FRANKFURT, Germany – Worldhotels continues its global expansion: the international hotel group has welcomed 10 new properties in the second quarter of 2015 – and a total of 18 since the beginning of the year. The new additions include hotels in the United States, the Philippines, Austria and the first Worldhotels in sub-Saharan Africa.

Most of these additions result from Worldhotels’ strategic partnerships with regional hotels groups such as the Weitzer Hotels in Austria or the Azalaï Hotels Group in Sub-Saharan Africa. The Grand Ferdinand in Vienna, for example, is the fifth property of the Weitzer Hotels group to benefit from Worldhotels’ global services. By joining forces with the Azalaï Hotels Group – the first private hotel chain in West Africa – Worldhotels now also welcomes its first hotels in Mali, Benin and Guinea-Bissau: Azalaï Hotel de la Plage, Cotonou, Benin; Azalaï Grand Hotel, Bamako, Mali; Azalaï Hotel Salam; Bamako, Mali; Azalaï Hotel 24 de Setembro, Bissau, Guinea-Bissau; and Azalaï Hotel Dunia, Bamako, Mali.

Further new affiliates include The Saujana Hotel Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia; Hotel Phillips in Kansas City, USA; Timber Creek Inn & Suites in Sandwich, USA and Inn at Mystic in Mystic, USA.

“We are excited to welcome these high-quality additions into our group,” says Robert van der Graaf, who heads up Worldhotels’ Global Development Team. “We are particularly proud to strengthen our collaboration with existing regional partners and to add new partnerships in aspiring markets, such as the Azalaï Hotels Group in sub-Saharan Africa. We are looking for further opportunities in other high-potential regions, including India, China and select European destinations, such as in the United Kingdom.”

Since the beginning of the year, the group has added a total of 18 hotels to its exclusive portfolio of independent four and five-star hotels worldwide.