Marina at The St. Regis Sanya Yalong Bay Resort (World Property Channel) “We continue to view China as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our business.” —Frits van Paasschen (e-Travel Blackboard) Frits Van Paasschen, President and CEO of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., is in Chengdu, China this week to participate in the Fortune Global Forum. He stated that the company will begin construction of new hotels, one every 20 days throughout China. Van Paasschen also said that 70 percent of the new hotels under construction and in development will be in second and third tier cities. This is not Starwood’s first time establishing hotels in China. Its presence dates back to 1985 with the Sheraton Great Wall Beijing as the first international hotel in mainland China.
