Gran Caribe, one of Cuba's foremost hotel groups operating four and five star properties on the Caribbean island, has accepted St Giles Hotels' bid to renovate and manage the Hotel Deauville, located in the heart of Havana. This makes St Giles the first UK-based hotel brand to enter the Cuban market.
Currently operating as a three-star hotel, the property is scheduled to reopen in 2019 as The Deauville -- a St Giles Signature Hotel. Located on the Malecón, Cuba's famous seaside promenade, and overlooking Havana Bay, the property offers a centrally located base to explore both Old Havana and the Vedado district. The new hotel will include a rooftop bar and gym overlooking Havana.
"We are incredibly excited and honored to have been distinguished with this opportunity," says Abigail Tan-Giroud (pictured above), St Giles hotels head of UK, Europe, and The Americas. "Our success in hotel development and management, vast experience in construction, and our brand's value of preserving culture and enhancing communities, puts St Giles Hotels in a prime situation to partner with the Cuban government on re-developing this gem in Havana. And of course being the first UK hotel group to be granted entry is a bonus."
This is the first property in St Giles Hotels' planned expansion into Cuba and the Caribbean, and it marks the 11th hotel in the St Giles portfolio, keeping pace with Tan-Giroud's vision for 20 hotels by 2020. In 2015, the company opened The Wembley -- a St Giles Hotel, in Penang, Malaysia, and The Tank Stream -- a St Giles Hotel, in Sydney, Australia.