Emaar to manage new Armani hotel in Saudi Arabia’s Diriyah development

Armani Hotels & Resorts and Diriyah Gate Development Authority (DGDA) have announced plans to open a Armani Hotel in the city of Diriyah, which is located within the province of Riyadh in Saudi Arabia.

The property in Diriyah will be managed by the Dubai’s Emaar Hospitality Group. It will be only the third Armani hotel worldwide after Dubai and Milan.

Armani Hotels & Resorts was founded in 2005 by way of an agreement signed between Giorgio Armani and Emaar Properties for the development, ownership and management of an exclusive series of hotels, resorts and residences across the world.

The first hotel Armani hotel opened inside the Burj Khalifa in 2010. Armani Hotel Dubai spans more than 40,000 square metres and comprises 160 rooms and suites, nine restaurants and a spa. Armani Hotel Milano, the second hotel opened by Giorgio Armani in collaboration with Emaar Properties, is located in the rationalist-style building originally designed in 1937 by Enrico A. Griffini on Via Manzoni, in the Quadrilatero della Moda, Milan’s fashion district.

Diriyah, the location for the third Armani hotel, is a 300 year-old site located 15 minutes from Riyadh is regarded as the birthplace of the kingdom and the capital of the First Saudi State.

The third Armani property globally, Armani Hotel Diriyah will be developed by Diriyah in collaboration with Giorgio Armani and his in-house interior design team and the architects who are involved in the design of the development.

Overlooking Diriyah’s ultra-luxury hospitality and retail quarter, it will include 70 rooms, two restaurants and a spa, with suites having their own spa and a swimming pool, offering several wellness, hospitality and relaxation experiences.

The hotel is connected to approximately 18 exclusive self-contained ultra-luxury Armani Branded Residences – designed and furnished by Armani – with outdoor pools, landscaped terraces and rooftops.

“Armani Hotel Diriyah allows me to interpret my idea of lifestyle and hospitality in a particularly subtle and embracing way. After celebrating the tenth anniversary of the opening of the Armani Hotels in Milan and Dubai, I am ready to take on this exciting new challenge,” said Giorgio Armani.

Upon completion, Diriyah will comprise 13 unique districts inclusive of museums, cultural institutions, fine dining, residences, hospitality offerings, office space, retail, and outdoor attractions. The area is home to the UNESCO World Heritage Site, At-Turaif, the valley and palm groves of Wadi Hanifah, and will soon include the Diriyah development, an acclaimed pedestrian-centric project.

Diriyah Development Company, a subsidiary of Diriyah Gate Development Authority, recently awarded a SAR1.2bn transportation contract to Nesma & Partners. The contract to Nesma, one of Saudi’s largest industrial and engineering companies, covers the construction of a network of road tunnels, ramps and a major bridge deck that will form the principal Diriyah Interchange on Riyadh’s Western Ring Road (WRR).

Read: Diriyah: Nesma awarded SAR1.2bn transportation contract