Article from BTNews 17 APRIL 2017
St Giles for Cuba
The first UK-based hotel brand to enter the Cuba market following the thawing of relations last year has announced plans for a property on the Malecón, the popular promenade overlooking Havana Bay.
St Giles Hotels has made a successful bid to renovate and manage the Hotel Deauville after talks with the Cuban group Gran Caribe, which operates 4- and 5-star properties on the island.
The 4-star property will be renamed The Deauville – A St Giles Signature Hotel, and is scheduled to reopen in 2019, with features including a rooftop bar and gym overlooking the capital.
The project is being overseen by St Giles Hotels’ UK, Europe and the Americas head Abigail Tan-Giroud, in partnership with Geskaria Real Estate Investments and is the first step in the hotel group’s planned expansion into Cuba and the Caribbean and the 11th property in the portfolio.
Other members include the 724-room St Giles London in Bloomsbury, and the St Giles Heathrow. Openings in 2015 included the Wembley in Penang and the Tank Stream in Sydney.
The group says it plans to operate 20 hotels worldwide by 2020, including another London property in Blackfriars as part of the Jenga Tower development.
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