Meliá Hotels International has signed agreements for several new hotels with major local partners, bringing the total number of hotels in the region to 45. Over the last five years, Meliá has added more than 30 hotels in the Asia Pacific region, multiplying its portfolio in the region by five. Of the 44 hotels in operation or in the pre-opening phase, 16 are in Indonesia, 10 in China, seven in Vietnam, four in Thailand, five in Malaysia, one in Mongolia and one in Myanmar. Meliá expects to add more new hotels by the end of the year.
In China, the company will add a new hotel under the Meliá Hotels & Resorts brand. Meliá Xueye Lake in Shandong province is next to the Ji’nan where Meliá already operates the Meliá Jinan. In Thailand, the company has added two new Meliá Hotels & Resorts: the Meliá Chiang Mai and Innside Bangkok Sukhumvit, the company’s second hotel in the capital after the Meliá Bangkok, which was signed in 2016.
For Vietnam, the company has signed a new property for the the Meliá brand. Meliá Ba Vi Mountain Retreat will be developed to the west of Hanoi. Gabriel Escarrer, EVP and CEO of Meliá, also signed an agreement for the future Meliá Bukit Tinggi in the state of Pahang in Malaysia. The company’s portfolio and pipeline already include four hotels in Malaysia. "The size of this market, the strong organic growth we are seeing in China and Southeast Asia, and the progressive growth in revenues in the region lead us to predict that in the medium term the region will make a contribution as important to company results as Cuba represented after its addition 30 years ago," Escarrer said in a statement.
Meliá's growth strategy in the region is focused management agreements rather than acquisitions. The relevance of the APAC markets is increasing for Meliá Hotels International year on year, considering both the inbound and the outbound travelers. In line with the company’s priority of the Asian market, the new management agreements signed by Gabriel Escarrer are set strengthen the company's relationships with financial and real estate groups in the region, such as Greentown China, TCC-Land in Thailand and Aurelian Land.
Meliá Xueye Lake (China)
This new Meliá-branded resort is on Lake Xueye, the largest water reserve in this region in eastern China. The resort is near Ji’nan, Zibo, Tai’an and Laiwu, which together have a population of over 18 million people. Near Ji’nan Airport and the soon-to-open high-speed train station, Lake Xueye has become a popular leisure travel destination for the surrounding cities. The hotel will have 120 guestrooms and villas.
The development is owned by Shandong Gaosu Greentown Laiwu Xueye Lake Development Company, a subsidiary of Greentown China. Greentown China is listed on the Hong Kong stock market and one of the 10 largest real estate groups in China. Greentown China’s assets exceed 25.9 billion euros, and after 23 years of growth, it now has over 300 companies in China and employs over 7,000 people. Greentown Asset Management owns around 30 hotels and resorts, all operated under leading international hotel brands.
Meliá Chiang Mai (Thailand)
Meliá Chiang Mai will be the company’s first hotel in Chiang Mai in the north of Thailand and the third in the country. Chiang Mai is a popular destination in Thailand due to its tourism potential, natural and cultural attributes and human capital. The company will take over management of the hotel immediately, although adaptation to the Meliá brand standards and rebranding is not expected to be completed until 2019. While the Melia Chiang Mai currently has 325 guestrooms, room numbers will be reduced to 261 after the renovation of the hotel to meet Meliá standards.
Declared a "creative city" by UNESCO, Chiang Mai is the largest city in Thailand and has the many cultural attractions. It also has the fourth largest airport in the country near the hotel and a train station for the Eastern & Oriental Express, which is popular among travelers from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Laos.
INNSIDE Bangkok Sukhumvit (Thailand)
After signing the Meliá Bangkok in 2016, the 176-guestroom INNSIDE Bangkok Sukhumvit will be the second hotel of Meliá Hotels International in the capital of Thailand. The hotel, which is scheduled to open in 2021, will be near Bangkok's main airport and the first for the Innside by Meliá brand in the country.
This new hotel is another milestone for the growth and development of the brand, which currently operates 18 hotels and has over 20 new hotels in the pipeline in countries such as the UK, U.S., Spain, Germany, Venezuela, UAE, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Italy, Colombia, Brazil and Qatar.
Both the INNSIDE Bangkok Sukhumvit and Meliá Chiang Mai are owned by TCC Land Company, which was founded in 1960. Meliá has a long-term partnership with TCC. The Thailand conglomerate has interests in agriculture and industry, food, real estate, industrial supplies, financial services and insurance. It also owns about 50 hotels operated under international brands both in Thailand and in other major destinations in Asia, Oceania, Europe and North America.
Meliá Ba Vi Mountain Retreat (Vietnam)
Meliá Ba Vi Mountain Retreat will be developed in Ba Vi National Park in the west of Hanoi. Ba Vi Mountain is near Noi Bai International Airport, which has frequent International flights with key markets, such as Bangkok, Seoul, Hong Kong and Singapore. Owned by Vietnam A&A Technology and Investment Company, the resort is expected to open in 2018 with 100 guestrooms, including 12 bungalows and three villas.
Meliá Bukit Tinggi (Malaysia)
Meliá Bukit Tinggi will be the company’s fifth hotel in Malaysia, another major travel destination for travelers from China, Indonesia, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Meliá Bukit Tinggi will be developed in Bukit Tinggi, the fourth most visited place in Malaysia. Meliá Bukit Tinggi is near various tourist attractions, including the soon-to-be-opened Genting 20th Century Fox World Theme Park and Lentang Forest Reserve. The hotel is also near Kuala Lumpur International Airport and the new East Coast Rail Bentong station, which connects Bentong to Kuala Lumpur and Kelantan.
Slated to open in 2022, the new 219-guestroom Meliá Bukit Tinggi, the group’s fifth property in Malaysia, will be under a long-term management contract with the Meliá Hotels & Resorts brand and owned by Aurelian Land, a Malaysian senior lifestyle resort development company.