Holiday Inn Club Vacations Acquires Four Resorts in Mexico from Royal Resorts, Marks First International Expansion for the Company
Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated, a leading vacation ownership company and partner of IHG® Hotels & Resorts (IHG), announced today that it has acquired four scenic beachfront resorts located in Cancun, Playa del Carmen and the Riviera Maya, Mexico from Royal Resorts®, a pioneer in the Mexican Caribbean tourism industry. The acquisition also includes most of Royal Resorts’ related companies and its corporate operations. These resorts will be Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated’s first properties located outside the United States, further broadening Holiday Inn Club Vacations’ and IHG’s resort footprint and providing guests with increased choice in leisure destinations.
The four award-winning, family-friendly resorts acquired by Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated – The Royal Sands®, The Royal Cancun®, The Royal Haciendas® and Grand Residences by Royal Resorts® – collectively will add more than 850 villas to the company’s growing portfolio of destination resorts. The company expects it will take approximately one year to fully integrate the resorts, and during this process, the resorts will continue to operate normally.
Once complete, IHG Hotels & Resorts customers will be able to book these properties through IHG and enjoy benefits of IHG’s loyalty program – IHG One Rewards – including the ability to earn and redeem points for hotel stays. These properties will join IHG’s global network of 18 brands and more than 6,000 hotels globally, adding stunning family travel destinations to IHG’s growing brand portfolio.
John Staten, President and Chief Executive Officer, Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated, stated: “We couldn’t be more excited about this news and what it means for Holiday Inn Club Vacations, and most importantly, the families that travel with us. This acquisition is aligned with our growth roadmap where growing guest love and our resorts are two interconnected foundational pillars supporting our all-encompassing mission to be the most loved brand in family travel. With four incredible resorts located throughout one of the fastest growing family travel destinations in the world – the scenic Mexican Caribbean – the acquisition brings an entirely new, all-inclusive experience to our owners, Club members and guests.”
Keith Barr, Chief Executive Officer, IHG Hotels & Resorts, said: “Guests around the world will now have even more exciting choices to add to their travel plans while also enjoying the rich benefits of our IHG One Rewards program for their current and future stays. The addition of these award-winning resorts also demonstrates the strength of the Holiday Inn brand family and, certainly, founder Kemmons Wilson’s unwavering vision to create a better way to vacation lives on today.”
Spence Wilson, Board Chairman, Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated, commented: “Since my father started Holiday Inn Club Vacations more than 40 years ago, there have been many significant growth milestones along the way. Few can top today’s announcement—our first expansion outside the United States. I am incredibly proud of our team and look forward to a future that is brighter and even more exciting as we welcome the Royal Resorts team and their owners, members and guests into our family.”
Dr. Kemil Rizk, Chief Executive Officer and President of Royal Resorts, added: “We believe that it is a perfect fit, and we could not ask for a better partner to continue our legacy since welcoming our first guests in 1978. Like us, Holiday Inn Club Vacations is a pioneer company with a family-oriented resort collection and a reputation for outstanding service and quality. Holiday Inn Club Vacations is dedicated to providing memorable vacation experiences for families – something that aligns perfectly with the Royal Resorts mission and values, our points based and fixed week vacation ownership memberships and our team’s everyday commitment to quality service.”
The transaction was reviewed and received approval from the Anti-Trust Commission (Comisión Federal de Competencia Economica, COFECE) of the Mexican government. As part of a separate agreement, Tortuga Resorts UK Limited is acquiring the entities which own and operate the remaining Royal Resorts properties – The Royal Islander® and Royal Uno® All Inclusive Resort & Spa.
About the award-winning resorts Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated is acquiring from Royal Resorts
The Royal Sands
Located in Cancun, the 17-acre resort has 340 two-bedroom villas, three pools and a children’s pool, four restaurants, three bars, a fitness center, spa, supervised kids club, activity center, a lagoon-side marina for sailboats and kayaks, a resort store, coffee shop and an on-site travel agency, along with beach access.
The Royal Cancun
Located on Cancun’s north shore with views out over the bay and Isla Mujeres, the 7 -plus-acre resort has 201 two-bedroom villas and two pools, two full-service restaurants and two bars. It also has a fitness center, tennis courts, activity center and supervised kids club along with a travel agency, convenience store and gift shop. The resort has access to a beach that is perfect for children. Other popular activities at the resort are snorkeling, sail boating and kayak trips.
The Royal Haciendas
Located in the Riviera Maya, five minutes to the north of Playa del Carmen, the 23-plus acre resort has 252 two-bedroom villas with whirlpool tubs on the private balconies and features four pools, four full- service restaurants and five bars. It also has a spa, fitness center, beauty salon, dive center, travel agency, activity center, supervised kids club, children’s pool with an aqua play area, four large whirlpool tubs on the pool deck, tennis courts and a convenience store. The resort is nestled on the shores of a bay in the CoraSol resort community and is within walking distance of a golf course.
Grand Residences by Royal Resorts
Also located to the south of Cancun in the tranquil waterfront village of Puerto Morelos, Grand Residences by Royal Resorts offers beachfront luxury. The 13-plus acre resort has 62 villas with two, three or four bedrooms. The spacious, elegantly furnished units have tropical hardwood furniture, state-of-the-art appliances and amenities, private terraces, spa bathrooms and jacuzzies. Some larger units even have private plunge pools and gardens. The resort features four pools, two restaurants, a beach grill and bar, pool bar, a lobby bar café, fitness center, spa, daily activities, supervised kids club, tennis courts and a gourmet food market.
About Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated
Encompassing resorts across the United States and the Mexican Caribbean, Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated is a resort, real estate and travel company with a mission to be the most loved brand in family travel by delivering easy-to-plan, memorable vacation experiences that strengthen families.
Based in Orlando, Fla., the company has been a leader in the vacation ownership industry since 1982, when Holiday Inn® founder Kemmons Wilson debuted the company’s flagship property, Holiday Inn Club Vacations® at Orange Lake Resort, next to Orlando’s Walt Disney World® Resort.
Today, the Holiday Inn Club Vacations resort portfolio spans across the United States, and into the Mexican Caribbean, with the company’s international expansion in May 2023. Throughout its history, the company has maintained the core family values true to its founding Wilson family, while aggressively pursuing growth, transforming its member engagement model and building an industry-leading team passionate about the guest experience.
About Royal Resorts
Founded in 1975 in Cancun, Royal Resorts® is a pioneer company in Mexican Caribbean tourism and in the international vacation ownership industry. It has been welcoming visitors since 1978 to its resorts in Cancun and the Riviera Maya where families enjoy a perfect combination of beach beauty, exceptional guest services and hallmark hospitality. Spacious villas are equipped with everything they need for their stay, and they enjoy a wealth of resort amenities for an unforgettable vacation, including daily activities for all ages, kids clubs, non-motorized water sports, pools, gyms and spas and a varied dining scene.
Each resort has its own charm and character, and all have a family ambiance and a spirit of community, with friendships forged between members and employees over the years. The two Riviera Maya resorts – The Royal Haciendas and Grand Residences – have architectural designs and elements that take their inspiration from Mexico’s grand old haciendas. For more information, visit www.royalresorts.com.
About IHG Hotels & Resorts
IHG Hotels & Resorts [LON:IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] is a global hospitality company, with a purpose to provide True Hospitality for Good.
With a family of 18 hotel brands and IHG One Rewards, one of the world’s largest hotel loyalty programmes, IHG has over 6,000 open hotels in over 100 countries, and more than 1,800 in the development pipeline.
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