Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide has opened its second Westin hotel in Panama, as part of plans to aggressively expand the brand throughout Latin America.
The Westin Panama, the seventh hotel in Starwood’s portfolio in Panama, features 218 rooms, including 45 suites and 14,460ft² of meeting and function space.
The hotel, which is located in the corporate and financial centre of Costa del Este, is the third Starwood property developed and operated by Panama-based hotel developer and operator Bern Hotels & Resorts.
Bern Hotels & Resorts Panama vice-president Glen Champion said: "Our partnership with Starwood has accelerated the introduction of high-calibre global hotel brands in Panama, one of the most dynamic markets in Latin America."
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Americas co-president Osvaldo Librizzi said: "In the past few years, Starwood has emerged as one of the leading global hospitality companies in Panama, which is experiencing an influx of foreign investment and large-scale infrastructure improvements, including the soon-to-be-completed enlargement of the Panama Canal."
Over the past two years, Starwood has added more than 2,500 rooms and Westin has almost doubled its portfolio in Latin America in the last 18 months.
Westin now has 12 hotels across Latin America, in Panama, Mexico, Peru, Costa Rica and Guatemala.
Westin Hotels & Resorts global brand leader Brian Povinelli said: "The phenomenal success of the Westin brand’s distinct wellness positioning has attracted great interest among owners and developers in many of the world’s fastest growing economies."
The company is set to open its 200th hotel in 2013 and plans to open the majority of its new hotels outside of North America.
