Partnership will give Seera Group access to IHG’s global portfolio of over 5,600 hotels
Dubai, 28 April 2019: IHG® (InterContinental Hotels Group), one of the world’s leading hotel companies, has signed a global partnership agreement with Seera Group, the largest travel and tourism company in the Middle East with a prominent local, regional and international presence. The significant direct connectivity distribution agreement, which was announced at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2019, will provide Seera Group (formerly Al Tayyar Travel Group) with access to IHG’s current global portfolio of 15 brands and over 5600 hotels, in more than 100 countries, for the leisure travel category.
Seera Group will also have access to automated real-time pricing and inventory across IHG’s portfolio.
Commenting on the signing, Pascal Gauvin, Managing Director, IMEA, IHG, said: "We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Seera Group. IHG has ambitious growth aspirations for the region, and the exciting agreement will allow us to connect with a wider audience of leisure travellers. Leisure travel is a growing category amongst the region’s domestic and outbound travellers, including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, with a number of projects initiated under the KSA National Vision 2030. Our global portfolio of well-known brands and hotels, coupled with the partnership, will allow us to be able to bring both greater awareness and choice to the travellers in the region."
The agreement will provide IHG with access to Seera Group’s extensive regional network of retail branches and call centres, as well as the group’s leading consumer travel brand Almosafer and its UAE-focused OTA tajawal, strengthening IHG’s visibility and sales capabilities.
Abdullah Al Dawood, CEO of Seera Group, said: "Our customers remain at the heart of all our transformation, expansion and partnership plans. As IHG has an extensive global footprint and an expansive property portfolio – a direct partnership agreement offers competitive rates and last-minute availability on properties worldwide, with the booking experience our customers expect. Seera Group is fast becoming the partner of choice for hotel brands looking to harness the power of the Middle East’s travel industry, and with a new partnership, IHG will gain exposure to our offline and online travellers in the region, as we have the largest travel platform in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East; with 180 million online sessions expected for 2019.
IHG currently operates 91 hotels across 6 brands in the Middle East, including: InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, voco™, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn®, Holiday Inn Express® , Staybridge Suites® and voco with a further 37 in the development pipeline due to open within the next three to five years**.
**Figures as of December 31st, 2018
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Ankita Chopra
Communications Manager, IMEA
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG)
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Niamh Queeney
Senior Account Manager
Hill & Knowlton Strategies
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Notes to Editors:
IHG® (InterContinental Hotels Group) [LON:IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] is a global organisation with a broad portfolio of hotel brands, including Regent Hotels & Resorts, InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Kimpton® Hotels & Restaurants, Hotel Indigo®, EVEN® Hotels, HUALUXE® Hotels and Resorts, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, voco™, Holiday Inn®, Holiday Inn Express®, Holiday Inn Club Vacations®, Holiday Inn Resort®, avid™ hotels, Staybridge Suites® and Candlewood Suites®.
IHG franchises, leases, manages or owns more than 5,600 hotels and approximately 837,000 guest rooms in more than 100 countries, with almost 1,900 hotels in its development pipeline. IHG also manages IHG® Rewards Club, our global loyalty programme, which has more than 100 million enrolled members.
In February 2019, IHG acquired Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas, adding 16 hotels (1,347 rooms) to its system and 18 hotels to its development pipeline.
InterContinental Hotels Group PLC is the Group’s holding company and is incorporated in Great Britain and registered in England and Wales. More than 400,000 people work across IHG’s hotels and corporate offices globally.
Visit www.ihg.com for hotel information and reservations and www.ihgrewardsclub.com for more on IHG Rewards Club. For our latest news, visit: www.ihgplc.com/media and follow us on social media at: https://twitter.com/ihgcorporate, www.facebook.com/ihgcorporate and www.linkedin.com/company/intercontinental-hotels-group
About Seera
Seera (formerly Al Tayyar Travel Group) is the most knowledgeable, accomplished and diverse provider of travel services in the Middle East and North Africa region. A balanced portfolio of brands across six verticals within the travel and tourism industry positions Seera as a significant contributor to the growth of the domestic, inbound and outbound tourism economies of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and a best-in-class business partner in unlocking the opportunities in the region. Providing technology powered travel services for consumers, businesses, government partners and religious pilgrims, Seera provides the opportunity to travel in the Kingdom, across the region, and beyond, like never before.
Seera – Imagine Where Travel Can Take Us Together