MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA Marriott International announces the addition of six new properties to its pipeline of 37 previously-announced hotels in the Middle East and Africa.
The new signings include the first Residence Inn by Marriott-branded property in the Middle East, opening in Manama, Bahrain, later this year. When all 43 hotels now under development or construction open by 2016, Marriott’s regional portfolio will comprise 74 properties and more than 17,600 guestrooms across seven brands, up from the 31 properties and 8,822 guestrooms currently in operation.
Announced today are the following hotels:
- The 335-key Courtyard by Marriott Cairo Mirage City. The hotel is owned by Golf Hotels Corp. and is expected to open in 2012 as the first Courtyard by Marriott in Egypt.
- The 495-key Ritz-Carlton Riyadh. Owned by the Saudi Arabia government, this luxury hotel is scheduled to open in 2011 as the first Ritz-Carlton hotel in the kingdom.
- The 78-key Residence Inn by Marriott Juffair in suburban Manama, Bahrain. Owned by International Trading and Investment Co. WLL, the property opens later this year as the first Residence Inn in the Middle East.
- The 120-key The Ritz-Carlton Rabat Hotel, Morocco. Owned by Sienna Investment Group, this luxury hotel is expected to open in 2013.
- The 247-key Courtyard by Marriott Algiers. Owned by Trust Real Estate SPA, this property is scheduled to open in 2014 as the first Courtyard in Algeria.
- The 147-key Residence Inn by Marriott Algiers. Also owned by Trust Real Estate, this property is expected to open in 2014 as the third Residence Inn in the region.
“Despite recent economic and political uncertainties in the Middle East and the northern tier of Africa, our development opportunities in the region remain strong,” says Ed Fuller, president and managing director for international lodging. “These new hotels are expected to open over the next five years and will be perfectly positioned to help accommodate the nearly 90 million travelers that the World Travel & Tourism Council estimates will visit the region annually by 2016. Today, the Middle East welcomes approximately 68 million visitors each year.”
Marriott continues to aggressively explore attractive expansion opportunities in sub-Saharan Africa and expects to announce projects later this year in South Africa, Mauritius, Tanzania, Angola, Nigeria and Benin. “The region has enormous tourism potential, and we plan to play an important role in its development,” Fuller says, adding that Marriott’s first two projects in sub-Saharan Africa are expected to open in Accra and Kigali next year.
