June 6, 2002 - Group's largest establishment opens in Puerto Vallarta, will construct two hotels in Cancún and plans to expand into Cabo San Lucas

The Spanish holiday chain, RIU Hotels & Resorts has decided to focus strongly on Mexico as a key part of its latest plans for international expansion.
 
On May 15, RIU opened its largest establishment - and it's in Mexico.  The 5-star ClubHotel Riu Jalisco is set in Puerto Vallarta, on Mexico's Pacific coast, and boasts 700 rooms, all under the 'all-inclusive' banner.
 

The group has also decided to build two hotels in the city of Cancún: the 5-star, 714-room Riu Cancún, on the sea-front facing the Convention Centre, on which construction has started, and the 5-star Riu Palace Las Américas, which will have about 450 rooms, and on which building will start in the next few months.   Both will feature 'all-inclusive facilities, the formula applied in all RIU's Caribbean establishments.

Hotel Riu Cancun Opening 2003

These three will join RIU's four establishments already in operation in Playa del Carmen - The Riu Yucatán, the ClubHotel Riu Tequila, the Riu Palace México and the Riu Playacar.  Between them they offer some 2000 rooms.
 
In addition, RIU Hotels is planning to expand into Cabo de San Lucas, in the far South of the Baja California peninsula, and where building on its first establishment will start in 2003.  The enclave is based on an old fishing village which has converted into a tourism centre, complete with idyllic beaches and countless opportunities to enjoy fishing and water sports.
 
Currently, the RIU group boasts 96 hotels in 10 countries, employs 12,500 people and welcomes 1.5 million guests every year.
 
Since its creation in Mallorca in 1953, the group has concentrated exclusively on beach holidays, a sector in which it is considered the world's leading player.