TORONTO — Sunwing Travel Group’s Blue Diamond Resorts has joined forces with Marriott International in a move that will see 19 Blue Diamond Resorts properties become part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection.

With the new partnership, announced this morning, 19 Blue Diamond Resorts properties will join Marriott’s Autograph Collection by the middle of this year.

Launched in 2011 as the hotels division of Sunwing Travel Group, Blue Diamond Resorts currently has 45 properties in total, with more than 15,000 rooms, in 10 countries.

Now 11 Royalton properties, 4 Hideaway at Royalton properties, and 3 Planet Hollywood properties, plus the Grand Lido Negril Au-Naturel All-Suites Resort, will be included in Marriott’s Autograph Collection, one that spans the globe but so far only has 2 resorts in the Caribbean: Scrub Island Resort, Spa & Marina in BVI, and French Leave Resort in Eleuthera in the Bahamas.

In August 2019, after seeing the decades-long success of Spain’s hotel companies in the Caribbean and Latin America, along with other competitors, Marriott International announced that it planned to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in all-inclusive resort product, starting with several properties in the D.R. and Mexico.

In October 2019 Marriott International announced it was buying Elegant Hotels Group in a cash agreement valued at US$130.1 million, further cementing its plans to stake its claim in the all-inclusive market.

And in November 2019 Amaterra Jamaica Group has entered into a hotel management operator agreement with Marriott International for a new all-inclusive resort in Jamaica.

“We are thrilled to join forces with Marriott International and introduce our portfolio of world-class resorts, including Royalton and Planet Hollywood, to their Autograph Collection,” said Stephen Hunter, CEO, Sunwing Travel Group.

“Marriott’s prestigious reputation and esteemed travel program will further elevate our award-winning hotels, while supporting Marriott’s expansion into the all inclusive category, ultimately allowing us to make even more travellers’ vacation dreams come true,” Hunter added.

“Sunwing Travel Group’s premium, all inclusive resorts will serve as excellent additions to the Marriott portfolio, adding two new leisure destinations – St. Lucia and Antigua – to our footprint and doubling our presence in this segment,” said Tony Capuano, Group President, Global Development, Design and Operations Services, Marriott International. “We will draw on their expertise in the all inclusive segment to bring even more choices and exceptional experiences to our Marriott Bonvoy members.”

Hunter says Sunwing Travel Group will now benefit from Marriott’s worldwide distribution and partnership agreements in addition to Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott International’s loyalty program, which is comprised of over 145 million members across the globe. Marriott International is the biggest hotel chain in the world.

The agreement includes the following resorts: