Hyatt Hotels Corporation has opened the Hyatt Place Riyadh Al Sulaimania, debuting the brand in Saudi Arabia.
Developed by Saudi Marhaba Hospitality & Tourism Company, the hotel joins Hyatt Regency Riyadh Olaya, Park Hyatt Jeddah and Jabal Omar Hyatt Regency Makkah, boosting Hyatt’s portfolio of brands in Saudi Arabia and overall footprint in the Middle East.
“We are excited to introduce our select-service portfolio to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with the opening of the first Hyatt Place hotel,” said General Manager Adnan Haider. “This hotel strengthens Hyatt’s position in the region as a brand leader and showcases a different type of guest and hotel experience [in Saudi Arabia].”
Hyatt's interest in Riyadh is understandable: Last month, HotStats reported hotels in the city recorded an 18.5-percent, year-over-year increase in GOPPAR to $58.07. The growth in profit was led by a 10.7-percent increase in RevPAR to $101.09, which was due to an 11.1-percentage-point increase in room occupancy to 59.6 percent, which offset the 9.9-percent decline in achieved average room rate to $169.71.
However, growth in profit at hotels in Riyadh was against a backdrop of declining room rates, which included a decrease in rate in the corporate (down 12.4 percent), individual leisure (down 52.8 percent) and group leisure (down 42.5 percent) segments, according to the data.
Later this year, Hyatt expects to open the Hyatt House Jeddah Sari Street, bringing the company’s extended-stay Hyatt House brand to the country.