There is still time for agents to book and earn with Sunwing and RIU Hotels & Resorts this holiday season. Yesterday, TravelPulse was invited along with a handful of media to a hosted lunch by Riu Hotel and Resorts at Cluny Restaurant in Toronto. During the event, we heard from both Sunwing and Riu Hotel and Resorts Directors about the two companies' long-standing relationship and the mutual support they give to ensure each other's success. “The relationship that we have with RIU is fantastic! The product is fantastic! We love selling it! We know you all love selling it as well, so many great things happening and so many good things to come as well! So keep selling it with confidence and support this fantastic brand,” said David Wright, Director of Sales for Ontario and Atlantic Canada at Sunwing.

Hugo Aguilera, Director of Business Development at RIU, was also in attendance at the lunch and shared the latest highlights, openings renovations and even a sneak peek on what is to come in 2020. “We had a challenging and at the same time, very successful 2019. This year was very different from the others but we are here celebrating…,” shared Aguilera. “Sunwing is our only Canadian Tour operator and we are exclusively sold through Sunwing. We have accomplished many milestones throughout the year and this is a big picture of where we are today.”

RIU Highlights

Currently, RIU Hotels & Resorts has over 93 hotels in 19 countries and welcomes over 4 million guests a year. Originally founded in Mallorca, this year marked the opening of one of their most prized flagship, RIU Plaza España in Madrid. “This is a big accomplishment for us as a company. It is one of the most emblematic buildings in Madrid, right in the downtown area in Calle Gran Via. This hotel is already open and running. We have a really nice rooftop bar right on top of the building and there is a sky bridge with a glass floor that you can see all the way down. So it really is a perfect picture spot and we are really happy about this opening,” expressed Aguilera.

Re-openings After Renovations

In 2019, large scale renovations were carried out at RIU Ocho Rios, in Jamaica which included the introduction of the first RIU Water park in Jamaica along with the expansion of the facilities and amenities aimed to elevate RIU’s entertainment offerings. RIU Emerald Bay in Mazatlan underwent expansion in 2019 as well and now has 312 additional new rooms located in the expanded area of the hotel. Further, extensive recreational offerings for both children and adults can now be found in this expanded area including new swimming pools, a pool bar, a restaurant, a new cocktail lounge with a theatre and a water park on the beach! Two Mexico locations, RIU Palace Riveria Maya (opening Dec 6) and RIU Vallarta also went under renovation. A complete overhaul of both the interior and exterior were completed with an enhanced customer experience in mind. A new fresher style can be expected in all the rooms and common areas, as well as a trendy redesign of the pool and restaurant areas.

Coming in 2020- 21

In 2020, two new projects in Dubai and London will open following the brands Riu Plaza urban line. In addition to these two new destinations, a secondary hotel is expected to open in New York close to Time Square under the same Riu Plaza line. In 2021, Toronto will be getting its first RIU Plaza Grand and its theatre district location was confirmed in today's presentation.

Agents still have a couple more days to earn 2X STAR Agent Reward Points that convert into cash on all new bookings to RIU Hotels & Resorts and up to 3X the RIU Partner Club (RPC) points on bookings to select hotels for travel between December 19, 2019, and April 30, 2020. Agents have until the end of November to take advantage of these great incentives and earn more before the holidays!