Thomas Cook, one of the world’s leading holiday companies, has today announced it is opening at least 14 more hotels as part of its own-brand portfolio in the next two years. These will include the third Ocean Beach Club by Sunwing in Cyprus to join the successful resorts in Gran Canaria and Crete and two further Casa Cooks in Kos and Mallorca. The new Casa Cooks will build on the success of Casa Cook Rhodes which opened in 2016. Furthermore, the first Thomas Cook own-brand hotel in Italy, SENTIDO Acacia Marina in Sicily, and first hotel in the Maldives, smartline Eriyadu will also launch. As well as a commitment to open new properties in 2017 and 2018, Thomas Cook is making more rooms in its own-brand hotels, especially Sunwing Family Resorts and adult-only Sunprime Hotels, available to sell in more of its markets across Europe. The development of a strong portfolio of own-brand hotels is a key pillar of the Group’s strategy for long-term profitable growth. Thomas Cook is able to provide customers to its own-brand hotels a unique care package that helps differentiate its holiday offering from the competition. This includes its 24-Hour Hotel Satisfaction Promise; access to the 24/7 Connected Service; and enhanced checks on health and safety. Customer satisfaction is significantly higher in these hotels with Net Promoter Score (NPS), the group’s measure of customer satisfaction, better than others in the portfolio. This reflects the greater level of influence that Thomas Cook has over the customer experience at these hotels and resorts. By consistently delivering distinctive holiday experiences, Thomas Cook aims to: increase customer loyalty; generate more customer recommendations to family and friends; and attract a new generation of holidaymakers. The addition of the Casa Cook brand in particular has been a notable achievement. The launch of this boutique concept aimed at modern travellers has introduced a whole new customer segment to the Group. 90% of the customers who booked in the first season were new to Thomas Cook and satisfaction with Casa Cook is even higher than other own-brand hotels. Alongside the new Casa Cooks, Ocean Beach Club and properties in Sicily and the Maldives, there will be an additional 9 new own-brand properties opened over the next two years. In Cape Verde, on the island of Sal, there will be the first ever Sunwing and Sunprime Resort ready for the winter season 2017/18. The second Sunprime hotel in Tenerife — Sunprime Ocean View — has also just opened. There will be new SENTIDOs in Bulgaria, Turkey and Croatia where a new smartline will also be opened and there will be additional SunConnect properties in Spain and Cyprus. Furthermore, SENTIDO Golden Star in Bulgaria has been renamed SENTIDO Marea and will undergo a complete refurbishment with new management installed. The own-brand portfolio for summer 2017 will total around 190 hotels. Peter Fankhauser, Group Chief Executive, Thomas Cook, said: “Offering people the absolute best holiday experience and turning them into loyal customers is key to our strategy for profitable growth. We are investing heavily in delivering best-in-class service and our own-brand hotels give us the opportunity to take even more control of the customer experience. The benefits are clear in the satisfaction scores that they achieve and the recent success of Casa Cook also shows the positive impact we have with customers when we try new things. I believe they will love our exciting and expanding range of Thomas Cook hotels.” As well as adding new hotels, there will be greater sharing of capacity in the existing portfolio across all Thomas Cook markets from summer 2017 so a wider variety of customers will be able to enjoy the high-quality experience. The initial hotels to be sold more widely across the Group from summer 2017 will include the Ocean Beach Club in Gran Canaria, Sunwing Family Resorts in Gran Canaria and Mallorca as well as Sunprime Hotels in Turkey and Mallorca. The Group regularly audits hotels in its portfolio against strict criteria to ensure it can deliver the best experience to its customers. While the aim is to grow the size of the portfolio, at the same time, the focus is on driving up the overall quality of the estate. In addition to the new hotels, existing own-brand properties that do not meet the upgraded quality standards required to be part of the Group’s own brand portfolio will not have their contracts renewed. Notes to Editors: Details of new hotels. Available from summer 2017 unless specified. Casa Cook Kos: The brand new 100-room hotel close to the seaside town of Marmari. The hotel is designed to cater to couples, friends and solo travelers as well as families looking for an alternative holiday without kids activities and entertainment. Mallorca: The family-friendly hotel is planned with 72 rooms. It will be for people who want to stay away from the crowds but with the option of a short drive to beautiful beaches. Expected to be available in summer 2018. Sunprime Hotels Tenerife: Sunprime Ocean View — adults-only hotel with 143 modern balcony suites located close to Troya Beach and its promenade. The hotel is specifically designed for adults looking for both active and relaxing holidays. Cape Verde: Sunprime Ponta Sino — on the peninsula of the finest beach on the island of Sal and walking distance from the village of Santa Maria. Adult-only hotel with 244 rooms and a wide range of facilities plus access to the wider Ponta Sino resort. Available winter season 2017/18. Sunwing Family Resorts Cape Verde: Based at the Ponta Sino resort-complex, with 296 family-oriented rooms and a wide range of sports facilities and the largest Aquaparc in the country (to open in summer 2018). Available winter season 2017/18. Cyprus: Ocean Beach Club by Sunwing — new hotel with 96 apartment suites is nestled directly on a sandy beach in Ayia Napa. It is a luxurious choice for adults and families with a wide choice of amenities. SENTIDO Sicily: SENTIDO Acacia Marina —100-room hotel in the South Sicilian former fishing village Marina di Ragusa. The hotel is a short distance from the beach and surrounded by a large garden. Turkey: SENTIDO Numa Bay — close to Incekum located in a prime location with a private sandy beach. The newly-built hotel features 285 rooms and four restaurants. Croatia: SENTIDO Bluesun Berulia —233-room hotel on a small hill and short distance from the beach. Close to the resort of Brela. Bulgaria: SENTIDO Bilyana Beach — 137-room hotel located in a calm area near the famous ‘Sunny Beach’ and close to the UNESCO world heritage town of Nessebar. Bulgaria: SENTIDO Marea — 250-room hotel located directly on the beach of the “Golden Sands” Resort in Varna area. With a complete renovation in winter 16/17 and new management, the hotel will be one of Thomas Cook’s flagship hotels in Bulgaria. SunConnect Spain: SunConnect Cabogata Garden —243-room hotel close to the beautiful beach of El Toyo and just 15 km away from Almeri. Cyprus: SunConnect Sofianna – 99-room hotel in Paphos, Cyprus. Available summer 2018. smartline Croatia: smartline Bluesun Neptun — family-friendly hotel with all inclusive catering. The 252-room hotel is located close to the beach and appeals to families, couples, friends and single travellers who are looking for excellent value-for-money accommodation on the Dalmatian coast. Maldives: smartline Eriyadu — offers 76 rooms on the small ‘barefoot’ island of Eriyadu in the Northern Male Atoll with the capital Malé only a 50 minute speed boat ride away. About Thomas Cook Group Plc. Thomas Cook Group plc. is one of the world’s leading leisure travel groups with sales of £7.8 billion in the year ended 30 September 2015. Thomas Cook employs 22,000 people and operates from 15 source markets; it is number one or two (by revenue) in all its core markets. Thomas Cook Group plc’s shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange (TCG).