Orascom Development Holding (ODH) has signed a deal with leading holiday company Thomas Cook to develop two hotels in Egypt next year.

Thomas Cook will open a 100-room waterfront Casa Cook hotel - its award-winning boutique brand - in a prestigious area of the Red Sea development. In addition, the holiday company will open a Cook’s Club hotel in the heart of El Gouna – one of 10 to open next year across its core destinations.

Enric Noguer, chief of Thomas Cook Hotels & Resorts, said: “With the opening of these two hotels Thomas Cook will offer year-round holidays in our Casa Cook and Cook’s Club brands. This continues strong momentum for our hotels and resorts business as we expand our portfolio around the world. El Gouna is a popular destination and our two new hotels will offer alternative holidays to people looking for high-quality contemporary design and laidback service with a great bar and restaurant at the heart.

"We are excited about the partnership with Thomas Cook and we welcome the fact that El Gouna will be the first home to Thomas Cook's newest hotel brands in the Middle East," said Khaled Bichara, CEO of Orascom Development. "We are confident that Casa Cook and Cook’s Club will fit perfectly to the offer at El Gouna and the group's hotel portfolio,” Bichara added.

ODH is a leading developer of fully integrated holiday destinations that include hotels, private villas and apartments, leisure facilities such as golf courses, marinas and supporting infrastructure. Its diversified portfolio includes operations in 10 destinations; five in Egypt (El Gouna, Taba Heights, Fayoum Makadi, and Harram City), The Cove in the UAE, Jebel Sifah and Hawana Salalah in Oman, Luštica Bay in Montenegro and Andermatt in Switzerland. The group operates a total of 33 hotels with 7,113 rooms and controls approximately 104 million sq m of land. - TradeArabia News Service