Luxury Hotels Atlas / The Maison / Gran Meliá

Gran Meliá hotels

Spanish hospitality gives landmark hotels a Mediterranean rhythm, shaped by food and time together.

Gran Meliá brings Spanish hospitality to landmark city hotels and resorts, with Mediterranean influences in the design, dining, and pace of the stay. Meliá’s luxury flagship often occupies palaces and architecturally significant buildings, while RedLevel adds a more private layer of rooms and service at participating hotels.

15 Gran Meliá hotels in 6 countries on the Luxury Hotels Atlas, each placed on the six LHA Tiers.

• Owned by Meliá Hotels International
• Worldwide: Approximately 20 operating properties across Spain, Italy, France, Vietnam, China, Tanzania, Argentina, Brazil, and beyond — with roughly one in three pipeline openings across the wider Meliá group targeted at the luxury segment
• On the atlas: 1 Grand Luxury, 1 High Luxury, 9 Core Luxury, 4 Accessible Luxury

History

Gran Meliá’s roots lie in Gabriel Escarrer’s first hotel in Palma de Mallorca, leased in 1956 when he was twenty-one. Mediterranean addresses such as Don Pepe in Marbella and José Antonio Coderch’s Hotel de Mar helped shape the group’s resort tradition. The Gran Meliá name later brought that Spanish inheritance to a collection of landmark hotels and resorts.

Timeline

• 1956 — Gabriel Escarrer Juliá, aged 21, leases the 60-room Altair Hotel in Palma de Mallorca, founding Hoteles Mallorquines, the origin of what will become Meliá Hotels International.
• 1964 — Hotel Don Pepe opens in Marbella, one of the earliest properties that would eventually trade under the Gran Meliá flag, establishing the group's Mediterranean resort credentials.
• 1964 — Hotel de Mar, designed by legendary Catalan architect José Antonio Coderch, opens in Illetas, Mallorca, known from the outset as "the chocolate building" for its distinctive modernist brown tiling.
• 1984 — Company rebrands as Hoteles Sol; acquires the 32-property Hotasa group to become Spain's largest hotel chain.
• 1987 — Merger with the upmarket Meliá chain (founded by José Meliá Sinisterra) creates Sol Meliá and brings the Meliá brand's Caribbean, Americas, and European presence into the portfolio; the Gran Meliá sub-brand emerges as the group's luxury tier.
• 1996 — Sol Meliá consolidates its position as one of Spain's largest and most influential hotel management companies, accelerating its expansion across Europe and the Americas.
• 2008 — Gran Meliá Palacio de Isora opens in Tenerife, establishing what will become Europe's longest saltwater infinity pool at 260 metres and cementing the brand's credentials as a large-scale luxury resort operator.
• 2011 — Company rebrands from Sol Meliá to Meliá Hotels International, adopting a modern multi-brand architecture in which Gran Meliá is formally positioned as the luxury flagship.
• 2012 — Villa Agrippina Gran Meliá opens in Rome, an urban resort set on the ancient estate of Emperor Nero's mother, demonstrating the brand's commitment to heritage-laden properties near the world's great monuments.
• 2014 — Gran Meliá Xian opens in China's Qu Jiang New District, next to the UNESCO-listed Big Wild Goose Pagoda, the brand's first Chinese city-hotel and a signal of Asian expansion ambitions.
• 2016 — Hotel de Mar, Mallorca, completes a full renovation and relaunches under the Gran Meliá flag as an adults-only luxury property; joins Leading Hotels of the World.
• 2017 — Gran Meliá Nacional Rio de Janeiro reopens in January after a comprehensive renovation of Oscar Niemeyer's iconic 1968 cylindrical tower in São Conrado, bringing a UNESCO-calibre work of architecture back to five-star operation after 22 years of closure.
• 2019 — Gran Meliá Arusha opens in Tanzania, giving the brand its first sub-Saharan Africa property and a gateway-city base for East Africa's safari circuit.
• 2022 — Villa Le Blanc, a Gran Meliá Hotel, opens on Menorca in July as both the brand's first net-zero prototype and the first Menorcan member of Leading Hotels of the World.
• 2022 — Palazzo Cordusio Gran Meliá, Milan is confirmed for imminent opening, marking the brand's entry into Italy's fashion and financial capital inside a Neo-Renaissance palace on Piazza Cordusio.
• 2023 — Torre Melina, a Gran Meliá Hotel, opens in Barcelona (January), the complete transformation of the former Rey Juan Carlos I, inaugurated for the 1992 Olympics, into a 391-room urban resort with 25,000 m² of centenary gardens.
• 2023 — Villa Le Corail, a Gran Meliá Hotel, opens at Nha Trang, Vietnam (July) as the brand's first Southeast Asia property, 92 private pool villas on Fairy Mountain facing Turtle Island.
• 2023 — Palazzo Cordusio Gran Meliá opens in December, 84 rooms and suites inside a Neo-Renaissance palace in the heart of Milan, Meliá's first hotel in the city.
• 2024 — Meliá Hotels International announces it is committing one in three pipeline openings to the luxury segment, with Gran Meliá identified as the primary vehicle for the group's most prestigious global expansion.
• 2025 — Gran Meliá Palacio de los Duques receives MICHELIN One Key, confirming the brand's growing recognition from the guide's new hotel accolades programme; Hotel Victoria Gran Meliá, Palma de Mallorca, reopens following a comprehensive renovation (31 March 2025).
• 2025–26 — Hotel Don Pepe Gran Meliá, Marbella, begins major renovation (October 2025 – November 2026), the most comprehensive in its 60-year history, targeting reopening in early 2027.

