Riu to build $100M hotel in Toronto

TORONTO — Riu Hotels and Resorts has announced plans to spend $100 million to build a new hotel in its Riu Plaza urban line in Toronto.

The project will be the first Riu hotel in Canada, said a recent statement.

The hotel is being designed in a “sophisticated avant-garde style” said the owner and it’s set to open in 2021.

The building will be located in the city’s financial district and will be mixed use with 350 rooms, meeting rooms, a gym, bar and restaurant, with upper floors for residential use.

Riu currently has six Riu Plaza hotels in operation worldwide as well as three under construction: Riu Plaza Espana, Riu Plaza London and a second one in New York City.

The first city hotel opened its doors in Panama in 2010 and the inventory now includes the Riu Plaza Guadalajara hotel in Mexico, Riu Plaza Miami Beach and Riu Plaza New York Times Square in the U.S., Riu Plaza Berlin in Germany and Riu Plaza The Gresham Dublin in Ireland.

Luis Riu, CEO of Riu, said in the statement the opening of the hotel in Toronto “is a big step forward in our commitment to expanding the Riu Plaza hotel line in the world’s key cities, establishing the Riu brand beyond more traditional vacation destinations.

“We hope this hotel attracts Riu customers around the world to discover the city of Toronto with us, and also hope that the loyal customers we have in Canada decide to discover our urban product.”