Highland Hospitality Corporation, a lodging real estate investment trust, or REIT, announced today that it has acquired the 332-room Tucancun Beach Resort and Villas located in Cancun, Mexico, for approximately $31 million, plus customary closing adjustments, or approximately $93,400 per room. The Company purchased the hotel from a private seller based in Mexico. Barceló Hotels and Resorts, a global lodging company based in Spain, will manage the beachfront property as an all-inclusive resort under the Barceló brand name.

Hotels group Accor S.A. said Wednesday its first-quarter revenue rose 5.6 percent on strong bookings at its budget hotels. Revenue between January and March notched €1.68 billion under the new IFRS accounting standards. Accor said that the comparable figure for the first- quarter of 2004 would have been €1.59 billion under IFRS.

The Sandals Royal Hicacos Hotel in Cuba has started offering wedding services for those who want to get married in an ideal environment. The service is included in the package bought by guests. Experts said that the 52-square-meter rooms offer a wide range of amenities for couples and newlyweds. The Sandals Royal Hicacos Hotel, in the world-famous beach resort of Varadero, is an excellent establishment for lovers, since it provides specialized services for couples. The five-star All-Inclusive hotel offers 404 rooms, five restaurants and six bars.

The St. Kitts-Nevis government has signed an agreement for the construction of a new multi-million hotel project on the island´s south east peninsula. It will have 250 rooms, a spa, several restaurants and up to 750 residential units. The Whispering Head Resort project will be constructed on 1,700 acres of private land, advanced Prime Minister Dr. Denzil L. Douglas after signing the agreement with Auberge Firesky Limited. The project will also boast other hotels, an 18-hole championship golf course and other amenities.

Dreams Resorts & Spas, a new, all-inclusive luxury resort brand launched this year by AMResorts, was recently accepted by Preferred Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. The three properties - Dreams Resorts & Spas in Puerto Vallarta, Cancun and Los Cabos, Mexico - had to undergo strict inspections before being approved into the esteemed program. This endorsement attests to the high standards of luxury, services, facilities and amenities at each of the three Dreams Resorts & Spas. The brand recently celebrated the grand re-opening of all three resorts following a multi-million dollar renovation program at each property.

American hotel chain Sonesta will hang out its shingle in Argentina by opening lodging facilities in ten cities as part of its expansion plan throughout the entire region, local newspaper Hoy reported today. The U.S. company has inked contracts to build a couple of hotels in Buenos Aires. Groubd-breaking works for one of those establishments are supposed to get cracking by the end of the ongoing year.