The hotel, which first opened its doors in the late 1950s, is one of the Costa del Sol’s most iconic establishments and was the first to offer golf tourism

Marbella’s Guadalmina hotel, which first opened its doors in the late 1950s, is one of the Costa del Sol’s most iconic establishments and was the first to offer golf tourism. Following a number of setbacks in the mid-2000s and a subsequent reopening in 2010, this four-star hotel is now set to be upgraded to a five-star hotel after taking advantage of Law 6/2021, of 15 November, which the Andalusian regional government approved to alleviate the economic effects of the pandemic in the tourism sector.

This was announced on Tuesday 23 May by Marbella mayor, Ángeles Múñoz following a council meeting. According to Múñoz, it will involve an investment of 55 million euros and the project is expected to generate 250 jobs.

Hotel Investment Partners (HIP) is the company behind the hotel which has two further establishments on the Costa del Sol: the Barceló hotel in Marbella, and the METT Marbella Estepona. The latter it acquired last year also with the intention of converting it into a five-star hotel.

Extension

The majority shareholder is the investment bank Blackstone Group, known for its controversial urban development operations in Spain, such as the purchase of social housing from Madrid city council.

Muñoz said that the work would begin immediately with a completion period of one and a half years. She also specified that, thanks to the aforementioned Junta de Andalucía decree, the Gualdamina hotel will undergo an extension of 1,220 square metres.

After the works, it will have 70 new rooms, bringing the total to 250, according to the mayor, who thanked the Hotel Guadalmina “for the trust and investment it is going to make in our town”.

This establishment joins seven others in Marbella that have benefited from the decree for modernisation and improvement works. In addition to the Gualdamina, the hotels Lima, Estrella del Mar, Los Monteros, El Fuerte, Pinomar, San Cristóbal and Meliá Don Pepe have all benefitted.