Zam Zam* Sofitel Grand Suites: The Largest, Most Luxurious Hotel in the Middle East/Africa Region with 1,240 Suites

Paris, As a result of an international bid, Accor has been chosen by the Munshaat Group, a major Kuwaiti investment company, to manage the largest, most luxurious hotel in the Middle East/Africa region, located in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

A five-star establishment, the Zam Zam Sofitel Grand Suites is currently being built at a total cost of USD 600 million, with opening scheduled for September 2006.

At the contract signing on February 25, Accor Founding Co-Chairman Gérard Pélisson expressed his satisfaction with Sofitel’s successful bid. “This is an ambitious, complex project,” he said. “It is unique in many ways—in terms of religion and culture, research and innovation, and business challenges. Because of its scope and symbolic importance, the project represents a major step forward in Accor’s development.”

The Group’s long-standing presence in the region, its commitment to sharing skills, and the widespread recognition and reputation of the Sofitel brand were the determining factors in the decision to award the contract to Accor.

With 1,240 suites, the Zam Zam Sofitel Grand Suites is part of the prestigious Al Beit Towers complex. It is being built on 91,000 square meters of land owned by the King Abdulaziz Foundation and dedicated to the two Holy Mosques. Located 100 meters from the Ka’aba, the 34-storey complex enjoys a direct, panoramic view of the Haram courts.

Unrivaled in the Persian Gulf area, the hotel complex will include a convention center, a shopping mall and a floor of restaurants that can seat up to 5,000. Most of the suites—more than 1,000—will be marketed on a time-share basis. Accor will manage all of the establishment’s hotel services.

The hotel will have capacity for 6,000 customers and employ 1,500 people, most of them Saudis.

*Zam Zam means Holy Water in Arabic.

With 17 hotels (3,521 rooms) in the Near and Middle East, Accor plans to increase its regional base to 25 hotels and more than 5,000 rooms over the next three years.

Throughout the course of the last few years, Sofitel has become a major player in the international upper upscale hotel market, with 185 properties that bring a unique French “art de vivre” to prime locations around the world Sofitel is now present in all of the major business cities (Paris, New York, London, Washington, Berlin, Tokyo, Chicago, Bangkok,…), all the leading holiday resorts (Mauritius, Morocco, French West Indies, Indonesia, Brazil,… ) and in key international airports.

In 2005, Sofitel will continue its growth with some openings in China,Australia, New Zealand, Fiji Islands, Vietnam, Brazil and Egypt.

With 158,000 people in 140 countries, Accor is the European leader and one of the world's largest groups in travel, tourism and corporate services, with two major international activities:

• hotels: nearly 4,000 hotels (462,000 rooms) in 90 countries, casinos, travel agencies, and restaurants;
• services to corporate clients and public institutions: 14 million people in 34 countries use a broad range of services (food vouchers, people care and services, incentive, loyalty programs, events) engineered and managed by Accor.