hotels+Group'>InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has acquired wellness resort brand Six Senses from Pegasus Capital Advisors for a reported US$300m in cash.

The sale includes the management of 16 Six Senses hotels and resorts, 37 spas, and sister spa management companies Evason and Raison d’Etre. Following the acquisition, Six Senses is now expected to grow to 60 hotels within the next 10 years.

“This is an exciting new era for Six Senses,” said Six Senses CEO Neil Jacobs. “IHG believes in our purpose to merge the two platforms of wellness and sustainability to promote personal health, and the health of the planet. Joining forces with IHG means we can use a wealth of systems and operational excellence to grow our brand and reach new markets without losing our quirky personality and playful touch. It’s been a great pleasure to work with Pegasus over the last six years and we would never have reached this milestone without their vision and deep involvement.”

Over the next 12 months, Six Senses will open properties in locations including the private island of Krabey in Cambodia, a circuit of five lodges in Bhutan, and a 14th-century-old restored fort in Rajasthan.

Upcoming openings also include a desert hideaway in Israel’s Negev Desert, the transformation of a series of 19th-century mansions in Istanbul and the group’s first project in North America, a contemporary duo of twisting towers designed by Bjarke Ingles located in Manhattan’s West Chelsea neighbourhood and along the High Line.

Additional projects are currently under way in Austria, Brazil, Mainland China, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan and Thailand.

"Six Senses' attractive development pipeline provides us with a platform for high-quality growth," said Keith Barr, CEO of IHG. "With the power of the IHG enterprise, we believe we can expand acquisition continues the progress we've made against the strategic initiatives we outlines a year ago, which included a commitment to adding new brands in the fast growing US$60bn luxury segment."

IHG also recently acquired and repositioned Regent Hotels & Resorts. In addition to the InterContinental brand, it also operates Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, for which IHG has secured a presence in 14 countries since its acquisition of the brand in 2015.

The acquisition of Six Senses takes IHG’s portfolio of open and pipeline luxury hotels to 400 hotels, and 108,000 bedrooms, globally.