Social Insurance Organisation subsidiary Bahrain Marina Development Company chose Hong Kong-based Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts as the manager for a new hotel and waterfront villas in Manama.

The 250-room Shangri-La Hotel, Bahrain will have 150 suites, eight beach chalets and 21 waterfront villas once it opens in 2022. The property will be part of the Bahrain Marina mixed-use waterfront development, which is currently under development. It will be next to residences, a yacht club, shopping district, a family entertainment center, dining, retail and recreational spaces.

“Bahrain Marina is designed to be a compelling and multi-activity coastal destination. Shangri-La will complement our efforts to create the city’s finest and most luxurious lifestyle destination,” Yazan K. Haddad, CEO of BMDC, said in a statement.

“Bahrain is a strategically important destination for Shangri-La, and we are delighted to partner in this opportunity with the Bahrain Marina Development Company,” Oliver Bonke, president and COO of Shangri-La International Hotel Management, said in a statement. “Bringing the iconic Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts brand to Bahrain in the landmark Bahrain Marina will strengthen the destination as well as further enhance brand recognition in the region.”

Shangri-La currently operates six properties in the GCC, with one hotel in Qatar, two resorts in the Sultanate of Oman and three hotels in the UAE. The group’s first hotel in Saudi Arabia, Shangri-La Hotel, Jeddah, is slated to open in 2019. Shangri-La signed the hotel with Assile Investments in May 2015, according to a report from Arabian Business. The 242-room hotel will be developed in a 65-story high-rise near the Red Sea. Shangri-La will also manage the development's 122 residences.