closed in May 2019, will be fully renovated before it opens as the Kimpton Hua Hin Resort in 2024.

The 124-room hotel will feature four restaurants and bars, a swimming pool, fitness centre, spa and a choice of meeting and event spaces.

Approximately a three-hour drive from Bangkok, Hua Hin is well established as a cosmopolitan weekend getaway destination for local residents.

Room at the Kimpton Kitalay Samui in Thailand

“AWC is confident that Thailand’s tourism industry has a strong long-term future, so we will continue to strengthen Thailand as one of the world’s most attractive destinations,” said Wallapa Traisorat, Chief Executive Officer and President - Asset World Corporation (AWC). “Kimpton will be a great brand to introduce to Hua Hin and elevate this lifestyle destination further. We’re confident that together with a global partner like IHG, we will continue to lift the benchmark of Thailand’s tourism industry and bring new distinctive experiences across Thailand for both domestic and international guests.”

The agreement is part of a long-term strategic partnership between IHG and AWC to jointly manage a portfolio of properties across Thailand featuring more than 1,200 rooms, including the highly anticipated 302-room InterContinental Chiang Mai Mae Ping which will open this year.

The deal also follows last year’s triple signing which included two hotels in Bangkok’s Chinatown - InterContinental Bangkok Chinatown and Vignette Collection Bangkok Chinatown, as well as Aquatique Pattaya, which is also part of IHG’s Vignette Collection.

“As the fourth Kimpton hotel to be signed in Thailand – following Kimpton Maa-Lai Bangkok, Kimpton Kitalay Samui and Kimpton Khao Yai – the resort will further strengthen the brand’s positioning in Thailand and around the world,” said Serena Lim, Vice President, Development, South East Asia and Korea, IHG. “IHG now has 30 hotels in Thailand and more than 30 in the pipeline.”

Thailand continues to be a strong growth market for IHG, and the signing of Kimpton Hua Hin Resort is the latest move by the company to grow its luxury and lifestyle portfolio in the country by 50%, as well as double its estate across all of its brands by 2026.

The Kimpton brand’s global expansion continues to move at pace, with 75 open hotels (as of 31 March 2022) and a 38-strong pipeline.

In 2022, the opening of Kimpton Kitalay Samui in Thailand and Kimpton Margot Sydney in Australia further added to the brand’s growing presence in prime leisure destinations with Kimpton Naranta Bali opening soon.