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UK-based hospitality group Cheval Collection has signed its second property in Saudi Arabia during Cityscape Global Riyadh, further expanding its presence in the Gulf as demand for luxury serviced residences grows across the Kingdom.
The company said the new project — a management agreement with Saudi Arabia’s Ladun Investment Company — will bring the Cheval Maison brand to Riyadh, with a 150-unit development near King Salman Park scheduled to open in 2028. Construction of Cheval Maison Sulaymaniyah is expected to begin in 2026.
“This announcement at Cityscape this week is for a second Hotel Management Agreement with Ladun Investment Company, and will bring the Cheval Maison brand to Riyadh,” said Mohammed Alawadhi, managing director of Cheval Collection.
He added that the new property will feature “150 luxury, contemporary studios, one bed and two bed apartments, with a focus on long-stay and residential,” along with a gym, pool with public memberships, and multiple F&B outlets.
The expansion strengthens Cheval Collection’s presence in a region where the brand has rapidly grown its footprint, including openings in Dubai and an earlier announced flagship Saudi project.
Alawadhi said the company remains committed to its first Riyadh development, Cheval Ladun Living, also in partnership with Ladun Investment Company. The property sits on King Fahd Road near King Abdullah Financial District.
“Our first KSA project – Cheval Ladun Living – was announced in 2024. It is currently under construction and set to open for business in 2027,” he said.
The project includes 130 one-, two- and three-bedroom luxury apartments and a range of leisure amenities, including a gym, swimming pool and sauna.
Saudi tourism boom
Cheval sees growing opportunities in the Kingdom’s tourism push under Vision 2030, which is supporting demand for long-stay, branded serviced apartments.
“We’re proud to support the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 strategy, which includes promoting progress through tourism,” Alawadhi noted.
He added that “creativity, technology and sustainability are at the core of the strategy and within that we have seen a growing interest in apartment-focused products, where investors are seeking reassurance in established brands such as ours.”
Travellers, he said, “are becoming more sophisticated in their demands, looking for the kind of luxury home-from-home product we can deliver.”
He also highlighted that partnering with Ladun gives Cheval “the advantages of working with a company that brings decades of proven expertise in both operations and ownership,” noting that Cheval’s strength lies in understanding “the mindset of owners” and offering “the flexibility that they need.”
UAE performance
The company’s strong performance in the UAE is driving confidence as it deploys more capital and brand presence into Saudi Arabia.
“We were able to establish ourselves quickly with our first property in the UAE, the 131-key Cheval Maison – The Palm, which opened in 2023 and welcomed guests from 99 different countries, collectively staying for close to 28,000 nights in the first year alone,” Alawadhi said.
The second UAE property, the 151-key Cheval Maison – Expo City Dubai, opened earlier this year and “has also reported strong trading and an overwhelmingly positive response from guests.”
According to him, Dubai and the wider UAE continue to rise as hubs for luxury travel, supported by a loyal regional client base that has known the brand from its London properties.
“For them, Cheval Collection’s growth in the region represents the coming home of a familiar brand,” he said.
Across the UAE and Saudi Arabia, Cheval’s development pipeline is being shaped by markets offering strong investor appetite and premium returns.
“Our development team is reporting high demand across the UAE for properties in vibrant destinations - be that cities or resorts - where investors are able to enjoy the high returns of a luxury product,” he said.
Cheval’s strategy is built around management agreements, a model that keeps the operator and owners closely aligned. “Our decision to expand under the management model helps us to grow while remaining aligned with owners,” Alawadhi said.
He added that “apartment-style products, where guests can live their own way, supported by our teams, are becoming increasingly popular with guests in the region and the enthusiasm for this hybrid means that the potential locations for new Cheval Collection property are expanding as rapidly as the region itself.”
(Reporting by SA Kader; Editing by Anoop Menon)
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