Melia Hotels International has announced its first hotel in Iran, a country which until recently was 'closed' to international relations.

The positive news of the lifting of international sanctions was followed a few weeks ago by the signature of an agreement to manage the future Gran Meliá Ghoo, which will also become the first international five-star hotel in Iran.

The project is being developed by one of the most important Iranian businessman and investors, Ahad Azim Zadeh, and is a further step in the Meliá Hotels International strategy to grow the presence of its brands in the promising Middle East market, and specifically in an emerging country with major potential such as Iran. The company expects to continue to grow in Tehran and in other high potential destinations around the Caspian Sea, such as Tabriz, Mashhad, Shiraz and Esfahan.

One of the largest countries in the Middle East, Iran occupies a strategic location connecting Russia and Turkey to the Arab world, as well as being a key hub for transportation between Asia and Europe.

Our expansion strategy prioritizes entering new emerging markets accompanied by prestigious local partners and investors that know the market and to whom we can offer guarantees of excellence, reputation and profitability. As we did more than 30 years ago when we entered markets such as Indonesia in alliance with major family groups, or Cuba in partnership with the Cuban authorities, partners with whom we still maintain a magnificent relationship, we aim to consolidate a long-term relationship with the Azim Zadeh group.

Growing commitment to the Middle East

Meliá Hotels International operates two hotels in the Middle East, one in Dubai (Meliá Dubai) and one in Doha (Meliá Doha), and is already preparing five more openings: the Innside Doha, Innside Dubai, Meliá Dubai Residences, ME Dubai, and the newly announced Gran Meliá Ghoo. The Company is also negotiating new hotels in the Gulf region to be managed under the Meliá, ME by Meliá, Innside by Meliá (the fastest growing brand internationally) and Gran Melia brands.

Negotiations for new hotels in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Oman are particularly advanced, and in general we see major opportunities in the midscale and upscale segments to position our Innside by Meliá and Sol brands, and to which we can bring significant expertise and added value.

Our commitment to this part of the world is based on competitive advantages such as our global leadership in resort hotels and the versatility this has given us to optimize our management of city hotels in "bleisure "(business + leisure) destinations such as Dubai, Doha and many others in the region. This is accompanied by the value added by our brands, some of them particularly competitive in the context of the Middle East.

Our powerful focus on the region is also a consequence of the increasing international relevance  of the market, in which all global hotel companies aim to achieve a significant "footprint" for their brands. In addition, our experience in the market has also demonstrated the benefits of a fusion of Arab culture with our own Spanish roots and service culture, as well as the importance of being a family business to understand how business is done in this part of the world. Our strong exposure in the outbound European travel market is also key to attracting inbound tourism to the Middle East.