Poland-based AccorHotels partner Orbis Hotel Group has signed a franchise agreement to open a Mercure hotel in Sibiu, Romania with its local partner and investor Pritax Invest.
The existing Ana Airport Hotel will join the Mercure brand in the first quarter of 2019. The hotel will have 85 guestrooms once renovations are complete. The Mercure Sibiu Airport property is near the Sibiu International Airport, the industrial zone of Sibiu and the city center in the Transylvania region.
The existing hotel is Pritax Invest's first in Sibiu. The group's two other hotels in the city are the Golden Tulip Ana Tower, which opened in 2008, and the Golden Tulip Ana Dome in Cluj-Napoca, which opened in 2009.
The new Mercure will expand Orbis' portfolio in Eastern Europe to include 127 hotels. It will also be part of the group's plans to extend its presence within Romania.
Orbis signed a new Ibis Styles in Otopeni, Romania—north of the capital of Bucharest—with partner and investor Liwa Properties on Aug. 8. The 85-room hotel will at Henri Coandă International Airport is slated to open in the first half of 2019.
Orbis’ pipeline in Romania also includes a new Ibis hotel in Timisoara opening in the fourth quarter of 2020. The group signed a 15-year management contract with Romania-based Hotel Development to develop the new-build 200-room property.
There are 11 AccorHotels-branded properties in Romania operating under the Novotel, Mercure, Ibis, Ibis Styles and Pullman brands. The most recent opening was the 80-room Ibis Styles Bucharest Erbas in July.
Orbis also acquired the 100-room Mercure Bucharest Unirii in early July. The group has operated the hotel since 2017, which is undergoing renovations.