REPORT FROM ITALY—Marriott International is ramping up its expansion efforts in Italy.
The international hotel chain in September added two hotels in the country to its Autograph Collection: the Boscolo Palace Roma in Rome; and the Boscolo Venezia in Venice. Two additional Boscolo hotels will join the collection during 2012, one in Milan and another in Rome.
The partnership with Boscolo—which was announced in July and will include a total of six properties in Italy, the Czech Republic and Hungary—was a strategic move toward developing a stronger footprint in Italy, said Carlton Ervin, chief development officer for Marriott in Europe.
“The partnership enhances Marriott’s strategy for Italy, and of course Rome. Being such a sought-after tourist and business destination for Marriott’s loyal customer base, enhanced growth in Italy has been and will remain a focus of Marriott’s development efforts,” he said. “By partnering with Boscolo, Marriott will now provide its guests with additional travel options in Venice, Milan and at least two properties in Rome.
“Additionally, Italy is one of Marriott’s main source markets in Europe and therefore very important from an outbound perspective,” Ervin added. “The partnership with Boscolo will enhance Marriott’s general brand awareness in the Italian traveling public and hopefully enhance Italian visitation to Marriott’s properties elsewhere in Europe.”
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Marriott has 20 hotels in Italy. The company has 273 hotels throughout Europe, with an additional 24 in the total active pipeline, according to STR Global, sister company of HotelNewsNow.com.
Expansion strategy
Marriott’s expansion strategy in Italy is a two-pronged attack. Given the country’s “great and proud tradition” of independent hotels, Ervin hopes to increase the Autograph Collection’s network.
“It is our hope that the endorsement of the Autograph Collection by the Boscolo family will cause additional Italian independent hotel owners to take note and potentially further advance the growth of the Autograph Collection in Italy,” he said.
Second, Marriott also aims to increase its brand presence in the country. Existing properties by brand include:
- AC Hotels by Marriott: 10
- Courtyard by Marriott: 3
- Marriott Hotels & Resorts: 3
- Renaissance Hotels: 2 (includes the Il Ciocco Tuscany Resort, which will be branded as the RHR Renaissance Marriott Hotel by Summer 2012)
- Autograph Collection: 2
Five of those offerings are in Rome. “Rome is a strong business and popular leisure destination, just like London and Paris, making it a very attractive and stable market,” Ervin said.
Year through August, occupancy in Rome increased 1.5%, average daily rate rose 6.6%, and revenue per available room was up 8.2% in euro terms, according to STR Global. For the country as a whole, occupancy was up 5.7%, ADR increased 3.1%, and RevPAR rose 8.9%.