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Marriott International Announces Five New Hotels in the Middle East & Africa
Marriott International (NYSE: MAR) today announced the signing of five hotels for its newly established Middle East & Africa Region, including its first properties in Algeria, Ghana and Morocco.
The hotels are scheduled to open under long-term management contracts over the next 36 months and represent the company’s Marriott Hotels & Resorts and Marriott Executive Apartments brands. The properties announced today add 1,126 rooms to Marriott’s Middle East & Africa development pipeline, which now totals 44 hotels and 10,800 rooms under construction or in advanced planning.
Opening between now and year-end 2015, these new properties will boost Marriott’s Middle East & Africa regional presence to more than 70 hotels across six lodging brands, totaling nearly 20,000 rooms in 12 countries. The portfolio includes JW Marriott and The Ritz-Carlton hotels in the luxury tier; Marriott and Renaissance Hotels & Resorts in the upscale segment; Courtyard by Marriott in the moderately-priced tier and deluxe Marriott Executive Apartments for extended stay travelers.
Hotels announced today include:
* Marriott’s first hotels in Algeria — the 227-room, upscale Algiers Marriott and the 180-unit Algiers Marriott Executive Apartments properties. Both are planned to open in 2012. The hotels are owned by Trust Real Estate SPA and will be part of an attractively landscaped, secure mixed-use development located three kilometers north of the Algiers airport consisting of a high-end shopping mall, offices and residential space.
* Marriott’s sixth resort on the Red Sea and eighth hotel in Egypt — the 294-room Sahl Hasheesh Marriott Beach Resort. Scheduled to be rebranded in 2011, it is a conversion from the existing The Old Palace Resort and is owned by Red Sea Hotels Co.
* Marriott’s first hotel in Sub-Saharan Africa — the 209-room Accra Marriott in Ghana which is scheduled to open in late 2010. Owned by African Hospitality Ltd., the hotel will be located within minutes of Kotoka International Airport.
* Marriott’s first hotel in Morocco — the 216-room Marrakech Marriott Palm Golf Hotel which is expected to open in 2012. The hotel is owned by a JV between J. Partners and Domaine Palm Marrakech SAS. It will be part of a large master development community that will also include an 18-hole golf course, a country club and 250 luxury residences. A key focal point of the development is its commitment to achieving “Haute Qualite Environmentale” certification, a European program similar to the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification program in the United States.”
“The opening of our new regional headquarters in Dubai recognizes the dynamic nature of tourism in the Middle East and the emergence of Africa as a viable destination for business and leisure travel,” said Ed Fuller, president & managing director international lodging for Marriott. “The Middle East appears to have weathered the global economic storm and we’re beginning to look forward to rising occupancies through the end of this year and into next. With its diverse cultural and historic attractions, unique geography and the industry’s changing travel patterns, we expect the Middle East and Africa as a whole to play an increasingly important role in the future.”
Mr. Fuller said that the strong pace of Marriott’s development pipeline shows long-term confidence in the region, “especially since this growth is occurring in the context of the difficult global economy and tight credit markets. The hotels joining our portfolio are a testament to the recognized power of our brands to deliver results even under challenging conditions and to the success of our existing hotels.” He added that the company’s hotels throughout the region regularly rank at or near the top of their competitive set in customer preference, guest satisfaction and operating results.
NOTE: Statements about the locations and number of new hotels to be opened and their anticipated completion and opening dates are “forward looking statements” within the meaning of federal securities laws, and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including those described in Marriott International, Inc.’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which could cause the actual number of new hotels or their completion or opening dates to be different than expected.
CNN