Three hotels – the Renaissance Hotel, Courtyard by Marriott, and Marriott Executive Apartments Doha City Center – which are part of the Doha City Center Mall development, will stage a simultaneous opening in the second quarter of 2011, with target set for early June, officials said yesterday.The hotels are part of a complex with all their facilities, including a spa, pool, conference centre and restaurants shared between them. Much of the hotel complex has reached completion, including a Brazilian Churrasco, an Italian restaurant and a New York Steak House, all connected directly to the City Center Mall.Marriott International also announced the addition of six new properties to its Middle East/Africa pipeline of 37 previously-announced hotels. They represent three of Marriott’s hotel brands serving the luxury, upper-moderately-priced and extended-stay travel segments.Included is the first Residence Inn by Marriott-branded property for extended-stay travellers in the Middle East, which opens in suburban Manama, Bahrain later this year.Marriott also plans to open hotels in Cairo, Riyadh, Rabat and two in Algiers. When all 43 hotels now under development or construction open by 2016, Marriott International will offer 74 hotels and resorts and more than 17,600 rooms across seven lodging brands in the Middle East and Africa.Ed Fuller, president and managing director of International Lodging, said that Marriott continues to aggressively explore attractive expansion opportunities in sub-Saharan Africa and expects to announce projects later this year in countries like South Africa, Mauritius, Tanzania, Angola, Nigeria and Benin.“The region has enormous tourism potential and we plan to play an important role in its development,” he said, adding that Marriott’s first two projects in sub-Saharan Africa are expected to open in Accra and Kigali next year.Regional vice-president Ibrahim Baghout also announced that all resorts and selected city hotels, representing four of Marriott International’s most popular lodging brands in the Middle East and Africa, will offer summer travellers a 20% discount off normal per night rates for stays beginning June 17.To take advantage of the discounted rates, travellers must pay with a Visa card and book their stays at least seven days in advance of their arrival date.The promotional rates will be available subject to availability on a limited basis until September 4, 2011 and are non-refundable.Participating in the promotion are Marriott’s luxury JW Marriott and upscale Marriott and Renaissance branded resorts in Egypt, Jordan and Oman as well as the company’s city hotels in Cairo, Dubai and Doha, including those carrying Marriott’s Courtyard flag.In addition, the promotional discount will also apply to summer leisure stays in global destination cities such as London, Bangkok and Paris.