The Banyon Tree Ungasan Bali (pictured) features its parent chain's signature sanctuary concept in an environmentally friendly setting.
You won't find any of the following 10 hotel chains in the United States, or even North America. That's because they're too busy building their portfolios in Asia Pacific, Africa, Europe and the Middle East to turn their expansion strategies westward. They are each at the top in their respective luxury markets, with a groundswell of loyal followers, if their social media platforms are any indicator. Planners need to know about these chains, because sooner or later they will make landfall on our soil to challenge U.S. brands on their own turf.
ANANTARA
38 properties in 12 countries
Since opening its first property in Bangkok in 2001, this Thai hotel company has become a standout in the Asia market with luxury resorts in key Asian and African markets, including Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Vietnam and Zambia. In April 2017 it opened its first European property, the 280-room Anantara Vilamoura Algarve Resort, on Portugal's resort-rich Algarve Coast. The chain has another 12 hotels in the development pipeline. After years of flying under the radar, it seems Western travelers have finally discovered the Anantara experience. Two of its hotels, the 120-room Anantara Peace Haven Tangalle Resort in Sri Lanka and the 82-room Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar Resort in Oman, were named to the Condé Nast Traveler Hot List 2017.
BANYAN TREE HOTELS & RESORTS
40 properties in 14 countries
Founded in 1994, Singapore-based Banyan Tree has carefully built a resort brand that has become synonymous with the environmentally friendly sanctuary concept. It pioneered features like tropical outdoor spas and individual pool-villa guest rooms, which other resort brands have since copied. The brand's name comes from the large banyan trees found throughout Asia Pacific that shelter travelers. Thirty years ago, after purchasing a vast expanse of coastal land on Thailand's Phuket Island for its first development, the company's founders discovered it was severely polluted, thanks to a former tin mine. Rather than walk away, they cleaned the soil, planted more than 7,000 trees and transformed what had been an ecological wasteland into the chain's first resort, the 100-villa Banyan Tree Phuket. In 2016, the company formed a marketing alliance with AccorHotels and announced plans to open four more resorts by 2020, three in China and one in Indonesia.
BARCELÓ HOTELS & RESORTS
73 hotels in 17 countries
This is the original brand, and the most prestigious, of the 85-year-old Barceló Group, based in Palma, Majorca, and which in 2015 acquired Occidental Hotels & Resorts. Known for its upscale urban hotels and resorts featuring signature spas, golf and multiple dining experiences, the bulk of Barceló's properties (33 to be exact) are in Spain, but it also has a presence in other Spanish-speaking destinations, including Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic and Mexico, where it currently has 21 hotels. Later this year, the company finally will plant a flag in Mexico City, when the former 500-room Krystal Grand on the city's major thoroughfare, Avenida Reforma, is reflagged the Barceló Mexico Reforma. In January 2016, it opened yet another stunner, the 146-room Barceló Emperatriz in Madrid, housed in a former 19th-century palace in the city's Salamanca neighborhood.
GRAND FIESTA AMERICANA HOTELS & RESORTS
8 properties in Mexico
This luxury, all-inclusive, Mexico City-based hotel chain is the top dog in parent Grupo Posadas' stable of eight chains ranging from budget and limited-service to Live Aqua, its adults-only lifestyle brand. Since it debuted in 1998, the company has planted flags in key destinations in Mexico, including Cancún, Los Cabos and Mexico City, in the process becoming the largest hotel operator in that country. At the 602-room Grand Fiesta Americana Coral Beach Cancún Resort and Spa, which has over 80,000 square feet of meeting space, the top two floors are dedicated to the Grand Club, which in addition to superior guest rooms provides lavish services such as a dedicated lounge and private concierge service.
JUMEIRAH HOTELS & RESORTS
21 properties in 9 countries
Mind-bending architecture, flawless design and over-the-top luxury are the hallmarks of this Dubai-based chain, which has expanded into China and Europe. Chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royces, rooftop helipads for private helicopter access and a host of personal butlers are par for the course. Small wonder that "Stay Different" is this brand's tagline. Jumeirah is best known for the distinctive sail-shaped silhouette of the 202-room Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, which opened in Dubai in 1999 and set the architectural world on a bender that hasn't stopped. The chain has 14 hotels in its development pipeline, including seven in key cities in China.
