Luxury lifestyle and hospitality group Domes Resorts & Reserves is looking forward to a busy 2023 with a comprehensive expansion strategy.
Domes Resorts & Reserves, which has seven properties in Greece and a newly opened hotel in the Algarve, is working on growth plans, the first stage of which will see new resorts in Spain, Italy and Cyprus, with the second stage of this strategy including plans to have a presence in a long-haul destination.
The group is also planning on developing high-end, standalone restaurants and experiences that will then be incorporated into their hotels.
Talking about the Domes Resorts’ growth plans for 2023, Manos Vatzolas, deputy commercial director sales and marketing, said: “We are looking at really establishing the brand outside of Greece. Our first ever hotel in Portugal, Domes Lake Algarve, has proved very popular and we are keen to build on this across Europe so we are looking at opportunities in Spain, Italy and Cyprus, and a bit further down the line, we would like to add a long-haul destination to our portfolio.”
“We are also looking at trialling new high-end experiences outside of hotels, for example, creating Michelin-starred restaurants in cities such as Athens and then when we will feel that they are established and successful, we will incorporate them into our resorts as most of our guests are experienced travellers so are always looking for the best experiences on their holidays.
“This is also something that we are looking at for developing experiences; experiences that give our guests an insight into life is like for local people and how we can educate them about our local environment.
The UK is the biggest market for Domes Resorts, followed by the US and Germany, and UK travel agents play a key role in communicating Domes brand values, says Vatzolas.
“Educating the trade is very important to us. Our training platforms, active incentives and tangible benefits are really valued by the agents and operators that we work with to the extent we now have what we called ‘Dome Junkies’. These are agents that know our brands really well, have visited our resorts and know the difference between our Luxury Collection, our Autograph Collection and Domes Aulus. They are very important to us”
Reflecting on the gloomy financial outlook for the UK, Vatzolas said he is optimistic that the luxury market will ride it out. “The luxury end of the travel market is usually robust and luxury travellers will still travel, but they will just be looking for more value so we will look at how we can meet these challenges.”
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