Tourism | Beijing Imperial Palace returns hotel license

The Beijing Imperial Palace Hotel

The Beijing Imperial Palace Hotel (formerly known as New Century Hotel) may be permanently closed following the property owners’ admission of their inability to solve certain issues raised by the government, which led to the hotel’s temporary closure in July 2016.

“Considering the imminent expiration of the temporary closure period on 22 January 2017, and the unfeasibility of completing renovation works before then, even if a renovation work permit approval is granted, Macau Hotel Developers Limited is forced to return its current hotel license to MGTO [Macao Government Tourism Office],” stated the property owners last Friday.

In the same statement, the Macau Hotel Developers Limited’s new management (under the leadership of Ng Man Sun) justified the decision based on “the severe problematic irregularities caused by, and inherited from, the former management of Macau Hotel Developers Limited, namely Chen Mei Huan and Xu Jiaoji.”

These were cited in the work permit applications the new management had requested from the Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau (DSSOPT) to proceed with the removal of all illegal structures, as well as other refurbishment works. The permits were not approved by the DSSOPT, which “raised concerns over ownership of the Hotel’s land property.”

Although the company acknowledged the impossibility of meeting any deadline, it stated that it does expect to undergo the required works and plans to “re-develop, renovate, and re-apply for the hotel license” as soon as its current problems are solved.

The statement followed a letter sent to MGTO on the previous day (January 12) requesting the cancelation of the license. The bureau acknowledged the request in a statement issued on January 13.

In July 23, 2016, MGTO closed the 599-room hotel due to “serious administrative irregularities which constitute threats to public safety.” The hotel then had 29 full time workers, as well as 30 housekeeping staff, working on either a part-time or full-time basis. 

The hotel holds within its premises the casino Greek Mythology, which operated until the end of 2015 under the gaming license of Sociedade de Jogos de Macau S.A. (SJM). It has been closed since end-2015 due to alleged “renovation works.”
In a recent development,
following several staged protests from former workers and staff members, the hotel was accused of fraud related to the overbooking of hotel rooms in September 2016. The incident involved more than HKD250 million in advance payments.

According to a group of representatives from travel agencies and tourism-related industries in Macau, Hong Kong and the mainland, the hotel had committed fraud by selling more rooms than it could physically provide and subsequently refusing to provide rooms for previous bookings. The case was forwarded to the Public Prosecutions Office for investigation.