Marriott International is on track to boost its portfolio in the Middle East and Africa more than 50 percent to nearly 370 hotels over the next five years. The group signed for more than 30 properties and more than 5,000 guestrooms across the region in the last 12 months.
The hotel group will soon have more than 80,000 guestrooms across 21 brands, including the introduction of the Edition, Element and AC Hotels by Marriott brands, in the Middle East and Africa. In line with its development plans, the company and its property owners expect to add 30,000 new jobs across the region in the next five years.
Marriott has focused on expanding its luxury and upscale brands within the region. The group has plans to nearly double the number of hotels under these brands within the next five years. The first hotel to open within this pipeline will be Abu Dhabi's first Edition property, which is scheduled to begin operating later this year. It will join the more than 30 hotels Marriott operates in the Middle East and Africa under its seven luxury brands.
The company's upscale brand portfolio will grow in the region through new hotel openings under its Courtyard by Marriott, Aloft, Element and Residence Inn chains. The new hotels represent more than 40 percent of the company's pipeline slated to open within the next five years across the Middle East and Africa.
Marriott's upper-upscale brands have also maintained steady growth in the region. The brands in this sector, especially the Marriott Hotels, Marriott Executive Apartments and Sheraton chains, account for 30 percent of the group's pipeline of hotels scheduled to open within the next five years.