MELIÁ Hotels International is moving into the Thai market after signing an agreement with one of the kingdom’s leading real estate developers, TCC Land Asset World, a move it hopes will lead to 3,000 to 5,000 rooms in the medium term.
The Spanish chain currently has 40 per cent of its upcoming projects in Asia.
The initial accord with TCC Land Asset World, part of the TCC Group, will cover three hotels in a first phase.
“This will represent a new push for expansion in the region,” said a Meliá spokesperson.
Both entities are existing business partners, having launched their first property in the Vietnamese capital, the Meliá Hanoi.
Their new venture in Thailand will begin with Sol Beach House on Koh Samui. A conversion of the existing Imperial Boat Koh Samui, the property is due to reopen within two years with 209 rooms including 33 boat suites which were originally rice barges.
The sites and sizes of the other two hotels are yet to be decided but one will be a luxury lifestyle hotel under the ME label in Bangkok and the other an upmarket, all-inclusive Paradisus brand in a beach location.
Leading Thai destinations such as Phuket and Pattaya have also been earmarked for expansion, while more hotels will likely emerge in Bangkok and Koh Samui.
Gabriel Escarrer, vice president and CEO of Meliá, said: “We have always gone for an expansion accompanied by leading local partners. Entering a destination of such extraordinary potential as Thailand hand in hand with TCC Land Asset World fulfils all our expectations.
“The incorporation of our first hotels in Thailand – a star destination for markets such as Germany, Russia and Eastern Europe – is a transcendental step in the expansion of our holiday brands.”
