The Leela Group has signed an agreement with Qatar’s Al Faisal Group for the development of a brand new luxury hotel near the Taj Mahal in Agra.
The Indian Express reports that the INR5 billion (US$75 million) project will be developed on a 2.8-hectare plot of land close to the UNESCO World Heritage-listed mausoleum. It will be a twin-branded property, comprising a Leela Palace hotel and an Aiana property.
“We will be developing a two-hotel complex with a total of 250 rooms. There will 100-room Leela Palace and 150 room-Aiana on top of a shared podium,” explained Amruda Nair, joint managing director & CEO of Aiana Hotels & Resorts.
Leela launched the Aiana in India last year, with the unveiling of a luxury resort in Kerala. The latest property, which will be named the Aiana Agra, will become the eighth Aaina project across India and the Middle East.
Vivek Nair, Leela Group’s chairman, was also reported saying that his company is planning to expand in several other Indian cities, including a 60-room hotel in Varanasi, a new hotel in Jaipur, and a 150-room property in Chandigarh that will be attached to a 27-hole golf course.
It is also expanding in the Middle East, with plans for a major new hotel project in Dubai.
“Internationally, we are just about to execute an agreement in Dubai with the Royal family there for a hotel facing the Burj Khalifa. It will be a 250-room hotel,” Nair told the newspaper.
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