The onetime palace of a Lao prince is shifting into the portfolio of accommodations managed by the Spanish resort group, Meliá Resorts Worldwide. The Grand Luang Prabang would be the first resort in Laos to hitch Melia Resorts Worldwide’s rising presence within the area.
The Luang Prabang property will bear a 12-month rebranding course of to develop into the primary member of the Melia Assortment in Southeast Asia. Meliá Assortment accommodations had been launched in 2022 to convey collectively a number of the group’s most distinctive and one-of-a-kind properties. Because the one-time palace of a Lao prince, the Lao property has the form of distinctive story that distinguishes a set resort. With its wealthy tradition and structure the vacation spot of Luang Prabang has held UNESCO World Heritage standing for twenty years.
“For the Meliá household, we’re extraordinarily joyful to start our journey in Laos with this extraordinary resort,” mentioned Gabriel Escarrer, Chairman and CEO of Meliá Resorts Worldwide. “We anticipate locations like Luang Prabang to develop into extra common with fashionable vacationers who’re searching for new and distinctive experiences, and I’m positive that this resort, with its unmistakable sense of place, will allow visitors to completely benefit from the vacation spot.”
Located on lush riverside in Luang Prabang, The Grand Luang Prabang is a 75-key property unfold out over eight buildings, comprising of a 1920-built palace and a set of annexes. The property instructions the excessive floor of a six-hectare bluff on a bend of the Mekong with sweeping views of mountains and river, and majestic sunsets.
As soon as often called Xiengkeo Palace, the roots of the property attain deep into French colonial-style structure, albeit with decidedly Laotian touches. Prince Petcharath, the aristocrat who as soon as lived on the grounds, is well-known amongst Laotians and held a tenure as prime minister throughout World Warfare II.
Balconies from visitor rooms overlook manicured gardens and lotus ponds, and the environs past. Interiors ooze attraction via conventional wood furnishings and timeless appointments. The property additionally options an expansive swimming pool within the gardens. Meliá plans so as to add Spanish hospitality to the combo, whereas guaranteeing the resort retains its distinct character.
“Luang Prabang is a hidden gem in Asia, steeped in a lot historical past and tradition with a myriad of historical temples and monasteries,” mentioned Ignacio Martin, Managing Director Asia Pacific at Meliá Resorts Worldwide. “We wish to immerse visitors within the story right here via a resort that’s actually a part of the attractive essence of this vacation spot.”
Underneath Meliá’s umbrella the resort will bear a renovation and refurbishment over the subsequent 12 months, remaining operational all through.
Meliá Resorts Worldwide landed in Asia for the primary time within the Nineteen Eighties with the opening of Meliá Bali. Since then, the area has develop into strategically vital for the group, the place it at present has a portfolio of 50 properties (working and within the pipeline) in Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, China and Laos.
The primary Lao property expands on a partnership with Thailand-based TCC Group that started with the opening of Meliá’s first resort in Vietnam over twenty years in the past.