MARRIOTT will open its first Residence Inn by Marriott property for extended stay travellers in the Middle East with an 83-unit hotel in the Saudi Arabian city of Jizan on the Red Sea coast in 2012.

It will be part of a mixed-use development comprising a new 129-room Courtyard by Marriott which, when opened, will be the fourth Courtyard property in the Middle East, and a 58,000-sq-m shopping mall.

Marriott will manage both hotels under a long-term agreement with Abdulrahman Saad Al Rashid & Sons Company, which manufactures and markets gypsum blocks and walls, slabs, columns and lintels, and provides engineering services. Both properties are currently under construction in two adjacent towers separated by a shared swimming pool in the northern part of Jizan City close to the municipality and the new Jizan University.

The Residence Inn by Marriott Jizan will offer 83 studios and one- and two-bedroom suites with each studio unit connecting with a one- or two-bedroom apartment. Designed for stays of five nights or more, each suite will include a fully-equipped kitchen and separate living area and flat screen TV.

A special feature will be the Residence Inn lobby that will offer a club-like environment and will include a self-service lounge/coffee shop, a library and a small meeting room. A ‘grab and go’ kiosk/market offering snacks, basic food items, newspapers, magazines and various sundries will be located adjacent to the front desk.

Recreational amenities will include separate fitness rooms and lockers for men and women. Guests will share an outdoor pool area with those staying at the adjacent Courtyard hotel. Other services will include the ability to print documents from apartment to business centre, baggage and package delivery services and on-site parking.

The Courtyard by Marriott Jizan will offer king-bedded guest rooms and suites interconnected with double-bedded rooms to accommodate families during school holidays. Guest rooms will feature high-speed Internet access, flat screen TV and in-room safes.