Melia Hotels and Resorts is launching a new all-inclusive brand and a new-look resort in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
The new Falcon’s Resorts By Melia will be the product of a partnership between Melia and global entertainment development company Falcon’s Beyond.
The plan is to unveil a series of entertainment destinations featuring resorts in “prime leisure markets,” starting with the Dominican Republic’s travel hub of Punta Cana.
Melia says it’s a concept called “resortainment,” a hospitality experience blended with entertainment experiences, including dining, shopping and entertainment venues.
Falcon’s Beyond has been working with Melia for more than 10 years with Melia on its Katmandu Park in Mallorca.
“Our partnership with Falcon’s is a tremendous opportunity to offer a distinctly different vacation experience from our competitors by incorporating immersive and interactive entertainment elements and technologies in the resort experience in ways it has never been done before,” said Vice Chairman and CEO of Meliá, Gabriel Escarrer. “We are thrilled to debut our first Falcon’s Resort by Meliá in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, an exceptional location where we’ve been operating for over 30 years and have a robust network of resorts and loyal guest base.”
The first property will be called Falcon’s Resort by Melia All Suites Punta Cana, a multi-phase transformation of two existing Melia resorts: the Paradisus Grand Cana and The Reserve at Paradisus Palma Real — a total of 622 rooms.
The first phase is slated to open in December; Melia says it will begin accepting reservations in October 2022.
That will be an all-inclusive resort with bars, restaurants, pools, swim-up suites, a water park and a kids’ camp.
The second phase, the rebrand of The Reserve at Paradisus Palma Real, will begin next year.
It’s part of a broader $350 million destination called Falcon’s Beyond Destination Punta Cana, which will feature a Katmandu theme park expected to open as early as the end of this year.
That will be followed by Falcon’s Central Punta Cana, a retail, dining and entertainment district that’s already reportedly in development.
What’s next in the Caribbean? Melia says another Falcon’s Beyond Destination will be coming to Playa Del Carmen in 2025.
“We’ve built more than a decade-long business relationship with Meliá, beginning with our successful entertainment hospitality property in Mallorca, Spain. We are delighted now to be bringing a further enhanced version of that model to Punta Cana by year-end,” said Cecil Magpuri, CEO of Falcon’s Beyond. “With Falcon’s 22-year history creating story-driven entertainment and hospitality experiences for some of the world’s largest brands, we are leveraging all of our unique expertise and capabilities for Falcon’s Resorts by Melia to deliver an unprecedented vacation experience that goes beyond expectations.”
For more, visit Melia.