Spain’s Melia Hotels International has entered the Iranian market for the first time, with the signing an agreement to manage a luxury hotel on the Caspian Sea.
The new Gran Melia Ghoo Hotel will form part of Iran’s largest mixed-use development, ‘Ghoo Middle East Diamond’, which also features two residential towers, a sports centre and shopping mall. It is located in Salman Shahr, a popular domestic holiday destination on the shores of the Caspian Sea, approximately 220km from Tehran.
The Gran Meliá Ghoo Hotel will be set in 130-metre-high tower and will feature 319 rooms and suites, including a 500m² presidential suite. Facilities will include seven restaurants, two swimming pools, a spa, retail outlets and more than 1,300m² of conference and banqueting space.
“We have always been pioneers in the development of new markets in the travel and tourism industry, so it is a fantastic challenge for us to be involved in a project which is so important for the future of the industry in this country,” said Gabriel Escarrer, Melia’s vice chairman & CEO.
“We firmly believe in Iran’s tourism potential and I am also very proud to have earned the trust of our partners in the management of this hotel, a further demonstration that we are a significant international player for the most prestigious hotel projects anywhere in the world.”
Iran’s tourism industry is undergoing an historic period of growth, since the lifting of sanctions that have restricted foreign investment since 2006. AccorHotels recently penned an agreement for two hotels near Tehran Airport, and planemakers ATR and Airbus have sealed Iranian deals for a total of 158 aircraft.
“This is an historical moment for Iran’s tourism, and we are pleased to be a key part of it,” said Ahad Azim Zadeh, CEO of Azimzadeh Carpet and main investor in the Ghoo project. “Tourism brings social and economic development to a community, as well as people and cultures. Ghoo Middle East Diamond will mark a turning point in tourism in Iran.”
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