Bahrain Marina Development Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Social Insurance Organization (SIO), appointed Hong Kong- based Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts as Bahrain Marina’s hotel operators, which is scheduled to open by 2022.

The Shangri-La Hotel brand will manage the hotel located in ‘Bahrain Marina” which will include 250 hotel rooms, 150 one to three bedroom suites, eight beach chalets and 21 waterfront villas.

In addition, the project will bring extensive recreational facilities and meeting facilities including five restaurants, a rooftop lounge, private beach, two outdoor pools, health club, kid’s club and a ballroom.

Chairman of Bahrain Marina Development Company, Abdulrahman Yusuf bin Yusuf Fakhro said: “We are pleased to announce that we are bringing the Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts to the Kingdom of Bahrain, which will highly contribute to the Kingdom’s national economy and the development of the tourism sector. The Shangri-La name will undoubtingly attract tourists from all across the world, and more importantly provide job opportunities for promising Bahrainis.”

Shangri-La International Hotel Management Ltd. president & COO Oliver Bonke commented: “Bahrain is a strategically important destination for Shangri-La Hotels and we are delighted to partner in this opportunity with the Bahrain Marina Development Company.”

The first phase of the Bahrain Marina project, which runs on the eastern coastline of Manama, is expected to be completed by 2020.

The mixed-use development will include a five-star luxury hotel, hotel suites, freehold apartments and waterfront villas, shopping district, fully-integrated family entertainment and educational center and a recreational waterfront space with F&B and retail spaces along with a yacht club capable of berthing a vast number of boats and yachts of different sizes.