Marriott International and Catalonia Hotels & Resorts Sign Dual All-Inclusive Resort Agreements in Montego Bay and Zanzibar

Marriott International and Catalonia Hotels & Resorts have signed two agreements to bring all-inclusive resorts to Montego Bay, Jamaica and Zanzibar, Tanzania, the companies announced July 23. The agreements, executed July 22 in Barcelona, will add a Marriott International All-Inclusive Resort and an Autograph Collection All-Inclusive Resort to Marriott's expanding global leisure portfolio.

Montego Bay Conversion: 522-Room Marriott Hotels Resort Slated for 2028

The Jamaica project involves the conversion of the former Catalonia Montego Bay into a 522-room Marriott Hotels All-Inclusive Resort, with an expected opening in 2028. The beachfront property is located near Sangster International Airport and is planned to feature 13 dining venues, three pools, approximately 12,917 square feet of meeting space, a spa, fitness center, tennis and pickleball courts, a lazy river, and more than 2,130 linear feet of beachfront.

As a conversion rather than a ground-up development, the project repositions an existing asset under a higher-profile flag while leveraging existing site entitlements and improvements. The roughly two-to-three-year execution window through 2028 reflects a timeline typical of resort-scale renovations in the Caribbean, where permitting, coastal works, and import logistics can extend construction schedules.

"These agreements represent a significant milestone in our all-inclusive strategy and demonstrate the strength of our relationships with experienced owners seeking to maximize value through Marriott's globally recognized brands," said Laurent de Kousemaeker, Chief Development Officer, Caribbean and Latin America for Marriott International. "Catalonia already knows Marriott through its ownership of Renaissance Barcelona Fira Hotel, and we are delighted to expand our collaboration through two distinctive resorts in highly desirable leisure destinations."

Zanzibar New Build: Autograph Collection Resort Targeting 2027 Opening

The second agreement calls for a new-build Autograph Collection All-Inclusive Resort in Zanzibar, Tanzania, with an expected opening in 2027. The property is planned to include 271 guestrooms with a wellness-focused concept. Amenities are planned to include multiple swimming pools, a spa, a theater, an oceanfront jetty with a seawater pool and bar, and a diverse culinary program with multiple specialty restaurants.

The Zanzibar resort is a development play in an emerging international leisure market. The Autograph Collection brand's emphasis on individually tailored properties allows design flexibility, enabling Catalonia to shape the product around Zanzibar's natural and cultural context while connecting to Marriott's global distribution platform. Project cost, financing structure, and parcel details have not been released.

"These signings highlight Marriott's ability to grow strategically across multiple regions while serving owners with differentiated solutions tailored to local market opportunities," said Jerome Briet, Chief Development Officer, Europe, Middle East and Africa for Marriott International. "The addition of this Autograph Collection Resort in Zanzibar represents an important step in our all-inclusive expansion across the EMEA region."

Expanding Marriott's All-Inclusive Pipeline

As of July 2026, Marriott reports 38 open all-inclusive properties across nine markets in the Caribbean and Latin America under seven brands, with 16 properties representing approximately 5,600 rooms in the CALA development pipeline. In the Europe, Middle East and Africa region, Marriott's all-inclusive pipeline includes four properties representing nearly 1,990 rooms. The two Catalonia agreements add to both pipelines — Montego Bay to CALA and Zanzibar to EMEA.

All-inclusive resorts can generate stable, recurring cash flow by packaging room, food and beverage, and ancillary spending, making them attractive to long-term yield investors and institutional vehicles seeking exposure to leisure real estate. Marriott's approach centers on management and franchise fees rather than direct ownership, allowing it to scale fee revenue without significant balance-sheet exposure.

Marriott Bonvoy, the company's loyalty platform, currently counts nearly 283 million members, providing a demand channel that owner-operators such as Catalonia can access through brand affiliation agreements.

Catalonia's Strategic Rationale

Catalonia Hotels & Resorts, a family-owned company founded in Barcelona in the early 1980s, currently owns, leases, and operates 82 hotels totaling more than 12,000 rooms across 25 destinations. Its portfolio spans urban hotels in Spain and Europe as well as leisure resorts in the Caribbean, including properties in Mexico and the Dominican Republic. The company also owns the Renaissance Barcelona Fira Hotel, establishing a prior working relationship with Marriott's brand standards and systems.

"We are pleased to strengthen our relationship with Marriott International through these two significant projects," said Manuel Valenzuela, Chief Commercial & Operations Officer of Catalonia Hotels & Resorts. "This agreement reflects leading international brands' recognition of our operational excellence and the strength of our management model. It also aligns with the company's expansion strategy, including collaborations that support our growth in strategic markets."

Under the structure of both agreements, Catalonia retains its role as owner-operator while gaining access to Marriott's global brand affiliation and distribution platform — a hybrid model that can support higher average daily rates and occupancy without surrendering operational control. The Montego Bay conversion follows a value-add repositioning approach: deploying capital to upgrade an existing asset and rebrand it under a higher-profile flag rather than undertaking full ground-up development.

Market Outlook

The two agreements reflect Marriott's continued effort to expand its fee-generating all-inclusive segment in high-growth leisure markets. Montego Bay is one of Jamaica's most established resort destinations, offering strong airlift through Sangster International Airport. Zanzibar represents a newer frontier for branded all-inclusive product in the EMEA region, where Marriott has a comparatively smaller all-inclusive footprint relative to its Americas operations.

No financial terms for either agreement were disclosed.

Sources

Marriott International Press Release, PR Newswire, July 23, 2026