Marriott International to Nearly Triple Its Presence in Mexico in Five Years
29 new hotels in Mexico Help Fuel Company's Record-Setting Global Growth
BETHESDA, Md. | Marriott International, Inc. (NYSE:MAR) announced today four signed agreements that it expects will nearly triple its lodging presence in Mexico over the next five years.
The agreements involve plans to add 29 branded Marriott hotels in Mexico, create an estimated 3,000 new jobs and represent a total investment of more than $1 billion by the owners of the Marriott properties.
"These agreements reflect a huge investment being made by our partners in the future of Mexican tourism and are in response to the growing attractiveness of Mexico as a tourist destination," said Ed Fuller, president & managing director of international lodging for Marriott International.
Fueling Marriott's global growth, the Mexico announcement is part of its pipeline of 130,000 new rooms that the company expects to be added to its system by the year 2010. Marriott anticipates that more than a quarter of its new rooms will be located outside the U.S.
Currently, Marriott's portfolio in Mexico consists of 16 hotels and resorts including the JW Marriott, Marriott, Courtyard, Residence Inn and Fairfield Inn brands.
Announced today are the following:
- A multi-unit development agreement with Caribe Hospitality that will result in 20 upper-moderately-priced Courtyard by Marriott properties over the next five-to-seven years throughout Mexico, which Marriott International will manage.
- A management agreement with Grupo Questro for the upscale 250-room Puerto Penasco Marriott Resort on Mexico's Pacific coast. Earlier, Grupo Questro and its partners signed a management agreement for the 170-room The Ritz-Carlton Mexico City which will have a branded residential component. Both properties are scheduled to open in 2011.
- A management agreement with Desarrollos Turisticos Paso Victoria S.A. for the luxurious 450-room JW Marriott Milla de Oro Resort & Spa and the upscale 150-room Renaissance Milla de Oro Resort, both of which will be located on Mexico's popular Riviera Maya and are expected to open in 2011.
- A development agreement with Grupo Diestra for at least five and up to 10 franchised hotels over the next five years under the full-service, upscale Marriott brand. Grupo Diestra currently operates the Tijuana Marriott Hotel which opened in 2007. The company expects to open the 320-room Mexico City Marriott Reforma Hotel later this year, the 286-room Aguascalientes Marriott Hotel and the 290-room Merida Marriott Hotel in 2009 and 2010, respectively.
Fuller added, "As a destination, Mexico accounts for almost 16 percent of tourism activity in the Americas, second only to the United States. Mexico also is the primary destination for foreign tourists within Latin America and today ranks eighth for international tourist arrivals worldwide. We are thrilled to be part of these visionary plans that will help Mexico achieve its goal of becoming the fifth most visited destination in the world."
Marriott has been operating in Mexico for nearly 20 years. "We have watched Mexican tourism evolve into the vibrant, appealing product it is today and are delighted to see Mexico's growing middle class spurring national tourism as well. In fact, the domestic Mexican market accounts for nearly 40 percent of all our guests at our hotels within Mexico," he said.
Note: This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of federal securities laws, including statements concerning the number of lodging properties we expect to add in the future and similar statements concerning anticipated future events and expectations that are not historical facts. We caution you that these statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, including the uncertain environment in the lodging industry and the economy generally; supply and demand changes for hotel rooms, vacation ownership, condominiums, and corporate housing; competitive conditions in the lodging industry; relationships with clients and property owners; the availability of capital to finance hotel growth and refurbishment; and other risk factors identified in our most recent annual or quarterly report on Form 10-K or 10-Q; any of which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the statements herein. These statements are made as of the date of this press release, and we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Marriott International is a leading lodging company which manages and franchises more than 3,000 lodging properties across 19 brands in 67 countries and territories. Marriott's operations outside the U.S. and Canada have grown in the past decade from fewer than 240 hotels to about 420 hotels today. Approximately 60 percent of the company's most profitable full-service hotel growth is outside the U.S. and Canada. Marriott International is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, and had approximately 151,000 employees at 2007 year-end. It is ranked as the lodging industry's most admired company and one of the best companies to work for by FORTUNE magazine, and has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with the 2007 Sustained Excellence Award and Partner of the Year since 2004. In fiscal year 2007, Marriott International reported sales from continuing operations of $13 billion. For more information or reservations, please visit our web site at .
