Dallas-based Patel Family Office is part of a $1 billion deal to develop 50 hotels in Saudi Arabia by 2029, the firm said Thursday.
Patel Family Office signed the deal with Saudi-based Abdel Hadi A. Al-Qahtani & Sons to form Ayara. It’s one of the largest individual hotel investment deals in the Middle Eastern kingdom to date.
The partnership will build branded business hotels to support Saudi Arabia’s corporate travel sector. Patel Family Office will collaborate with an affiliate of the Saudi firm to deliver between 5,000 and 7,000 rooms across key areas including Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, the Red Sea region and the planned Neom development.
The project comes as Saudi Arabia works to diversify its economy beyond oil through its Vision 2030 program. The country aims to attract over 150 million visitors annually by 2030. Business travel and tourism are key pillars of the plan. Saudi Arabia is also hosting major international events, including Expo 2030 and the 2034 FIFA World Cup.
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“As Saudi Arabia opens its doors to the world, its tourism and infrastructure expansion is attracting increasing global attention,” said Patel Family Office vice chairman and managing partner Lakshmi Narayanan. “The Kingdom’s transformation is creating a new category of demand for reliable, practical and standardized business hospitality. Platforms like AYARA — combining global expertise with local execution — will play a critical role in meeting that demand.”
Patel Family Office owns 27 properties in Texas, with multiple properties in Dallas-Fort Worth.
The firm has over 70 years of history, and the family got its start with cotton syndication in the United Kingdom. Patel Family Office owns more than 400 hotels.