Langham Hospitality Group (LHG) is preparing to re-enter the Thai market after a hiatus of over 12 years with a new 6-billion-baht luxury hotel situated on the Chao Phraya River, owned by Rabbit Holding, a subsidiary of the BTS Group.
Bob van den Oord, chief executive of LHG, announced that the 78-room Langham, Customs House, involves the renovation of a historical building in Bangkok’s Bang Rak district.
Projected to open in 2026, this will mark Langham’s first managed property in Thailand in over a decade, following a previous venture managing a luxury hotel in Koh Samui.
Van den Oord noted that the room pricing would align with other upscale riverside hotels such as the Four Seasons and Capella, which continue to see robust demand.
Currently, the typical nightly rates for these riverside luxury hotels range between 20,000 and 30,000 baht.
Revenue is also expected to come from three restaurants and two bars, areas in which Langham hotels have traditionally excelled worldwide.
Van den Oord highlighted that the group operates 32 hotels across four continents and has 15 more projects in development.
In addition to this flagship project in Bangkok, the group plans to expand to other Thai resort locations such as Samui and Phuket, and into new key cities in Asia like Seoul and Kuala Lumpur.
The group’s goal is to operate 100 hotels within the next decade, with 60-70% of these located in Asia, and will include three other brands under its umbrella: Cordis Hotels, Eaton Workshop, and Ying’nFlo.
He suggested that the target might be reached sooner, potentially within five years, given that the company has secured 50 management agreements in China.
As a fully owned subsidiary of the HKEX-listed Great Eagle Holdings, which is also involved in property development and investment, Van den Oord mentioned the possibility of the parent company investing in its own hotels in southern locations like Phuket, although no definitive plans have yet been made.
Despite a slowing economy in China, where the group has many properties, there has been a noticeable impact as guests have become more cautious with their spending due to limited disposable income.
Nevertheless, investor interest in building new hotels in China remains high, with many seeking Langham’s expertise in property management.
