Meliá Hotels International has once again, for the seventh consecutive year, been named the best hotel company in the world in the luxury resort segment by the US Global Traveler magazine, which has just announced the winners of its Leisure Lifestyle Awards 2021.
These annual awards recognise the top destinations and travel companies in the leisure and lifestyle segment based on a survey of the magazine's readers. In addition to being named the top luxury resort hotel chain, mention was also made of some of the destinations on four continents where Meliá operates and that strengthen its leadership worldwide, such as Playa del Carmen, Cabo San Lucas or Cancun (in Mexico), Zanzibar (Tanzania), Seville (Spain), Prague (Czech Republic), Rome (Italy), Porto and Lisbon (Portugal), Paris (France), Phuket (Thailand), Bali (Indonesia) , Buenos Aires (Argentina) or Cartagena (Colombia), among others.
The company's three luxury brands, Gran Meliá, ME by Meliá and Paradisus, now have 33 hotels in key destinations worldwide and 10 projects under development that will extend the brands' international presence and recognition. As Gabriel Escarrer, Vice President and CEO, has stated, “the luxury market is highly competitive, but our brands are now in an unbeatable position to capture the new opportunities in this segment in the post-Covid19 age and respond to the new demands of travellers thanks to our extraordinary collection of premium hotels surrounded by beautiful and exotic natural environments, with large outdoor spaces, magnificent wellness facilities, authentic and enriching activities in the destination, very exclusive and personalised service, and all in a safe environment which is now even safer thanks to our Stay Safe with Meliá programme."
Meliá Hotels International has strengthened its value propositions in the premium hotels segment, one of the first to recover after the health crisis, anticipating new trends that show changes in the behaviour of luxury travellers, such as a greater preference for short-haul travel, less-crowded destinations, travel experiences related to wellness and a healthy lifestyle, sustainable brands and greater privacy, among others.
Among the major international hotel groups, Meliá Hotels International is the only one that started in the resort segment, of which today it is the undisputed leader thanks to a long history in the key markets in the Mediterranean and Caribbean, in addition to a growing presence in holiday destinations in Southeast Asia, which together make up more than 60% of its portfolio. Resort hotels are also the most resilient segment in the industry, as was already shown in the 2008 financial crisis and we are now seeing again after the Covid-19 crisis.
In recent years, the company has consolidated its portfolio of premium hotels with the opening of iconic hotels such as the Gran Meliá Iguazu (Argentina) or the ultramodern ME Dubai (United Arab Emirates). Driven by the country's strong recovery, just a few months ago the company opened the Gran Meliá Chengdu in China, reinforcing its presence in a key market for the hotel industry. Over the coming months, Meliá will continue to boost its international recognition in the luxury segment with the opening of Paradisus Playa Mujeres (Mexico), ME Doha (Qatar) and a new Gran Meliá hotel in the heart of Milan.