Minor Hotels to Continue its Expansion in Africa- Amir Golbarg

In this episode, the Senior Vice President Operations Middle East and Africa at Minor Hotel Amir Golbarg tells me, some of its hotels are back to pre pandemic levels. Amir who has been attending the 16th Meetings Africa in Johannesburg South Africa says Minor Hotels is committed to expanding its enviable footprint in Africa. 

Amir Golbarg heads up Operations in the Middle East and Africa region for Minor Hotels, in addition to the Indian Ocean islands of the Seychelles and Mauritius. Minor Hotels’ portfolio currently totals 528 hotels in 56 countries and includes the highly-acclaimed luxury Anantara brand and the upscale Avani brand. Amir currently oversees a total of 33 properties in operation across ten countries and four brands, in addition to driving the development of a strong pipeline of properties within the region across multiple brands. This will see the launch of two new brands – NH Collection and NH Hotels – to the region later this year.

Joining the Minor Hotels regional team in March 2019 as Vice President Operations for the Middle East, North Africa, Mauritius, and Seychelles, Amir was promoted in September 2021 to Senior Vice President Operations, including adding the group’s operation in Southern Africa into the mix.

Amir previously held the strategic position of Chief Operating Officer at Al Rayyan Hospitality and Corporate Director – Asset Management at Katara Hospitality. Both entities are subsidiaries of the state-owned Qatar Investment Authority and in this dual role, Amir supported the State of Qatar with the opening and positioning of government assets and hotels both locally and internationally, in addition to managing a portfolio of operating entities and opening five luxury properties. These included the relaunch of Ritz Carlton Doha, the rebranding of the Six Senses Spa with Chiva-Som Resort in Thailand, the renovation of Raffles Singapore and the acquisition of Grosvenor House London.

A graduate of Glion Institute of Higher Education, Amir began his career in hospitality in 2004 and held various front of house roles for prestigious hotels such as Burj Al Arab and Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai. Amir first joined Minor Hotels in 2012 as Director of Operations & Hotel Openings based in the Bangkok Corporate Office. He then held several international positions with Minor, before becoming Hotel Manager at Souq Waqif Hotel Doha, Qatar in 2015.

Amir, who is a Danish national, is currently based in the Middle East Regional Office in Dubai. Now a seasoned international hotelier, Amir’s passion for excellence has led him to successfully drive the operations and hospitality assets for a number of companies for over 17 years.

Minor Hotels is an international hotel owner, operator and investor with a diverse portfolio of brands including Anantara, Avani, Oaks, Tivoli, NH Collection, NH, nhow and Elewana.