Marriott International has announced plans to add six new hotels to its luxury brand Autograph Collection.
Independently owned hotel company Boscolo Hotels will place six of its hotels under one of Marriott’s newest brands from September.
The hotels will remain independently owned, paying Marriott for use of its reservations and marketing expertise. The hotel chain launched the Autograph Collection in 2010.
Hungary’s Boscolo Budapest and the Czech Republic’s Boscolo Prague will come under the moniker Autograph Collection from in September.
They will be joined by Italian hotels Boscolo Palace Roma and Boscolo Venezia this year, followed by Boscolo Exedra Roma and Boscolo Milano in 2012.
Amy McPherson, Marriott International’s president and managing director for Europe, said the new hotels would be an “incredible addition” to the brand.
“Autograph Collection is an exceptional opportunity for both Marriott and our hotel partners, as we are now able to offer truly original and independent hotel experiences to our guests and as part of Autograph Collection, our partner hotels are able to tap in to the power of Marriott’s sales and reservations engines,” she said.
“We strongly believe that Autograph Collection will continue to be a huge growth platform for us and a key component of our European expansion strategy as we seek to reach 80,000 rooms in Europe by 2015.”
By the end of 2011, Marriott expects its Autograph Collection to have grown to 40 properties in the US, Europe, Caribbean and Latin America.