Marriott Bonvoy to add all-inclusive resorts in Tanzania and Jamaica

Marriott has signed a deal with Spanish operator Catalonia Hotels & Resorts to open two all-inclusive resorts, an Autograph Collection property in Zanzibar, Tanzania, and a Marriott Hotels property in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

Here’s what we know so far (and it’s a little more than Marriott actually tells us in its press release).

The details

The two agreements for the new properties were signed last week and these are the hotels they should give us:

• An Autograph Collection All-Inclusive Resort in Zanzibar, Tanzania – a new-build with 271 rooms, expected to open in 2027
• A Marriott Hotels All-Inclusive Resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica – a 522-room conversion of the former Catalonia Montego Bay, expected to open in 2028

Marriott calls the Zanzibar property a new-build and, technically, that’s true. But this isn’t a Marriott new build because a little bit of digging through the internet tells us that this site has been under construction since early 2024 (before Marriott appeared on the scene). That’s exactly why a “new-build” can be expected to open as soon as next year.

Marriott doesn’t name the property, but it’s almost certainly the Catalonia Grand Zanzibar All Suites & Spa. It’s the same developer on the same island, and the amenities match on both sides, as do the room counts (just about), so we’re unlikely to be wrong here.

Marriott’s details are thin on the ground, but if we add them to what Catalonia has already said about the development, here’s what we can probably expect from the new Bonvoy property:

• It sits on an oceanfront plot of more than 7 hectares with a private beach, in the Pwani Mchangani area on Zanzibar’s northeast coast, a short distance from the Kichwele Forest Reserve.

• The plan is for a 5-star, all-suites property (272 suites in Catalonia’s plans vs 271 in Marriott’s press release), including two water villas
• The property will have “multiple pools” which will include an 800 square metre main pool as well as a saltwater pool (and possibly more).
• There will be a 1,600 square metre spa and wellness area
• The property will have a jetty running out over the water, with a restaurant, bar, lounge and a saltwater pool (mentioned earlier) that fills at high tide
• There’s also expected to be an amphitheatre (the “theatre” in Marriott’s release), a kids’ club and a gym

The Jamaica property is bigger and more of a known quantity because it’s a renovation and not a new build. At 522 rooms it’s a large resort, sitting on an oceanfront site near Sangster International Airport with more than 2,130 feet of beachfront.

The existing property has been closed since late 2025 when it suffered extensive damage at the hands of Hurricane Melissa.

Marriott tells us that once the repairs and renovations are completed, the property is expected to offer 13 dining venues, 3 pools, a spa, a lazy river, tennis and pickleball courts, and approximately 12,917 square feet of meeting space.

That’s the extent of the confirmed detail, but there’s a bit of history to this property that the name “Catalonia Montego Bay” doesn’t reveal. The hotel started out as the Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort before being renamed as the Holiday Inn Resort Montego Bay, so it was run as an IHG franchise for the 16 years before Catalonia bought the property in 2024 and renamed it the Catalonia Montego Bay.

This means that this property already has a long history in the miles and points world to which it is expected to return in 2028.

Thoughts

For me, the Zanzibar Autograph Collection property is the more interesting of the two here, and it’s interesting for the same reason I found the Grand Hyatt Victoria Falls interesting when that property was announced.

Zanzibar is a beautiful part of the world, but it’s a part of the world where there aren’t very many options that are bookable through one of the big four points chains.

Currently, Marriott Bonvoy leads the way with three properties on Zanzibar, Hyatt has one property, Hilton has one property (SLH), and IHG has none, so if you want to book a points stay on Zanzibar right now, you don’t have very much choice.

Another proper Zanzibar beachfront resort that can be booked with a major hotel points currency would be a genuinely useful addition for miles and points fans, especially anyone adding a few days on the beach onto the end of a Tanzania safari.

There is, however, something you should know about the location.

A Google search reveals that this may be a property at which the pools are a lot more important than at a lot of oceanfront resorts thanks to the “East Coast tidal shift”. This tidal shift means that “[e]very day, the ocean recedes up to a kilometer, completely exposing the sandy sea floor and seaweed patches” so,”[y]ou can only swim in a true turquoise ocean for a few hours a day when the tide rolls back in“.

In slightly better news (location-wise), the fact that the area the property sits in is almost directly opposite the Mnemba Atoll, means that it’s one of the better starting points on Zanzibar for “quick, world-class snorkeling and diving day trips“.

One thing worth noting on timing: Catalonia’s original January 2024 announcement targeted completion by the end of 2025. Marriott is now saying 2027, so this project has already slipped once against its developer’s own timeline before the Marriott branding was even attached.

When it comes to the second property, I’m finding it hard to get excited about it. Jamaica needs another all-inclusive resort about as much as Palm Springs needs another golf course, and Montego Bay is not short of hotel options, points-bookable or otherwise.

In addition, before closing, this property scored a weak 3.9 on TripAdvisor and while I’ll be the first to admit that you shouldn’t put too much faith in TripAdvisor ratings, that doesn’t fill me with confidence.

Still, if the renovations and the Marriott affiliation also come with completely new management, that would be a positive sign and, perhaps, the property’s previous shortcomings will be addressed.

Bonvoy and all-inclusive properties

There’s good news and bad news here.

The good news is that All-Inclusive by Marriott Bonvoy resorts are points-bookable, so you can use Bonvoy points to book a Standard Redemption Award or a PointSavers Award, and you can use a Free Night Award for standard room bookings too.

In further good news, Bonvoy “Members earn 10 base points for each US dollar (or currency equivalent) spent on qualifying charges at All-Inclusive Resorts” so all-inclusive properties do not earn Bonvoy points at a diminished rate (link).

The bad news is that Bonvoy all-inclusive resorts follow slightly different rules to most other Bonvoy properties. The key differences are that Cash + Points bookings are not permitted and that Nightly Upgrade Awards are not honored, so some of the flexibility you’d have at a standard Bonvoy hotel won’t be available here.

Overall, we’ll clearly have to wait and see how these properties are priced (point-wise) before we can decide if these are genuinely useful additions to the Bonvoy program (from a redemption standpoint), but we can say now that both will be useful from an earnings standpoint.

Bottom line

Marriott is adding two all-inclusive resorts to the Bonvoy program. A 271-room Autograph Collection resort is coming to Zanzibar in 2027, and a 522-room Marriott Hotels conversion is coming to Montego Bay, Jamaica in 2028.

The Zanzibar property is the one that looks more interesting as it’s in a beautiful part of the world where hotels that are bookable with points aren’t exactly prevalent. The Montego Bay property looks less interesting as it looks to be just another all-inclusive in an area full of other all-inclusive options and I can’t see that it’s going to be offering anything new.

What do you think of these upcoming additions to the Bonvoy program? 

Featured image: A rendering of the Montego Bay resort courtesy of Marriott.