News

Starwood aims for 100 in Latin America

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc continues to grow in Latin America, indicating that it’s aiming to have 100 hotels under operation and development in Latin America by the end of 2013. Currently, Starwood has a strong footprint of 71 hotels in 13 countries, and a robust development pipeline of 20 hotels with a total 3,300 new rooms underway. Building on its aggressive growth strategy in the region, in the last two years, Starwood opened 12 hotels, including the Westin Panama, which opened in January, bringing its current portfolio to 71 hotels with 15,300 rooms representing 33% growth since 2007. In the remainder of 2013, Starwood expects to open seven more hotels with a total of 1,300 rooms, covering four brands across five countries. Right now, the company operates eight unique brands throughout the region, including W Hotels, St. Regis and The Luxury Collection, which make up the companys luxury portfolio; Westin, Le Meridien and Sheraton, in the upper-upscale segment; and fast-growing mid-market or “specialty select” brands, Aloft and Four Points by Sheraton. Osvaldo Librizzi, co-president of Starwood Hotels and Resorts, Americas, commented: “In the last five years, our footprint in Latin America has expanded considerably to fulfil the increasing demand in business and leisure travel that has resulted from rising wealth, global businesses and a digitally connected world. We believe that demand for travel will continue to increase in Latin America and to meet that demand, we aim to have 100 hotels under operation, development and management contracts by the end of 2013.” Check in at http://www.starwoodhotels.com for more.