The houses to know

1. Palacio de los Duques Gran Meliá, Madrid, Spain — A blend of 13th-century convent and 19th-century palace in Madrid's Habsburg quarter, 180 rooms, MICHELIN One Key, LHW member, rooftop views of the Royal Palace.
2. Hotel de Mar Gran Meliá, Illetas, Spain — José Antonio Coderch’s 1964 modernist building now offers an adults-only stay in the Balearics.
3. Villa Agrippina Gran Meliá, Rome, Italy — An urban resort 9,000 m² in extent beside the Vatican, built on the excavated ruins of Emperor Nero's mother's ancient villa.
4. Hotel Fénix, a Gran Meliá Hotel, Madrid, Spain — A classic Art Deco address at Plaza de Colón for more than 50 years, in the heart of the Barrio de Salamanca.
5. Palazzo Cordusio Gran Meliá, Milan, Italy — A Neo-Renaissance landmark at the historic centre of Milan, 84 rooms between the Duomo and Sforzesco Castle, member of Leading Hotels of the World.
6. Hotel Colón, Seville, Spain — The hotel is in Seville, Spain.
7. Villa Le Blanc Gran Meliá, Es Migjorn Gran, Spain — The hotel is in Es Migjorn Gran, Spain.
8. Villa Le Corail, a Gran Meliá Hotel, Nha Trang, Vietnam — The brand's first Southeast Asia property: 92 private pool villas on Fairy Mountain above Turtle Island, with Robb Report-rated dining.
9. Gran Meliá Arusha, Arusha, Tanzania — East Africa's gateway safari hotel: a five-star urban resort in coffee plantation gardens beneath Mount Meru.
10. Gran Meliá Iguazú, Puerto Iguazú, Argentina — The hotel is in Puerto Iguazú, Argentina.

Newest openings

• Hotel Victoria Gran Meliá — Palma de Mallorca, Balearic Islands, Spain — reopened 31 March 2025 — a 321-room hotel built in 1912 on Palma's Paseo Marítimo, reopening after a full renovation; sea-facing suites with views of Palma Bay and Bellver Castle; indoor and outdoor pools, full-service spa, and Victoria Grand Café serving Mediterranean cuisine
• Villa Le Corail, a Gran Meliá Hotel (formerly Gran Meliá Nha Trang) — Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa Province, Vietnam — opened June 2023; relaunched with expanded villa inventory — 92 private-pool villas on the slopes of Fairy Mountain overlooking Turtle Island and Nha Trang Bay; the brand's first Southeast Asia property; the 639 m² Gran Ocean Villa Collection, furnished by Roberto Cavalli Home Interiors and Minotti, launched in January 2025; signature restaurant Hispania Nha Trang was named among Robb Report's Top 25 Restaurants in Vietnam (2024).

Opening next

• Gran Meliá Albania — Tirana or Adriatic coast, Albania — pipeline; Meliá Hotels International has confirmed expansion across Albania with 18 properties in development, with Gran Meliá expected to represent the flagship luxury tier in the country as Meliá consolidates its position as the largest international hotel group in Albania.
• Gran Meliá properties, China pipeline — Multiple signed projects including Gran Meliá Chengdu expansion and additional addresses in China's Tier-1 cities, building on existing operations in Xi'an and Chengdu as Meliá seeks to strengthen its Chinese luxury footprint
• Gran Meliá Cam Ranh — Cam Ranh Bay, Khanh Hoa, Vietnam — signed; Meliá confirmed a dual-brand agreement in Nha Trang including a future Gran Meliá at Cam Ranh Bay, building on the success of Villa Le Corail as Meliá targets 22+ hotels open across Vietnam with five more in the pipeline

Every Gran Meliá hotel on the atlas

Spain

• Palacio de los Duques Gran Meliá — Madrid · Grand Luxury
• Hotel de Mar Gran Meliá — Illetas · High Luxury
• Hotel Colón — Seville · Core Luxury
• Hotel Fénix, a Gran Meliá Hotel — Madrid · Core Luxury
• Villa Le Blanc Gran Meliá — Es Migjorn Gran · Core Luxury
• Gran Meliá Palacio de Isora — Alcalá · Accessible Luxury
• Hotel Colón Gran Meliá — Seville · Accessible Luxury
• Torre Melina, a Gran Meliá Hotel — Barcelona · Accessible Luxury

China

• Gran Meliá Xian — Xi'an · Core Luxury
• Gran Meliá Chengdu — Chengdu · Accessible Luxury

Italy

• Palazzo Cordusio Gran Meliá — Milan · Core Luxury
• Villa Agrippina Gran Meliá — Rome · Core Luxury

Argentina

• Gran Meliá Iguazú — Puerto Iguazú · Core Luxury

Tanzania

• Gran Meliá Arusha — Arusha · Core Luxury

Vietnam

• Villa Le Corail, a Gran Meliá Hotel — Nha Trang · Core Luxury

Open The Maison in the atlas for Gran Meliá's full dossier, with prices and maps.

Every house in The Maison

How the six LHA Tiers work