Megaworld building 5 luxury hotels in Cebu township

MANILA, Philippines – Megaworld Corporation, the property unit of tycoon Andrew Tan, is spending P8 billion to build 5 luxury hotels within its nearly 30-hectare township development called The Mactan Newtown in Cebu.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange on Thursday, May 8, Megaworld said the hotels, which would offer a total of 2,000 rooms, would cater to the growing number of tourists in Cebu.

The first 2 of the hotels – Mactan Belmont Luxury Hotel and Savoy Hotel Mactan Newtown – will rise along Newtown Boulevard of the township within 5 years. One of the other hotels would carry an international brand. 

“With the influx of more tourists to Mactan Island year after year, we hope to be able to offer more exciting facilities that will help further boost tourism in the region. Aside from local tourists, we hope to cater to foreign guests and visitors to The Mactan Newtown as well,” said Carmen Fernando, managing director of Prestige Hotels and Resorts Inc., the operator of Mactan Belmont Luxury Hotel and Savoy Hotel Mactan Newtown.

Aside from the hotels, Megaworld will also construct a 3-level lifestyle mall, Plaza Magellan, which is poised to become a major landmark of The Mactan Newtown.

“Plaza Magellan will be an iconic landmark not just for The Mactan Newtown, but also for the entire Central Visayas region, and the Philippines as a whole. We are already coordinating with the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) on how we can integrate this landmark to Mactan Shrine. We are also committed to help the government in the rehabilitation and improvement of the historic national shrine,” said Noli Hernandez, president of Megaworld Cebu Properties Inc.

Data from the Department of Tourism revealed that in 2013, 900,000 tourists visited Cebu, up 75% from the previous year’s level.

“We envision The Mactan Newtown as a major tourism hub of Cebu. The township is designed to be tourist-friendly, and our various offerings will also cater to the needs of the visitors of the island,” noted Hernandez.

Megaworld is allocating P30 billion to develop The Mactan Newtown in the next 5 to 7 years.

The Mactan Newtown will have 10 luxury condominium towers: 4 towers for 8 Newtown Boulevard, which is expected to be completed by first half of 2015; 3 towers for One Pacific Residence; and 3 towers for One Manchester Place.

All residential towers will offer pre-furnished units with magnificent views of the Hilutungan Channel on the east and the historic Magellan Bay on the north.

The Mactan Newtown already has 2 office towers and will add at least 5 more by 2020, to bring to around 150,000 square meters its total space. The offices can accommodate an estimated 45,000 workers in the information technology-business process outsourcing sector.

By 2016, Megaworld will open the Newtown School of Excellence, a state-of-the-art educational institution that will be supervised by the Lasallian Schools Supervision Office. – Rappler.com