Blackstone Acquires Kyoto Hotel from Goldman Sachs Amid Japan's Tourism Rebound

According to Yahoo News, Blackstone Inc. has purchased a hotel in Kyoto from Goldman Sachs Group Inc., as Japan experiences a rapid rebound in tourism, boosting hospitality deals in the country. The 158-room Moxy Kyoto Nijo, a Marriott International Inc. brand, was acquired in an ¥8 billion ($54 million) deal that closed last week. The hotel, situated near Kyoto's historic Nijo Castle, opened in July 2021. A Blackstone spokesperson confirmed the transaction but declined to comment on further details, while a representative for Goldman Sachs also declined to comment. Japanese hotels have become some of the most popular real estate investments in the Asia-Pacific region this year. Investors are betting on the continued recovery of tourism as the yen weakens and are drawn to the ability of hotel operators to adjust room rates in an inflationary environment. As of August, foreign investors had spent $2 billion on hotel deals in Japan in 2023, surpassing any other sector in Asian commercial property and exceeding 2022's annual investment figure, according to MSCI Real Assets. Blackstone's head of Japan real estate stated earlier this year that hotels were at the 'top of the list' for acquisition priorities due to the business potential surrounding the tourism boom. The world's largest alternative-asset manager has acquired at least 12 hotels for its Japan portfolio in the past two years. The number of foreign visitors to Japan in October exceeded levels seen in 2019 before the coronavirus pandemic, with their spending from July through September also surpassing 2019 figures, and lodging accounting for the largest portion.