Coincidence? Maybe. But five days after Belmond (Orient-Express Hotels until 2014) was sold to French luxury giant LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, AccorHotels on Tuesday announced its first Orient Express hotel will open in the landmark King Power Mahanakhon Building in Bangkok. AccorHotels, which last year signed a strategic partnership with SNCF Group to develop Orient Express hotels, was among those rumored to acquire Belmond with the thought it could rebrand them again

Most insiders agree French luxury giant LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE is a great suitor for the luxury Belmond hotel portfolio. What LVMH will do with its US$3.2 billion acquisition, including debt, is generating some debate, however. News broke on Friday that LVMH and its founder Bernard Arnault agreed to pay US$25 a share in cash for London-based Belmond, a 42% premium over its closing price in the U.S. on Thursday for 46 luxury hotels across 24 countries, including a