Former Hotel Miramar bought for $160m to get revamp and new name

Wee Hur, Aravest behind purchase of the property in Havelock Road

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The 344-room Hotel Miramar Singapore in Havelock Road, which ceased operations at the end of October, will be refurbished and open as DoubleTree by Hilton Singapore Robertson Quay in the fourth quarter of 2026. ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN

(ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN)

Singapore-listed Wee Hur has taken a stake in a new fund managed by Singapore-based asset management firm Aravest that bought the former Hotel Miramar Singapore in Havelock Road for $160 million.

The price works out to about $465,100 per room.

The transaction marks Wee Hur's maiden hotel investment. Its fully owned subsidiary, Wee Hur Property, has a "significant minority stake in the fund and is a development partner of the asset", according to a joint statement by Aravest and Wee Hur.

The 344-room hotel, which ceased operations at end-October, will be refurbished and open as DoubleTree by Hilton Singapore Robertson Quay in the fourth quarter of 2026.

DoubleTree by Hilton is an upscale full-service brand and the property in Havelock Road will take the number of hotels managed by Hilton in Singapore to six.

"Ideally, we hope to open in advance of the F1 race next year," said Aravest chief executive officer Moses Song.

Aravest has a stake in the fund and more investors are expected to participate in due course.

The acquisition - Aravest's first foray into the Singapore hospitality market - is part of the group's plans to build an Asia-Pacific hospitality portfolio, Mr Song told The Business Times.

Aravest - owned by Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing Co (SMFL) - has a management portfolio in Asia-Pacific with assets under management worth US$9.3 billion (S$12.1 billion), with key investments in office, hospitality and living, logistics, retail and sustainable infrastructure.