Marriott International is significantly expanding its
presence in the all-inclusive resort space, announcing plans to manage five new
all-inclusive properties in the Dominican Republic and Mexico.
These all-inclusives will include a 650-room Autograph
Collection resort in Punta Cana, which is scheduled to open in 2022, and four
separate resorts that will open as part of NIA, a new all-inclusive development
in Riviera Nayarit, Mexico, that will span 220 acres.
NIA will have a 240-room Ritz-Carlton and a 400-room Westin.
Both are due to open by 2023. A 300-room Autograph Collection resort and a 500-room
Marriott are expected to open by 2025.
Marriott plans to further grow its all-inclusive inventory
with its full-service and luxury brands, including Ritz-Carlton, Luxury
Collection, Marriott, Westin, W, Autograph Collection and Delta by Marriott.
The brands will deliver different experiences. For example, Marriott will cater
to families and W adults.
"We don't have a forecast for you today about how big
this [all-inclusive] business will get over time, but we do know that it is
increasingly popular among leisure travelers," Marriott International CEO
Arne Sorenson told investors during the company's Q2 earnings call on Tuesday. "Broadly,
the Caribbean is the largest market in the world for it, but you've got growing
markets in the Mediterranean area as well as Asia Pacific, and obviously our
brands are well known in those markets."
As part of the company's long-term push into the segment,
Sorenson said that Marriott will pursue resort conversions as well as new
properties.
In the second quarter, Marriott reported a systemwide
increase in revenue per available room (RevPAR) of 1.8%. North American RevPAR
was soft during the period, rising just 0.7%, while RevPAR outside North
America grew 2.8%. The company's total revenue fell nearly 2% to $5.3 billion.