Owner Bruce Mckenzie puts Wyndham Garden Guam up for sale
BY MAUREEN N. MARATITA
Journal Staff
The Wyndham Garden Guam in Ypao Road in Tamuning is taking purchase offers, according to its owner.
Bruce McKenzie, owner and director of the property, told the Journal his reason for selling has nothing to do with economic issues in Guam. “The reason I’m selling — the only reason — is I’m 77 years old.”
The hotel is uniquely positioned in the market, he said. “We’re the only property in the mid-price range that’s branded.” The advantage of that, McKenzie said is, “A brand is an avenue for requirements.”
Owner Bruce McKenzie at the Wyndham Garden Guam on Oct. 6
As to the asking price, he said,” Hotels as a rule have sold ‘per key,” or per room. “We have 145 rooms; we price the property at $125,000 per key.”
McKenzie confirmed the property is fee simple. “We have no tax issues, no property lien issues; we have no mortgage,” he said. The hotel has 40-plus employees, some of whom are long-term employees.
The Wyndham has never been dependent on tourist guests, McKenzie said. “Our hotel doesn’t work on back-to-back tourists.” The hotel caters primarily to business, regional and military travelers. McKenzie said the Wyndham also receives guests through the Medical Referral Program in the Northern Mariana Islands.
Aside from the occasional downturn, McKenzie said occupancy is healthy. “We are always at 70%, sometimes higher.”
Every unit in the 145-room Wyndham is a suite, including two penthouse suites, and the property boasts all-concrete walls.
During COVID, the Wyndham was the first hotel to operate quarantine facilities for the Government of Guam’s mandatory quarantine for on-island arrivals testing negative. “We took all the money we made — it was approaching $2 million — and we revamped it into renovating the rooms,” he said. All but the penthouse suites were renovated. After the renovation the hotel reopened in early 2022.
The Journal toured the property, which is in pristine condition. It offers a conference room, other meeting spaces, a restaurant, a gift shop, a laundry, and a swimming pool and a gym and BBQ area and patio to the rear of the hotel. A separate spa on the property also draws customers, additionally drawn by a healthcare discount, depending on their insurance.
“All the leases will carry over,” McKenzie said.
The Wyndham is a Sentry Hospitality LLC property. For further information on the sale, contact Valerie Carbullido, director of sales and marketing for Sentry, on 1-671-483-3092.
Bruce McKenzie and Keith Markowski are directors of Sentry; Sunardi Li is its president. Sentry is a member of the Guam Visitors Bureau and the Guam Chamber of Commerce and has an active corporate giving program. It also raises funds through its popular iCare4 wine dinners program, which holds events at the Capitol Kitchen on Airport Road.
The property rebranded from an Aqua Suites to a Wyndham on Dec. 1, 2015, according to Journal files. The Wyndham originally opened as a Ramada Inn. McKenzie said it rebranded as a Wyndham Garden as the Wyndham was a slightly higher level brand.
Sentry purchased the Imperial Suites from J&G Enterprises Inc. in June 2008, according to Journal files, and announced it would brand the 142-suite hotel as Ramada Suites Guam and undergo renovations.
Sentry also is the managing company of the 116-room Grand Plaza Hotel in Tumon, owned by the Chen family.
McKenzie first came to Guam in 1976 and began in the rental car business with seven cars.
He accumulated interests in various business lines, with an auto dealership and hotel properties among them. “Through the years I’ve taken on partners,” he said. He has sold assets in recent years, but told the Journal, “I’ve never had a fire sale for anything.”
"Guam has been so good to me. I don’t have any regrets,” he said. Also owning property in the U.S. mainland, McKenzie intends to maintain his trips to Guam.
As to how he will spend his free time, he said, “I’m never at a loss for something to do. I travel a lot; I don’t see that changing.”
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts Inc. is an American hospitality company based in Parsippany, New Jersey. It describes itself as the largest hotel franchisor in the world, with 25 brands in 95 countries and 9,100 locations. The group has an awards program for Wyndham properties worldwide.
Other brands include Howard Johnson by Wyndham, Ramada by Wyndham, Travel Lodge by Wyndham and Days Inn by Wyndham. The group reported strong second quarter results and is due to have third quarter earnings call on Oct. 23. See the chain’s site for details.
Guam and Saipan have seen various properties change hands in recent months.
The Pacific Star Resort & Spa was reportedly purchased in March for $33 million by Georgia-based Eastern Contractors Corp. after previous owner Marianas Properties LLC declared bankruptcy.
The 420-room Westin Guam Resort is currently being brokered by Colliers on behalf of Seoul-based IGIS Asset Management. The master lease for the Westin is due to expire in April 2026. In April 2016, the resort was purchased by Pioneer Holdings Corp. and Haevichi Hospitality Guam for $125 million. Pioneer Holdings is a real estate private equity fund managed by IGIS Asset Management. Haevichi Hospitality Guam is controlled by Haevichi Hotels & Resorts, a unit of Seoul-based Hyundai Motor Group. See Colliers Brokers Sale of Westin Resort Guam; Master Lease Ends April 2026. Initial offers were to be submitted to Mark Bratton at Colliers’ Hawaii office.
In the Northern Mariana Islands, Tan Holdings chose not to renew its lease for the Kanoa Resort, though that was as much to do with the Marianas Public Land Trust’s position and slow negotiation on the lease as the downturn in tourism.
MB Capital, which operates the Marianas Beach Resort, signed a franchise agreement with Marriott International Inc. on March 28 to finally rebrand the former Hyatt Regency Saipan into Sheraton Saipan. Stated plans at the time were to re-open before the end of 2025. See MB Capital advances Sheraton Saipan hotel development plan.
Imperial Pacific International (CNMI) LLC won a 40-year exclusive license to develop and operate an integrated casino resort on Saipan in 2014. According to Journal files, The company faced significant controversy for forced labor allegations, failure to comply with legal obligations, and ultimately filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April 2024 before eventually being sold to Team King Investment. mbj
Following the resignation of Chita A. Blaise, CEO of the American Red Cross in Guam, the organization is now seeking an executive director for the Guam Chapter.
Joint Region Marianas issued a statement on social media on Oct. 8 by its commander Rear Adm. Brett Mietus, stating that lab results for all active military wells and surface water sources on Guam military installations were below Guam Environmental Protection Agency’s Interim Action Level for dieldrin of 0.2 µg/L (parts per billion/ppb).
