by Joe Pike
Last updated: 5:37 PM ET, Tue August 21, 2018
Grupo Posadas' plans to expand its Live Aqua hotel brand to two Caribbean destinations.
TravelPulse got the scoop on the plans as well as updates on the company's new Live Aqua hotel in San Miguel de Allende and a planned hotel for Tulum.
Here's what we know:
Enrique Calderon, Grupo Posadas' chief operating officer, is in New York this week to promote Live Aqua's new Live Aqua Urban Resort San Miguel de Allende. The hotel will be the fifth Live Aqua hotel with the others located in Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Mexico City and Monterrey. A soft opening is slated for October with a grand opening scheduled for November, said Calderon.
Live Aqua Urban Resort San Miguel de Allende has 153 luxury rooms, making it the largest hotel in San Miguel de Allende, according to a Grupo Posadas news release.
The Live Aqua hotels in Cancun and Playa del Carmen lean heavily toward leisure clients while the Mexico City and Monterrey properties cater to the business traveler. The new Live Aqua Urban Resort San Miguel de Allende, however, is positioned to be a solid fit for both the business and leisure guest.
Live Aqua Urban Resort San Miguel de Allende has a ballroom that holds up to 1,000 people and can be divided into five separate sections, as well as a terrace. Both spaces will make for an impressive backdrop for an event.
Some amenities located at the resort's outdoor spaces include a pool and jacuzzi, chaise lounges with pillows and umbrellas for shade. The hotel also has a full gym, a beauty salon, and La Caty, a boutique of typical Mexican souvenirs. The hotel's spa has 10 treatment rooms, a pool, sauna and steam room.
The hotel's main draw is travel savvy, affluent Millennials who crave gastronomy and experiential travel in general.
"What makes this Live Aqua so great is the number of authentic experiences that happen both inside and outside of the hotel," said Calderon.
Some of the indoor offerings that might attract Millennials include a bakery making fresh food daily and a cigar bar sponsored by a popular, local tequila brand.
"San Miguel de Allende is one of the most popular colonial cities in Mexico and perhaps one the most well-kept cities," said Calderon. "Everything is always being redone, refreshed and the architecture is amazing. This is a city for gastronomy, for music, for fantastic weather."
Live Aqua's Caribbean Expansion Plans
Calderon told TravelPulse Grupo Posadas is looking to expand the Live Aqua brand into the Caribbean with eyes on both the Dominican Republic and Jamaica. He said the company is planning to construct a roughly 80-room Live Aqua Boutique Resort in Punta Cana by the end of 2020. He also told TravelPulse that a Live Aqua is being planned for Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic as well.
"That hotel will be in one of the major shopping districts of Santo Domingo," said Calderon, noting that hotel is also expected to open by 2020.
Finally, Calderon said the company has entered the preliminary, exploratory stages of an expansion to Jamaica with several projects being considered, but nothing has been finalized.
Expansion to Tulum
Calderon said Grupo Posadas is also looking to open a Live Aqua hotel in Tulum by the first quarter of 2021. This would represent Live Aqua's sixth hotel in Mexico, including the San Miguel de Allende property and assuming no Live Aqua hotels open before the Tulum one.
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