Meliá Hotels International has announced a number of new openings over the coming years in Italy and Albania. This ambitious expansion strategy should enable the Spanish group to add to its portfolio of top-of-the-range and luxury properties.

 

After announcing last week the opening of The Meliá Collection hotel in Milan, the group's 5th hotel in the Italian city, Meliá has announced its ambition to become Albania's leading hotel chain by 2026 with the opening of 7 properties across the country.

Albania, as Melia CEO Gabriel Escarrer pointed out, "meets a series of requirements to become a major holiday destination in the Mediterranean. In addition, we have the support of the country's Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, as well as the Dulaku family, with whom we have searched for the best places to establish ourselves".

The town of Durrës was chosen as the location for the first two properties under management, according to Escarrer, "because of its proximity to Tirana and its air and land connections". The Sol Tropikal Durrës, with 168 rooms, to which a further 258 will be added in 2024, as well as a spa and casino, and the Meliá Durrës, a 5-star hotel offering 471 rooms and two villas.

The group will then open the Tomori Affiliated by Meliá hotel in Berat in 2024, with 120 rooms, one year later it will open the Palasa Beach Member of Meliá Collection, with 142 rooms, and the Gran Meliá Tirana, with 125 rooms, and in 2026 it will open the Sol Fafa Golem, with 460 rooms.

In addition, strategies in the Spanish market are focused on repositioning assets, with a firm commitment to the luxury segment, "of the 56 hotels due to open in the next two years, 74% are superior category".