Hard Rock Hotel set to open in Aruba

A 310-room oceanfront Hard Rock Hotel and Casino will be the latest addition to Aruba’s growing portfolio of luxury accommodation. Scheduled to open in 2014, the 75-million pound hotel will be located right outside Oranjestad, Aruba’s capital, and is set to dramatically change the beach landscape of the island. The brand new property will be built on the ruins of the abandoned Bushiri Hotel, which has not been operating for nearly a decade and whose demolition will be completed by the end of the year. The Aruba Hard Rock Hotel and Casino will cover a total area of 28,619 square metres and will have a maximum height of seven floors. It will feature eco-friendly, sustainable energy construction elements such as reflecting roofs against the heat, systems to collect rainwater, seawater swimming pools and the use of indigenous plants that can stand Aruba’s dry climate. The coastline will be improved as a public beach with upgraded facilities for beachgoers, while the premises will also include a training facility for catering. Hard Rock currently has twelve hotels worldwide, seven of which are under construction, in locations as varied as the Mayan Riviera, Doha and Atlantic City. Already home to some of the world’s most prestigious hotel chains (including Hyatt, The Westin, Radisson and Marriott), Aruba will also welcome an exclusive Ritz-Carlton resort in October 2013.