Fairmont Raffles Hotels International (FRHI) will launch two new hotels in Egypt and has announced new details regarding its previously announced tri-brand hotel development in Sharm El Sheikh, a resort destination on the tip of the Sinai Peninsula.
Citystars Properties will brand and operate all five projects, which will double FRHI’s presence in Egypt.
Situated 20 minutes from Hurghada International Airport on Egypt’s eastern Red Sea coast, Soma Bay will see the construction of the Fairmont Soma Bay, while a Swissôtel property will be introduced in Katameyah, Cairo, an up-and-coming residential, commercial, and lifestyle development. Both are scheduled to open before 2020.
“The two new signings, as well as the Sharm El Sheikh project, complement our three existing Fairmont hotels in Cairo, which are all prominent landmarks in the city,” says Sami Nasser, senior vice president of operations for the Middle East, Africa, and India for FRHI. “This increased development activity reinforces our commitment to the destination and our envisioned potential of the market.”
The 300-room Fairmont Soma Bay will be positioned within a nearly 33-million-square-foot integrated mixed-use master development with 150 Fairmont residences. Amenities will include a lobby lounge and bar, beach eatery, approximately 27,000 square feet of meeting and event space, wellness center, spa, and specialty restaurant.
The 250-room Swissôtel Katameyah will include 50 residential apartments, 38 Swiss executive club rooms, a specialty restaurant, urban café, lobby lounge, Alpine-inspired spa, and 18,000 square feet of meeting space.
FRHI’s tri-brand development will include Fairmont, Raffles, and Swissôtel properties set in an approximately 25-million-square-foot area designed by Dubai-based Godwin Austen Johnson Architects, and will feature beachfront property, an 18-hole Colin Montgomerie golf course, and Guinness World Records’ largest manmade, swimmable lagoon.
