Cementing its position as a major player in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) hospitality market, Louvre Hotels Group, one of the largest hospitality groups in the world, has announced plans to open 11 new hotels in the region this year, including six properties in the GCC.

The move forms part of an aggressive expansion plan that will see the European hospitality giant greatly boost its operational footprint in Mena region to have 95 hotels and over 15,000 guest rooms under its regional portfolio by 2020.

The new openings in 2016 - set to no less than 1,500 keys to the group’s existing inventory in the Gulf region - include three hotels in Saudi Arabia, two in the UAE and one in Qatar.

Louvre Hotels Group is considered one of the largest hotel groups from Europe and a top 5 global operator supported by its shareholder’s strength and size in the hotel industry. Under Jin Jiang’s ownership, the Paris headquartered group is part of a platform which includes more than 5,500 hotels and over 640,000 guest rooms in over 51 countries.

The group operates 6 hotel brands - Première Classe ( Budget limited service brand focused on modern designs), Campanile ( a value driven mid-market brand focused on the new age traveler), Kyriad ( a midscale 3 to4 star brand with a non-standardized approach to design), Tulip Inn (3 star fully serviced hotels), Golden Tulip (modern tech savvy upscale 4 star), and Royal Tulip (a 5 star contemporary brand), each leveraging the strength of their differentiated positioning and a shared passion for innovation to transform the prevailing standards in their category.

Louvre Hotels Group said it plans to open several key properties in Qatar, Algeria, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia and Tunisia this year.

All featuring a vibrant collection of suites and other room categories, the Louvre Hotels properties opening in the region in 2016 include:
*Golden Tulip Oran, Algeria - 110 rooms and suites,
*Golden Tulip Taj Sultan Resort Hammamat, Tunisia - 250 rooms, to be launched in Q2
*Golden Tulip Sharma Resort, Saudi Arabia  - 103 rooms and villas, to be launched in Q2
*Royal Tulip Achrafieh, Lebanon - 76 rooms -(for Q2 launch)
*Golden Tulip Doha, Qatar - 195 rooms, opening planned in Q2
*Golden Tulip Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia - 100 rooms, Q2 launch
*Tulip Inn Modon Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - 122 rooms, to be launched in Q3
*Golden Tulip Deira City Centre, UAE - 125 rooms, set for Q4 launch
*Golden Tulip Jounieh, Lebanon - 60 rooms, to be launched in Q4 and
*Royal Tulip Korbus Tunisia- 138 rooms, set for Q4 launch.

Commenting on the new launches, Amine E. Moukarzel, the president for Louvre Hotels Group (Mena), said: "Increasingly, we are seeing that growth in the Mena hospitality market is being driven not by luxury or premium hotels, but instead by midscale and budget hotels that offer the full spectrum of services at an affordable price."
 
"This presents an enormous window of opportunity for international players like Louvre Hotels to bring our global reputation and high standards to the table and combine these with a superior customer value proposition to reshape the dynamics of the regional hospitality industry," he noted.

Moukarzel pointed out that the Mena was an important market for Louvre Hotels and remained central to its global expansion.

Louvre Hotels’ executive team will be at this year's Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2016, which opens on Monday (April 25) in Dubai, to showcase its new properties.

The group is the spotlight sponsor for the four-day event, which focuses on the theme of mid-market travel, a segment where the Paris group has established itself as a key player - in Europe, Asia and the Mena region.

"As the largest event for the region’s travel and hospitality industry, ATM represents the perfect platform for us to connect with the travel trade community and seek out new alliances that will help provide further impetus to our expansion in the region," he added.-TradeArabia News Service