Announcement of IFC Investment in Hotel Camino Real S.A., El Salvador on February 13, 1969

i · ,Ii.OLD F..OR RELEAS.E INTERNATIONAL FINANCE CORPORATION . 1 8 1 8 H STREET, N.W., WASHINGTON D. C. 20433 TELEPHONE: EXECUTIVE 3-6360 IFC News Release No. 69/4 " SUBJECT: IFC Investment in Hotel For Use in Morning Newspapers Camino Reals.A., of Thursday, February 13, 1969 El Salvador and Thereafter. IFC Investing in New Salvadoran Tourist/Convention Hotel A new tourist and convention first class hotel,, with 224 rooms., is to be built in San Salvador with financial help from the International Finance Corporation, a World Bank affiliate.* The hotel -- to be known as the Hotel Camino Real -- will be the largest in San Salvador and will increase first class accommodations in the city by 60 per cent. The Camino Real will be managed by Western International Hotels Company., of • Seattle, which already manages some 65 hotels in a number of countries including Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico and Venezuela. Construction of the Camino Real, at a cost of $3.7 million, is to begin by mid-1969 and is scheduled to be completed by early 1971. IFC committed up to $933 .,400 to the project. other sponsors include Western International Hotels Company; Financiera Roble S.A • ., a prominent Salvadoran real estate development company; and 12 Central American companies and individual private investors. Hotel Camino Real's public facilities are to include one of Central America's largest convention banquet rooms, seating 400 diners, and four smaller meeting rooms. There will also be a specialty dining room, cocktail lounge, coffee shop, swimming pool, and tennis courts. S.:.~'all shops will be located off the lobby • • * IFC is the affiliate of the World Bank that invests in private industry in developing member countries. (more)  - 2 - • The commitment is the third in Central America in the past four months by IFC, and it reflects the growing importance of tourism projects as a means of ex- panding the economies of less developed nations. A successful tourism project pro- vides a relatively large number of jobs and is a quick, strong foreign exchange earner, among other advantageso The Hotel Camino Real w:i....1.1 be located on a five acre site in the prime Mira- monte residential area., a few miliut.es from the business district and with easy access to San Salvador's airFort, which handles 80 inbernational flights weekly. The fully air conditioned b~Uding will be eight stories high. El Salvador 1 s tourist attractions include a year-round semi-tropical climate., pictureque scenery, virtually untouched beaches, impressive volcanos, ocean and fresh water fishing, and the ruins of ancient civilizations. • Western International Hotels and Financiera Roble are jointly responsible for developing plans, coordinating and implemen~ing the project. Western will also be responsible for the commercial management of the Camino Real hotel and for training personnel. # # # •