Iberostar Group announces expansion and record results in 2024

2024 has been an exceptional year for the Iberostar Group. The company closed the 2024 financial year with managed revenues of €4,468 million, a 17% increase compared to 2023, driven by the growth of its two divisions: Iberostar Hotels & Resorts and World2Meet.

Sabina Fluxá, Vice President and CEO of Grupo Iberostar, highlighted that “2024 has been a record year for Grupo Iberostar. Growth and profitability have gone hand in hand to boost all areas of our activity. In 2025, we will continue to strengthen the essential pillars of our business strategy: quality in the customer experience and the training and development of talent, highlighting our responsible tourism model to continue generating a positive impact.”

The Group remains focused on nurturing talent. The company has added 1,800 people to its workforce by 2024, exceeding 37,000 employees globally, and continues to work to boost internal talent, promoting their professional growth and well-being.

Iberostar Hotels & Resorts. Openings and focus on guest experience

The hotel division, which closed 2024 with 31,500 rooms in its 100 establishments in 14 countries, stands out for its positive results and is the cornerstone of the Group's profitability at a global level. The continued increase in demand in key issuing countries, as well as an investment policy in its assets over recent years, have enabled an increase in revenue per available room (RevPAR) of 8% (vs. 2023), thus achieving total managed revenue of €2.18 billion, a figure that marks an increase of 8% compared to the previous year, with an associated growth in EBITDA of 13%.

With a positive balance across all regions, global results have been driven particularly by the excellent data obtained in EMEA, where an increase in ADR of 9% compared to 2023 and growth of more than 12% in RevPAR have been recorded.

For Phil McAveety, CEO of Iberostar Hotels & Resorts: “In the hotel division, investments planned for 2025 will be close to 210 million euros and reinforce our long-term vision, as well as the company's commitment to offering new destinations and exceptional experiences to each guest.”

With a 92% satisfaction rate for its guests' experience in 2024, the company is focusing its expansion plan on new destinations and countries where it is already present, through the opening of five new establishments located on the seafront. In addition to JOIA Aruba by Iberostar, its first hotel on the Caribbean island, which will open in December 2024, the company has just opened two hotels in Miami, Iberostar Waves Berkeley Shore and Iberostar Waves Miami Beach. In addition, it plans to open two new establishments in spring: Iberostar Selection Es Trenc, in Mallorca, a Mediterranean-style hotel on the Balearic island, and Iberostar Selection Mirage Hammamet, in Tunisia, which will become the chain's 8th hotel in the country. Under its Iberostar Cuba Hotels & Resorts brand, it will open the Iberostar Selection La Habana, its twentieth hotel in Cuba.

Throughout 2025, the company will continue to invest in the transformation of its hotel facilities in Spain (Mallorca, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote), Mexico and the Dominican Republic.

Iberostar's wave of change

Iberostar Wave of Change is the roadmap for its responsible tourism model. The movement is based on seven pillars that encompass the social, governance and environmental dimensions: caring for our people, destination management, nature, blue foods, climate action, circular economy and responsible growth.

Under these pillars, the company is executing a solid action plan. Over the past year, Iberostar has grown its 3R department to 250 people, a global team working to eliminate waste sent to landfill. Also in 2024, the company achieved that more than 90% of the fish and seafood offered in its hotels were responsibly sourced and continued to promote its multinational reef program with eight active underwater coral nurseries in the Caribbean. In addition, and in line with its desire to promote more inclusive tourism, until the end of 2024, more than 200 young professionals from Spain and Mexico participated in its Dual FP program that trains students by combining theoretical learning and practical application in its hotels.

Iberostar already has an internal team of more than 30 scientists and specialists who collaborate with the public and private sectors and the scientific community, promoting innovation and collaboration in sustainability strategies aimed at achieving a real impact on the company's operations and also in the destinations in which it is present.

Mundo2Meet

The Iberostar Group's travel division, World2Meet, closed a 2024 full of milestones that strengthen its position in the tourism sector. At the end of 2024, the World2Fly airline announced the addition of new international routes, which will begin operating in 2025: La Romana (Dominican Republic) from Madrid, Mauritius (Indian Ocean) and Montego Bay (Jamaica), expanding its network of connections from the airports of Madrid and Lisbon. In 2025, the airline will also include already consolidated destinations such as Zanzibar and Uzbekistan, along with Cali, which began operations in 2024. Together with Newblue, its vacation tour operator, both are positioned as the airline and tour operator with the most extensive schedule on the market to the Caribbean, Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Cuba, with a total of 20 weekly frequencies during the summer on direct flights.

The tour operator Newblue has diversified its programming with the addition of Madeira and Cape Verde, two destinations that reinforce its holiday offer. For its part, the group's circuit operator, Kannak, also includes these destinations in its programming, consolidating its launch in Latin America and Portugal in 2024.

Furthermore, thanks to the acquisition of the Despegar Group's inbound DMC, BD Experience, and the strategic alliance established with them, W2M has strengthened its service offering in the Caribbean, thus becoming the priority partner for inbound services in Mexico and the Dominican Republic.

In the field of long-distance travel, Icárion continues to stand out with innovative proposals. Among them, its initiative “The great journey through the palate” combines the passion for exploring the world with the growing interest in gastronomy, through unique itineraries led by Michelin star ambassadors. In addition, the brand has expanded its air connections to India, Sri Lanka and Turkey, reinforced its commitment to Lapland as a star destination and increased its offer of exclusive trips in Peru, Costa Rica and the United States.

On the other hand, GRAND Azulmarino has continued to expand its network of boutique agencies throughout Spain, consolidating its presence as the reference brand for the sophisticated client.

Finally, the launch of New Travellers Uppers, a new brand aimed at discerning and experienced travellers, has marked another milestone in W2M's commitment to offering fully personalised, high-quality packages.

Source: Iberostar Group.