World's first designer hotel
It all began in 1960 when Rezidor opened its first hotel in Copenhagen. Fashioned to the smallest detail by the famous architect Arne Jacobsen, the Radisson SAS Royal Hotel in Copenhagen is considered the world's first designer hotel. From these prophetic beginnings sprang the first set of hotels that would come to define Rezidor and its dynamic portfolio of brands and hotels.
In 1994, SAS International Hotels, a then wholly owned subsidiary of the SAS Airline Group, owned and operated 29 hotels in key cities throughout the airline group's geographical network. In 1995, the company signed its first master franchise agreement with Carlson, originally founded by Curtis Carlson, a first generation Swedish-American, to develop and operate the Radisson brand in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Radisson SAS was born and so began the incredible journey of Rezidor's original hotel brand.
Global brands for local markets
The vision to recognise the power of global brands, interpreted for local markets, led to an aggressive growth of Radisson SAS outward from its Scandinavian base. In 2001, SAS International Hotels changed its name to Rezidor SAS Hospitality and took the next step to advance further on the path of success. Continuing their fruitful partnership, Rezidor and Carlson Hotels Worldwide signed a multi-brand master franchise agreement in 2002 that added three other Carlson brands to the Rezidor portfolio - Park Inn, Regent and Country Inn.
Today, Rezidor has grown into one of the world's fastest growing hotel companies with five distinct hotel brands, all carefully positioned in the company's portfolio and the global competitive set to offer a complete range of hotel experiences.