A pre-opening specialist at the helm of Dusit’s Hanoi address
David Stanley De Brito has taken up the post of General Manager of the Dusit Le Palais Tu Hoa Hanoi on behalf of Dusit International. He steps into the role in November 2026, after nearly seven years with Accor.
The hotel opened on 9 May 2025 in the Tây Hồ district, on the shores of West Lake. With 207 rooms and suites, it marked Dusit’s debut in Hanoi. It is also the group’s second managed hotel in Vietnam, after the Dusit Princess Moonrise Beach Resort in Phu Quoc.
In July 2025, the hotel was one of three properties selected to launch Dusit Hotels, the group’s ninth brand, positioned in the upscale segment. Its architectural design, by Baumschlager Eberle Architekten, also won recognition at the LIV Hospitality Design Awards in the Architectural Design Hotel – Boutique category.
The appointment is part of a wider strengthening of Dusit International’s leadership teams; the group recently appointed Marc Handl to head Dusit Thani Bangkok.
Pullman Ninh Binh: a pre-opening completed ahead of schedule
Before joining Dusit, David Stanley De Brito had led Pullman Ninh Binh since March 2025, taking it from the project phase through to opening. The 283-room property, billed as the province’s first internationally branded hotel, welcomed its first guests on 1 May 2026, around 90 minutes’ drive from Hanoi.
According to his career record, the pre-opening was completed five months ahead of the planned schedule. He reports savings of around US$1 million (nearly €0.9 million) on the launch budget, achieved through tight planning of recruitment and marketing. He also recruited and trained the executive committee and heads of department.
He had previously served as Area General Manager for Accor in Nagoya, Japan, between 2024 and 2025. From 2021 to 2024, he ran Pullman Vung Tau, a 356-room hotel with five food and beverage outlets, a 2,300 sq m conference centre and a team of around 170.
Having joined Accor in January 2020 as Hotel Operations Manager in Vietnam, he steered operations through the first waves of Covid-19. Over that period, he brought food cost down from 38% to 32% and beverage cost from 27% to 22% by renegotiating purchasing terms with suppliers.
A career forged in luxury F&B
Before Accor, he was Cluster General Manager of Pegasus Lodges in the province of North Sumatra, Indonesia, from 2017 to 2019. There he oversaw three resorts, including the second construction phase of four pool villas.
Much of his career has been spent in the Maldives. Between 2008 and 2014, he successively headed food and beverage at Velassaru, Soneva and then Cheval Blanc Randheli. At the latter, he took part in the pre-opening alongside chef Yannick Alléno, who had transposed Le 1947, his Michelin-starred restaurant in Courchevel, to the resort.
He then joined Kanuhura, a member of The Leading Hotels of the World, as Executive Assistant Manager for its reopening, before taking over as Director of Beverage and Food at W Maldives in 2017. In between, he had been Executive Assistant Manager at Tanjung Jara Resort (YTL Hotels) in Malaysia and Resort Manager of Keemala in Phuket, where he oversaw the pre-opening.
His career began in 1992 in Kuala Lumpur, where he started out as a dishwasher and then a commis before moving into front-of-house service. He went on to climb the F&B and banqueting ranks at Sheraton, Shangri-La, Hyatt Regency and Le Méridien, where he opened the Kota Kinabalu property. In Brunei, at The Empire Hotel & Country Club, he also served as personal butler to the royal family.
In all, he cites 33 years of experience across ten countries and 17 hotel and resort pre-openings. A Certified Hotel Administrator (AHLEI), he holds an MBA from Singapore Business School, obtained in 2024, and a certificate in food and beverage management from Cornell University.
Hanoi’s market moves upmarket
The appointment comes as the Vietnamese capital attracts new international brands. Following the opening of Fairmont Hanoi in the Old Quarter in 2026, Minor Hotels has signed Avani+ Hanoi, scheduled for 2028.
At a glance by The Hospitality Tribune
David Stanley De Brito appointed General Manager of Dusit Le Palais Tu Hoa Hanoi
Took office in November 2026 at Dusit’s first hotel in Hanoi (207 keys, West Lake)
Previously led the pre-opening of Pullman Ninh Binh (283 keys), opened 1 May 2026
Nearly seven years with Accor in Vietnam and Japan, including Pullman Vung Tau
Luxury F&B background in the Maldives: Cheval Blanc Randheli, Soneva, W Maldives
33 years in hospitality across 10 countries, 17 pre-openings, CHA and MBA
