Canadian hospitality giant Mercan Group will invest €450 mln in eight new hotels in Lisbon and the Algarve region of Portugal.
Construction work is expected to start in 2024 and the eight properties will add 1,400 hotel rooms to Mercan Group’s portfolio.
One of the highlights is the construction of Portugal's first Hard Rock Hotel, which will be located on Vau Beach in Portimão. The hotel is expected to open in 2026 and will feature 452 luxurious rooms and suites, 150 serviced apartments, a Kids Club, multiple restaurants and bars, outdoor pools, a Rock Spa, a gym, a Rock Shop, sports facilities, a beach club, and conference room.
The Hard Rock Hotel Algarve is a partnership between Mercan Group and Hard Rock International.
In addition to the Hard Rock Hotel, Mercan Properties will also open three new hotels in Portugal before the summer of 2024.
These include the Holiday Inn Express Porto-Boavista, with 91 rooms (costing €21 mln); the Holiday Inn Express Évora, Mercan's second unit in the city, with 76 rooms (€16.8 mln); and the Holiday Inn Beja, with 95 rooms (also with a €16.8 mln price tag).
These hotels will all be managed by AHM – Ace Hospitality Management, a subsidiary of the Mercan Group.
The latest plans follow the group's successful entry into the Portuguese market in 2015 and will bring its total portfolio in the country to 30 hotels in locations such as Porto, Gaia, Matosinhos, Lisboa, Amarante, Santiago do Cacém, Évora, Beja, Madeira, and Algarve.
