Doubletree, a franchise of the Hilton Hotels Corporation, yesterday signed two franchise license agreements in Tanzania with the owners of the Opulent Hotel Group that would see the country open two world class hotels.

The hotels scheduled to be opened by October this year would raise Tanzania's hotel accommodation by 259 international quality rooms, Doubletree said in a statement.

The two hotels are Doubletree by Hilton Dar es Salaam that is in Masaki and Doubletree by Hilton Resort Zanzibar in Nungwi.

"Doubletree offers a wide variety of distinctively designed upscale hotels and resorts in some of the most sought after business and leisure destinations around the world.

There are numerous opportunities to build the Doubletree by Hilton brand further in Africa and it is exciting to begin this journey by introducing such outstanding locations like Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar later this year," said Mr Rob Palleschi, the global head of the Doubletree Brand notes in the statement.

Hilton Hotels Corporation is a leading global hospitality company, with more than 3,300 hotels and 550,000 rooms in 77 countries and more than 130,000 team members worldwide.

The company owns, manages or franchises some of the best known and highly regarded hotel brands including Hilton, Conrad Hotels & Resorts, Doubletree, Embassy Suites Hotels, Hampton Inn, Hampton Inn & Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, Hilton Grand Vacations, and Homewood Suites.

According to the statement, Tanzania has seen an increase in international tourist arrivals, as well as domestic and intra-regional travel, leading to high demand for quality hotel accommodation. Hilton says that its entry into the local hospitality industry will greatly help to address the increasing demand for world class accommodation.

Mr Alkarim Nathoo of Opulent Hotel Group said the development augurs well with strengthening the position of Tanzania as an international tourist destination.

Hilton Hotels has a large brand footprint in the Middle East and Africa with 42 hotels across 13 countries. There are nine Hilton branded hotels currently operating in Africa, with another five in the pipeline, the statement noted.