site.btaBig Hotel Chain Comes to Bulgarian Market

Big Hotel Chain Comes to Bulgarian Market

Sofia, June 9 (BTA) - A big international hotel chain is coming to the Bulgarian market, Tourism Minister Nikolina Angelkova told a Hotel & Tourism Investment Forum in Sofia Thursday. The Tourism Ministry will continue to support such initiatives because they are important for the development of both the sector and Bulgarian economy, she noted.

Angelkova specified that the chain is Hyatt International and that its first hotel in Bulgaria will be situated in the capital, in the place of the former Serdika Hotel on Vassil Levski Square in downtown Sofia, investor.bg reported. Luchezar Todorov from Terra Tour Service, which is the Bulgarian partner of Hyatt, explained that the old building will be demolished because it is dangerous and does not meet the chain's requirements. He expects the demolition to begin soon, once the corresponding permits are acquired.

The new hotel, which will be called Hyatt Regency Sofia, will be unveiled within no more than two years, said Takuya Aoyama, Vice President for Acquisitions and Development at Hyatt International responsible for the company's business in Russia and Central and Eastern Europe.

Angelkova is scheduled to meet with representatives of the investor at the Tourism Ministry later on Thursday.

The international chain also plans to open hotels at the Bulgarian seaside but wants to try the market in Sofia first, it transpired from Angelkova's words.

She said that talks are being held with five high-end hotel brands, such as Marriott International which is currently researching the Bulgarian market. These are hotel chains offering high-quality services and bringing their clients with them, Angelkova commented. In her words, this is a prerequisite for Bulgaria to gradually position itself in the market's high-end segment.

Speaking at the forum, the Tourism Minister said that four- and five-star hotels in Bulgaria reported a 4 per cent increase of tourists in 2015, with 11 million out of all 21 million overnight stays having been spent in such hotels last year. "This shows that people are looking for high quality and that we have the opportunity to expand our potential in this segment," Angelkova commented.