London-based hospitality brand Yotel has announced its first hotel signing in Saudi Arabia.
Scheduled to open in 2025, the yet-unnamed Yotel property will also be the first hotel to open in Oxagon, a carbon emissions-free industrial city “floating” on the Red Sea as part of the Neom giga project in Saudi Arabia.
It will be located within the Research and Innovation (R&I) district of Oxagon and as such will focus heavily on technology. The 300-key hotel will showcase Yotel’s signature robotic concierges, motorised SmartBeds, and fully integrated technologies.
“Oxagon’s hotel strategy is built around several pillars including technology, which is key for integration within a wider smart-city infrastructure,” said Vishal Wanchoo, CEO of Oxagon. “After a competitive selection process, Yotel was the clear hotel brand of choice for the district, given our shared ambitions to focus on people-centric design, circularity and digital advancements.”
Guests at the Yotel hotel can access Komyuniti – the brand’s signature multi-functional dining and co-working space, a 24-hour fitness centre, a Grab-and-Go Café, and meeting spaces used to network. The surrounding areas will be walkable and connected to nearby communities through micro and autonomous mobility solutions.
Oxagon will be one of several destinations within the Neom development, all of which are set to be powered by renewable energy sources.
“We understand that the non-Stop traveller craves destinations that won’t slow them down, and Oxagon promises to be a unique destination where new tech-enabled hospitality experiences can be live-tested. It is an honour to be one of the first hotels to open within a city redefining industries through sustainable innovation,” said said Hubert Viriot, CEO of Yotel.
Yotel has said that it plans to grow both management and franchised projects in the Middle East to reach 50 hotels by 2025.
Neom has recently signed projects for other hotels too within the giga project. Neom’s Hotel Development division inked a deal with Ennismore as its inaugural hotel partner back in October last year. Two of Ennismore’s brands – 25 Hours Hotels and Morgans Originals – will open properties in Trojena, Neom’s mountain tourism destination that features a ski village.
Earlier this month, General Hotel Management signed an agreement with Neom Hotel Development to manage another property, The Chedi Trojena, which will be located within the Slope Residences in Trojena’s Relax Cluster.
