Media: Polish group wants to buy Romanian hotel chain

Polish group Orbis, the largest hotel chain in Central Europe, is interested in taking over the Romanian hotel chain Continental, owned by Romanian investor Radu Enache and Spanish investment fund GED, according to several sources in the tourism market cited by local Profit.ro. Continental Hotels, which has 13 accommodation units in several cities in Romania, is valued at over EUR 100 million. The Spanish investment fund GED, which has a stake of 29.8%, is interested in an exit, according to the same sources. Radu Enache could also not exclude the idea to sell his stake, the sources added. In May, Orbis opened a hotel in Sighisoara under the Mercure brand, the first one outside Bucharest. It has also started construction work on its first ibis Styles hotel in Romania, at Arad. The Polish group owns several hotels in Romania, with over 1,200 rooms, including the Pullman hotel and a Novotel hotel. In 2015, the group signed with its strategic shareholder, Accor, a contract to take over 46 hotels from six European countries, including Romania. Update: Orbis has denied the market rumors about a possible takeover. editor@romania-insider.com (photo source: Continental Hotels Romania on Facebook)