60 years ago, the Chairman of Meliá, Gabriel Escarrer Juliá, rented a small hotel in Palma de Mallorca, a city that continues to proudly host a company which has now become a powerful multinational group.
From 1956 until today, the international travel and tourism industry has changed almost beyond recognition: new leading destinations in previously unknown corners of the earth, emerging countries that are signing up to mass tourism, the globalization of the travel industry thanks to the Internet ... and all of this has also led to very profound changes in the hotel industry.
Meliá Hotels International has been a pioneer and played a leading role in this six-decade journey: firstly, leading hotel development in the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands and Spanish coast, and then crossing the oceans to boost tourism in destinations such as Bali, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Cuba, among others.
Meliá today manages more than 370 hotels with nearly 100,000 rooms in 40 countries, and employs more than 42,000 people. We rank 17th in the list of the world’s largest hotel chains, we are the third largest chain in Europe, and for the third consecutive year we have been chosen as the travel company with the best corporate reputation. We are proud that we have achieved all of this while also respecting the principles of responsible tourism, promoting the sustainable development of the communities in which we operate, and creating long-term value for all our stakeholders.
Amongst the greatest strengths of our Group has always been our capacity for innovation and transformation, a vision that early on allowed us to meet challenges such as the boom in mass tourism, and which later on developed with the creation of a varied portfolio of brands and the launch of melia.com, the first hotel website with online reservations in Europe which after 20 years still remains a benchmark for innovation and the digital transformation of the industry.
This vision remains important to this day, as seen in projects such as the relaunch of the Sol Hotels brand, doyen of the resort industry in the Mediterranean area, which is transforming hotels focused on the distribution network and volume into hotels which are more differentiated and customer-focused, with a growing lifestyle component thanks to concepts such as "Sol House" "Sol Beach House" or "Sol Katmandu" hotels. And there is also our leadership in the "urban-leisure" or "bleisure" segment in our best city hotels, which is allowing us to optimize hotel occupancy, average rates and additional revenues thanks to the experience and value proposition offered to new market segments.
All this points towards a promising future, with increasing consolidation of our international presence and recognition of our brands leading to another 60 years of leadership for our company.
And none of this could have been achieved without the constant and unconditional support of our stakeholders: our customers, hotel owners, suppliers, employees, partners, journalists, etc.
And for that reason we would like to thank you today for the past, the present, and the future which we invite you to continue to build with us.
Gabriel Escarrer Jaume
Vice Chairman and CEO
From 1956 until today, the international travel and tourism industry has changed almost beyond recognition: new leading destinations in previously unknown corners of the earth, emerging countries that are signing up to mass tourism, the globalization of the travel industry thanks to the Internet ... and all of this has also led to very profound changes in the hotel industry.
Meliá Hotels International has been a pioneer and played a leading role in this six-decade journey: firstly, leading hotel development in the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands and Spanish coast, and then crossing the oceans to boost tourism in destinations such as Bali, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Cuba, among others.
Meliá today manages more than 370 hotels with nearly 100,000 rooms in 40 countries, and employs more than 42,000 people. We rank 17th in the list of the world’s largest hotel chains, we are the third largest chain in Europe, and for the third consecutive year we have been chosen as the travel company with the best corporate reputation. We are proud that we have achieved all of this while also respecting the principles of responsible tourism, promoting the sustainable development of the communities in which we operate, and creating long-term value for all our stakeholders.
Amongst the greatest strengths of our Group has always been our capacity for innovation and transformation, a vision that early on allowed us to meet challenges such as the boom in mass tourism, and which later on developed with the creation of a varied portfolio of brands and the launch of melia.com, the first hotel website with online reservations in Europe which after 20 years still remains a benchmark for innovation and the digital transformation of the industry.
This vision remains important to this day, as seen in projects such as the relaunch of the Sol Hotels brand, doyen of the resort industry in the Mediterranean area, which is transforming hotels focused on the distribution network and volume into hotels which are more differentiated and customer-focused, with a growing lifestyle component thanks to concepts such as "Sol House" "Sol Beach House" or "Sol Katmandu" hotels. And there is also our leadership in the "urban-leisure" or "bleisure" segment in our best city hotels, which is allowing us to optimize hotel occupancy, average rates and additional revenues thanks to the experience and value proposition offered to new market segments.
All this points towards a promising future, with increasing consolidation of our international presence and recognition of our brands leading to another 60 years of leadership for our company.
And none of this could have been achieved without the constant and unconditional support of our stakeholders: our customers, hotel owners, suppliers, employees, partners, journalists, etc.
And for that reason we would like to thank you today for the past, the present, and the future which we invite you to continue to build with us.
Gabriel Escarrer Jaume
Vice Chairman and CEO
