In addition to its leadership position in the luxury hotel sector, which is constantly being strengthened, the Marriott group can count on its select service brands and its collections of boutique hotels to maintain the growth of its offer in France and Europe. Spearheading this expansion, Moxy Hotels is now very close to the 100-establishment mark on the continent, including 11 in France. With industrial design as a common thread mixed with local references, its interpretation of accessible lifestyle hotels continues to fuel developments.
" 2025 will be the year of Moxy" warns Alexandra Goguet, vice-president of development for France and Benelux at Marriott International. Already in 2024, the brand has been able to boast a number of landmark openings. Particularly in France, with new hotels inaugurated last month in Clamart, near Paris, and AnnecyThe brand has also arrived in Spain, in Barcelona, with a 414-room hotel close to the Barcelona-Sants TGV station, and soon in Istanbul, near Taksim Square, the result of the conversion of a historic building, the Afrikahan, dating from 1905. Another ideal location for business trips, the lifestyle brand accompanied the American group's first steps in Luxembourg with a 129-room hotel directly connected to the airport.
By 2025, business travellers will be able to find Moxy near Brussels airport and in Antwerp in Belgium, close to many company headquarters in Dublin, in the docklands district, as well as in Zurich and Lisbon, for its third establishment in the Portuguese capital. At the same time, the chain, which made its first appearance at Milan Malpensa airport in 2014, is preparing to strengthen its offering in its native Italy, with openings planned in Pompei and Verona. As for France, the city of Nice is also on the brand's books for next year, with Le Havre on the horizon, where we'll be revisiting the former campus of the EM Normandie business school.
Already offering 70 establishments in France, the Marriott group - world leader in the hotel industry with more than 1.5 million rooms in 9,100 hotels and almost 220 million members of its Marriott Bonvoy loyalty programme - is demonstrating its intention to strengthening its presence in major cities and secondary markets. This was the case this year in Nice, for example, with the luxurious Hôtel du CouventThis will also be the case next year, with around ten projects in the pipeline. This will also be the case next year, with around ten projects in the pipeline.
" Our hotels attract both business and leisure travellers. Hence our desire to develop both in city centres and, increasingly, in resort destinations." explains Alexandra Goguet, taking as an example the Bastide de Mougins, a boutique hotel on the Côte d'Azur which will carry the Tribute Portfolio brand. In parallel, for business travellersA number of openings have been announced, including a Courtyard by Marriott near Eurexpo in Lyon, a Residence Inn near Lille station for long stays, a Fairfield in Bordeaux and a Four Points by Sheraton in Reims. As for the new Four Points Flex by Sheraton brand, which was recently launched, there could be announcements soon about its future arrival in France.
However, Marriott's expansion will not be limited to France in 2025. VP of the Western Europe and Maghreb region, Ronny Maier - noting that individual business travellers are making a full comeback and that small meetings are holding up well in his hotels, while the real upturn in major corporate events is expected soon - described one of the major developments for the group next year, that of the Luxembourg Marriott Hotel Alfa. Expected to open in March, this iconic Art Deco-style hotel, located opposite Luxembourg station, will rediscover the thread of its history dating back to the 1930s, suspended since its closure in 2017. It will offer travellers 153 rooms and suites, an executive lounge and five meeting rooms, as well as an upmarket brasserie decorated with original paintings by local artist Julien Lefèvre.
The American group is also preparing to discover a new country in the first quarter of 2025, Mauritania, with the Sheraton Nouakchott. " A fabulous project for what will be the first five-star hotel in this country to open up to tourism" says Ronny Maier. Located in the business district, the hotel will offer 162 rooms and 38 suites, three restaurants and an outdoor swimming pool, as well as more than 1,500 m² dedicated to hosting meetings and events.
Another major project of the year, more directly affecting the business target, is the return to favour - and with grace - of a star of the Madrid hotel sceneopened in 1912 at the request of King Alfonso XIII. Formerly known as The Westin Palace Madrid, the hotel has undergone a major transformation to begin a new chapter as The Palace, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Madrid. Located on the Plaza de las Cortez, next door to the Prado and Thyssen-Bornemisza museums, the hotel is due to reopen in the first quarter of next year, offering 470 completely refurbished rooms and a vast space for exclusive meetings and events, with a total of 20 rooms and over 2,500 m² of MICE space.
At the same time as this move from one brand to another within the Marriott portfolio, another of the group's brands, W Hotels, will see the culmination of a repositioning exercise undertaken three or four years ago. Launched more than 25 years ago on the model of New York's flagship boutique hotels, the brand is turning away from its original cocktail-clubbing mix to focus more on its core values. to a more polished lifestyle hotelmore upmarket too. " Unleashed luxury" As Agnieszka Rog-Skrzyniarz, Vice President of Marriott's luxury brands in Europe, describes it, the emphasis is on high-quality materials and furnishings, and even more so on an enhanced restaurant offering, based around renowned chefs.
This new sophisticated spirit has already been present in Budapest since 2023 - with the transformation of the historic Drechsler Palace into a lifestyle hotel - and recently in Prague with the metamorphosis of the Grand Hotel Evropa, with its emblematic Art Nouveau style. And it will continue next year in Florencejust a stone's throw from the Ponte Vecchio. As for a return of the brand to Paris, where it was once present near the Opéra? Agnieszka Rog-Skrzyniarz's answer is unsurprisingly: " I dream of it" .
