CLI cues 6 new hotels

MANILA, Philippines — Cebu Landmasters Inc. (CLI) will continue expanding in the hospitality sector in the next two years, with at least six new hotels in the pipeline as it works to beef up its portfolio for the launch of its real estate investment trust (REIT).

Jose Franco Soberano, chief operating officer of CLI, told reporters in a recent media briefing that they would open three new hotels this year—Citadines Davao, Radisson Red and Abaca Resort Mactan.

READ: CLI to make Luzon debut in 2026

By 2026, they will launch Sofitel, Mercure and Magspeak Mountain Resort and Villas in Cebu.

“It’s a nice portfolio because our strategy is a mix of international brands and organic brands that we created,” Soberano said.

A lot more rooms

These upcoming projects will jack up CLI’s current hotel room key count to 2,700 from around 500.

The Visayas and Mindanao-focused developer currently operates four hotels, three of which are in Cebu City. So far, Citadines Bacolod is its only project located outside the country’s second-largest metropolis.

This comes amid CLI’s plans to launch its REIT in the next two to three years.

CLI chief finance officer Grant Cheng earlier said that they first wanted to “establish a proper track record” before riding on the REIT trend.

The company also recently announced plans to spend P12 billion to make its Luzon debut next year, beginning with a horizontal development south of Metro Manila.

CLI has nearly 130 projects across 17 key cities in the Visayas and Mindanao.

Its portfolio includes residential developments, offices, hotels and resorts, co-living and coworking spaces, mixed-use projects and large-scale townships. —Meg J. Adonis