Rezidor, one of the most dynamic hotel companies worldwide and a member of the Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, signed five new hotels with over 1,000 rooms and opened five properties with 940 rooms in the first quarter of 2013. At the end of Q1 2013, Rezidor’s operating portfolio comprises 338 hotels with over 74,000 rooms in 56 countries across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

“The signing of new projects in Nigeria, Turkey, Ukraine and Russia underlines our commitment to strategic, asset-light and profitable growth in the Emerging Markets of Russia and Africa”, commented Wolfgang M. Neumann, President & CEO at Rezidor. The key signing was the Radisson Blu Sheremetyevo Airport Hotel, Moscow which will be the only hotel with a direct walkway link to the terminals. Sheremetyevo International Airport has the largest capacity of any airport in Russia and serves over 22 million passengers annually. “With this agreement Rezidor continues to fortify its position as the leading international hotel operator in Russia/CIS and as one of Europe’s most important airport hotel operators”, said Elie Younes, Senior Vice President & Head of Group Development at Rezidor. In Russia/CIS, Rezidor’s portfolio comprises 32 hotels with 8,700 rooms in operation and 28 hotels with 6,700 rooms under development.
Rezidor’s recent openings, including the flagship Radisson Blu Hotel, Maputo, Mozambique also strengthen the group’s leading position in Emerging Markets: Across all of Africa, Rezidor is operating and developing 49 hotels with almost 10,000 rooms, and has the largest pipeline of hotels under development in sub-Saharan Africa.

Rezidor’s openings in Q1 2013 – all under management and franchise contracts – are:
Radisson Blu Riverside Hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden - 265 rooms
Radisson Blu Hotel, Maputo, Mozambique - 154 rooms
Radisson Hotel, Rosa Khutor, Russia - 181 rooms
Park Inn by Radisson Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, Netherlands - 150 rooms
Radisson Blu Hotel, Dortmund, Germany - 190 rooms
Total 940 rooms

Asset & Contract Management continues to be another strategic priority for Rezidor. In line with Rezidor’s asset-light strategy, two leased hotels in Sweden have been converted to franchises, the Park Inn by Radisson Malmö and Park Inn by Radisson Hammarby Sjöstad. As part of the group’s turnaround programme Route 2015, Rezidor also announced the renegotiation and extension of two important leases in Western Europe: the Radisson Blu Hotel, Amsterdam and the Radisson Blu Hotel, Wiesbaden. The Radisson Blu Hotel, Amsterdam is one the most prominent properties in the company’s portfolio, benefitting from a prime location in one of the best performing hotel markets in Europe. The hotel is undergoing a large-scale renovation, partly funded by the owner. Meanwhile the Radisson Blu Wiesbaden – Germany’s oldest luxury hotel – will undergo a major joint renovation to give new life and grandeur to this historic landmark. “I am very happy with these extensions. They will be margin enhancing and thereby supportive of our Route 2015 turnaround plan”