Saudi Arabia's Dur Hospitality and InterContinental Hotels Group signed a franchise agreement to open the Crowne Plaza Riyadh Palace. The 304-room Riyadh Palace Hotel, which is currently operating, will be rebranded as a Crowne Plaza property in June 2018.
This is the second hotel in a master development agreement between Dur Hospitality and IHG, which was signed in 2014 and includes the opening of four hotels. The first hotel included in the deal was the 90-room Holiday Inn, Tabuk near the city center in 2015—the 11th Holiday Inn in the country. The group plans to open another two Holiday Inn hotels by 2019.  
The new Crowne Plaza is part of IHG's plan to expand the brand across the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia. The property will join the hotel group's portfolio of seven hotels operating in Riyadh, and 31 hotels across the country.