Global hospitality giant IHG has signed a new agreement to develop eight hotels across the Gulf and wider Middle East region.
IHG Hotels & Resorts said it has inked a master development agreement with Ishraq Hospitality, a division of the Dubai-based Mohamed & Obaid Almulla Group, to add the midscale Holiday Inn Express branded properties.
The multi-property portfolio licence will see new hotel openings in the UAE, Oman, Bahrain, Jordan and Egypt in the near term, IHG said in a statement.
Ishraq Hospitality, which operates HIEX under the IHG franchise, currently owns four Holiday Inn Express hotels in the UAE in partnership with IHG.
IHG said the agreement will mark the first Holiday Inn Express hotels in Oman, Bahrain, Jordan and Egypt where there is an expected build-up of demand for midscale, branded accommodation to cater to business and leisure tourists alike.
Pascal Gauvin (pictured below), managing director, India, Middle East and Africa, IHG, said: “We are delighted to sign this agreement with Ishraq Hospitality, which will bring the Holiday Inn Express brand to the forefront in the Middle East and further strengthen our midscale offering in the MEA region.
“The hospitality sector has faced great challenges in response to Covid-19, however, such signings reaffirm a positive future outlook for the industry”
Sherif Beshara, group CEO of Mohamed & Obaid Almulla Group, the holding company of Ishraq Hospitality, added: “There is ample evidence of the strength of the region’s economy and the robust potential of its hospitality sector… I am confident that the opening of the hotels in enviably strategic locations will successfully cater to all the needs of modern business and leisure travelers.”
IHG currently operates 95 hotels across seven brands in the Middle East, with a further 42 in the development pipeline due to open within the next three to five years.
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