MIAMI—InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has signed a new-build, 199-room Crowne Plaza hotel in Medellin, Colombia. The hotel will be located in Medellin’s upscale El Poblado neighborhood, occupying one of two towers in the Palmanova luxury, mixed-use development and connected to the Palma Real Multiplaza. This will be IHG’s third property in Medellin, joining the InterContinental Medellin and the Holiday Inn Express Medellin. There are nine hotels open and seven hotels in the development pipeline in Colombia across IHG’s InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Crowne Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express brands.
Slated to open in 2018, the Crowne Plaza Medellin hotel is owned by Grupo Contempo S.A.S., which also owns the Holiday Inn Express Bogota. Grupo Contempo plans to develop several other IHG-branded hotels, including three Holiday Inn Express hotels expected to open by 2015 in Bogotá’s Zona Financiera, Cartagena and Barranquilla.
Joel Eisemann, chief development officer, the Americas at IHG, commented: “Colombia is an important market for IHG in Latin America. We have solidified our presence in Colombia by partnering with outstanding groups such as Grupo Contempo. This is the fifth project we have signed with Grupo Contempo, and we are looking forward to continuing to grow with them. We are extremely enthused about this Crowne Plaza project, which will feature a modern design that is in line with the new, fresh image and direction in which the Crowne Plaza brand is going.”
The Crowne Plaza Medellin is situated at the foothills of the mountain range and will feature a ground-floor restaurant and lobby bar, a 4,500-sq.-ft. ballroom and about 1,000 sq. ft. of meeting space, as well as amenities such as the fitness center, business center and the Crowne Plaza Sleep Advantage program.
Alvaro Diago, COO, Latin America and the Caribbean, IHG, said: “We are committed to offering business travelers staying at Crowne Plaza hotels the high-touch amenities and services that enable them to be productive while on the road. We are excited to have a new hotel to meet the needs of these guests, providing them with a well-recognized hotel brand that delivers a consistent guest experience near to Medellin’s domestic and financial entities, manufacturing and production facilities and other businesses.”