A $540 million deal to purchase seven hotels -- including the Hamilton Princess and Southampton Princess -- was closed yesterday.

And representatives from the new owners, Canadian Pacific Hotels (CPH), will visit the Island at the end of the month to meet with employees at both properties.

Canadian Pacific Limited (CPL) reported that CPH, its wholly-owned subsidiary, completed the acquisition of the Princess Hotels from Lonrho PLC yesterday.

The deal, which includes some $71 million of assumed debt, was first announced in June but was always subject to certain adjustments and a number of approvals -- including Lonrho shareholder approval -- which has now been received.

CPH chairman and chief executive officer, William Flatt, said: "The choice of Princess Hotels was a natural fit with our existing profile in terms of size, customer base and facilities.

"The Princess resorts share our commitment to providing five star service and luxury accommodation including award winning golf courses, `gold key' conference facilities and fresh, innovative cuisine.'' CPH president and chief operating officer Chris Cahill added: "We welcome the new Princess properties with the same dedication to their guests, their staff and the communities within which they thrive.

"The Princess properties will proudly carry the Canadian Pacific logo in the United States, Mexico and off-shore markets, paving the way for increased international exposure and extension of our overall brand awareness and market reach.'' Tourism Director Gary Phillips said: "I am delighted that the sale has now been consummated. Everything I have read about and experienced with Canadian Pacific leads me to believe they will be a welcome addition to the local hotel scene.'' Regional vice president of Princess Hotels, Bermuda, Stephen Barker said: "We are delighted to finally be part of the Canadian Pacific family.

"Canadian Pacific Hotels bring to the table an excellent reputation in the quality of their product and their staff relationships.'' This point was recognised by Mr. Flatt who noted: "The success of our hotels comes from our greatest asset -- all of our employees. To remain world class, we must believe in and support our employees, treat them with respect and provide them with the opportunities that they need to grow.'' CPH's vice president of communications and public affairs, Ann Layton, said CPH reps would visit the Island on August 24 and hold meetings with staff over the following two days.

And Human Resources vice president Carolyn Clark said she was looking forward to introducing the company's programmes which encourage personal and professional development to the 4,500 new employees over the coming months.

"We feel the service culture of the two hotel companies is a perfect fit, and are honoured that such prestigious properties will now operate under the Canadian Pacific flag.

"Similar to the chain's Canadian properties, the Princess properties have many long service employees who take pride in working for such distinctive hotels, providing superior service and amenities in elegant surroundings.

"We have a lot to learn from our new employees about what makes them happy and we have a lot to offer them in terms of building an even brighter future together.

"The key to successfully introducing the programmes is communication, communication, communication. Establishing trust and building confidence is of paramount importance to us as a company in building our future success.'' Mr. Parker noted that new opportunities would open up for employees at the hotels thanks to CPH's commitment to further growth.

Princess operates seven luxury resort properties, with over 3,000 rooms, including the Scottsdale Princess in Arizona, the Acapulco Princess and Pierre Marques in Mexico, the Royal Pavilion and Glitter Bay in Barbados and the pair of Bermudian properties.

CP ready to leave mark CPH is Canada's largest owner-operator of full-service hotels with more than 14,596 rooms and more than 15,000 employees. It also operates Delta Hotels & Resorts, which it purchased in May.

The acquisition takes CPH into the warm weather international resort business for the first time and positions it as the fourth largest premier resort operator in North America and the Caribbean with 18 properties.

Last year CPH was named Company of the Year by Hotelier magazine while in 1996, Ms Layton was nominated as Green Hotelier of the Year by the International Hotel Association, in recognition of the company's environmental programme.