ISTANBUL, April 16, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via PRWEB - Best Western International has announced plans for rapid expansion in the Middle East with 13 new hotels in the pipeline, including one in Kuwait, two in Qatar and 10 in Saudi Arabia.
According to the February 2015 STR Global Construction Pipeline Report, there are 640 hotels totaling 149,799 rooms under contract in the Middle East region. These numbers illustrate the great potential for further developing the Best Western brand in the region.
The brand is adding to its eight existing hotels currently operating in the Middle East with new construction projects in key destinations including, Kuwait City, Doha, Riyadh, Dammam, and Makkah. In this portfolio of development projects the brand is also adding two new BEST WESTERN PREMIER® properties in Al Ahsa and Ar Rass, both in Saudi Arabia and due to open in 2016. In addition the brand will add five BEST WESTERN PLUS® hotels and five BEST WESTERN® hotels which will add nearly 1,800 new rooms to the brands Middle East portfolio.
The brand recently made changes to its operational and development support strategy which will now be centered in the Best Western International offices in Istanbul, Turkey where the company already supports 18 Best Western branded hotels. Additionally the brand has hired a new managing director and development director for the region.
"Aligning our efforts for the Middle East with our existing operations in Istanbul makes a lot of sense when you think about the cultural similarities and practicalities of the day to day support of the Best Western branded hotels in the region," said Best Western's Senior Vice President of International Operations Suzi Yoder. "Hiring a Managing Director and Development Director also signifies a new focus from the brand concerning our future footprint in the Middle East. We already have a strong pipeline of exciting projects and we want to continue to expand in the Middle East and have made the necessary investment to do so. We expect to continue to add to the product we have in the Middle East and take advantage of the already rapid development in the tourism taking place in the region."
Best Western will attend the Arabian Travel Market 2015(stand HC 6870) which will be held in the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre May 4 – 7, 2015 where it will be meeting with developers and independent hoteliers as it continues to grow the brand in the Middle East. For more information on global development opportunities with Best Western International, please visit bestwesterndevelopers.com or contact us at internationaldevelopment(at)bestwestern(dot)com.
To learn more about a specific hotel or discover other Best Western hotels across the world, visit http://www.bestwestern.com.
About Best Western International, Inc.
Best Western International, Inc., headquartered in Phoenix, Ariz., is a privately held hotel brand with a global network of 4,000+* hotels in more than 100* countries and territories worldwide. Best Western offers six hotel products to suit the needs of developers and guests in every market: BEST WESTERN®, BEST WESTERN PLUS®, BEST WESTERN PREMIER®, BEST WESTERN PLUS EXECUTIVE RESIDENCY℠, Vīb℠ and BW Premier Collection℠. Now celebrating 69 years of hospitality, Best Western provides its hoteliers with global operational, sales and marketing support, and online and mobile booking capabilities. More than 22 million travelers are members of the brand's award-winning loyalty program Best Western Rewards®, one of the few programs in which members earn points that never expire and can be redeemed at any Best Western hotel worldwide. The brand's partnerships with AAA/CAA, Minor League Baseball, and Harley-Davidson® provide travelers with exciting ways to interact with the brand. Best Western continues to set industry records and accolades, including Business Travel News naming BEST WESTERN and BEST WESTERN PLUS as the best mid-price and upper mid-price hotel chains, four consecutive Compuware Best of the Web gold awards for best hotel website and six consecutive AAA/CAA Hotel Partner of the Year awards. Best Western branded hotels worldwide won four times more TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence awards than industry average.
*Numbers are approximate and may fluctuate.
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