InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has inked a deal to oper- ate the world’s largest Holiday Inn in The Holy City of Makkah in Saudi Arabia.
The hospitality firm has signed a management agreement with Al Majd Al Arabiah Company for Holiday Inn Makkah Abraaj Al Tayseer, which will offer a staggering 5,154 rooms across five towers. It will be built on the site of the current Abraaj Al Tay- seer pilgrim accommodation and open in phases.
Nearly 1,650 rooms across two towers will open by the end of this year. The remaining 3,500 rooms are slated to open over the next three years.
IHG is one of the largest in- ternational hotel groups in Saudi Arabia with 25 hotels (5,900 rooms) operating across three brands – InterContinental, Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn.
The company has nine prop- erties in the pipeline due to open in the next three to five years, including the world’s second larg- est Holiday Inn, also due to open in Makkah in 2016.
Holiday Inn Makkah Abraaj Al Tayseer will offer guests privi- leged views of the Al-Masjid al- Haram (The Grand Mosque), located just 900 metres away.
Each tower will house one large all-day dining restaurant with menus tailored for guests travelling in groups. The proper- ty will capitalise on the growing number of pilgrim visits to Mak- kah each year, on track to more than double from two million in 2013 to five million by 2025.
