PUNTA CANA. - "The most important thing is that we are going to reduce the carbon footprint by 80 percent. This makes this hotel a benchmark, not only in the Dominican Republic but worldwide," highlighted Gabriel Escarrer Jaume, CEO of Meliá Hotels International, as he announced yesterday the reconstruction of the Paradisus Punta Cana hotel, which will be demolished starting today to make way for a new complex.
President Luis Abinader broke ground alongside Tourism Minister David Collado, who indicated that the project will involve an investment of $200 million and will include 1,200 rooms.
Jaume highlighted the advantages that will characterize the new accommodation offer for visitors and commented that the hotel will be "the best in the Caribbean", as it will be "an example of quality, sustainability and a benchmark in terms of luxury".
Architect Álvaro Sans explained that the facility will be part of a new generation of hotels on a plot of land with 500 meters of beachfront, on a 35-hectare site, with two hectares of mangrove, park or protected area.
"More than a third of the plot is natural area, where the divided density is 1,440 rooms per hectare, so we are going to use about 300 to 400 fewer rooms per hectare, because we are not interested in massifying this plot," said the executive.
"What interests us is creating a unique hotel. This new generation of hotels is not only about its design, but 50 percent of it will be premium.".
According to his statement, 50% of the hotel rooms will be suites, which will be located on the two lower floors of the four that the complex will have.
25% of the hotel suite would have a private garden and private pool, and the same would apply to the rooftop, where the other 25% of the hotel would be located. It would also have a rooftop pool.
He noted that yesterday was a special day for Meliá. "From the beginning, I have held up this country as an example for its excellent public-private partnership," he stated.
He stated that in the 47 countries where Meliá operates, he always cites the Dominican Republic as an example because it is "the country that has best managed to handle COVID-19.".
"Month after month, records are being broken with the arrival of tourists, in addition to highlighting the quality and value of everything this wonderful country has to offer," he commented.
He recalled that he promised President Abinader that Meliá, with its partners, would invest more than 400 million euros and create more than 3,700 jobs.
For his part, Collado maintained that the project aligns with the Tourism Cabinet's plans to promote foreign investment in 2023.