KEMPINSKI HOTELS & RESORTS
76 properties in 31 countries
While the majority of this chains' hotels can be found in China, Kempinski, which celebrates its 120th anniversary this year, was founded in Berlin. Kempinski properties are a luxurious mélange of historic grand dames and high-rise new-builds that exude fine design and promise elite, personal service. This strictly hotel-management company plans to add 22 properties to its portfolio by 2020, including its first in the Caribbean later this year. The 246-room Gran Hotel Manzana Kempinski La Habana, set to open later this year in Cuba, is housed in the historic Manzana de Gómez building in the heart of Old Havana, a UNESCO World Heritage site. If the surrounding hype pans out, it will add serious glamour to Havana's hotel scene.
LIBERTADOR HOTELS, RESORTS & SPAS
8 properties in Peru
This family-owned chain, based in Lima, Peru, is little-known outside of its home base. But that is quickly changing, as a recent alliance with Starwood Hotels & Resorts' Luxury Collection combined with the long marketing and distribution arm of Marriott International, with its millions of loyalty members worldwide, is quickly taking the Libertador brand global. The group's hotels include standouts such as the 203-room Palacio del Inka, a Luxury Collection Hotel, in the heart of Cusco, which recently wrapped up a $15 million renovation. The 128- room Tambo del Inka, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, is in Peru's Sacred Valley, en route to famed archaeological site Machu Picchu. It is the only resort in the region with its own private train station.
The Oberoi Rajvilas, Jaipur, in India,
takes sumptuousness to a new level.OBEROI HOTELS & RESORTS
18 properties in 6 countries
Founded in 1934, this Indian hotel chain, which enjoys a reputation in its homeland for ultra-luxury and legendary service, is now building a worldwide following as it expands its portfolio. Standard for the brand are sumptuous private villas, enormous suites, multiple fine-dining outlets, luxury spas and unique local experiences. In 2016, the 113-villa Oberoi Beach Resort, Al Zorah, opened in Dubai on 240 acres with a championship 18-hole golf course, 5,000 square feet of meeting space and a full-service spa. Set to open by the end of this year is the 77-villa Oberoi Marrakech, Oberoi's first in Morocco, on 25 acres of citrus orchards and olive groves. Each villa will have its own private pool.
The Raffles Istanbul bears all
the stylish hallmarks of the brand.RAFFLES HOTELS & RESORTS
10 properties in 9 countries
This small but storied brand dates to 1887, when the 103-suite Raffles Singapore, the brand's flagship, opened its doors. A century later, this magnificent colonial hotel, where the Singapore Sling cocktail was invented, was declared a National Monument by the Singapore government. By the end of 2017, the hotel will be closed for the final stages of a renovation begun earlier this year, with a grand reopening planned for 2018. Five more properties are in the development pipeline for Toronto-based Raffles, which in 2016 was acquired by French hospitality group AccorHotels. Among them are several new destinations for the brand, including London, Warsaw and Egypt.
ROCCO FORTE HOTELS & RESORTS
11 properties in 9 countries
Each property in this small, family-owned company was chosen for its landmark status and then carefully renovated to maintain its individual identity, infused with all the trappings of modern luxury lodging. The iconic landmark Balmoral in Edinburgh, Scotland, for example, began life as a grand railroad hotel. Under the guidance of Sir Rocco Forte, the London-based brand's chairman who founded the chain in 1966, each hotel is run independently. Having planted flags in key European cities such as Berlin, Brussels, London and Milan, the brand has announced that it would like to double its portfolio in the next five years, with an emphasis on the Middle East and Asia. On the near horizon is the addition of a second entry in Rome, the 105-room Hotel De La Ville, now being revamped for a mid-2018 debut.