Riu Hotels: from a small family business to an expanding international chain.
The company was founded in 1953 with a small hotel in Mallorca, it now has 102 establishments.

150 metres from the Riu Centre, on the front line of the beach, is the Riu San Francisco, the chain's first establishment, with which Mr. Juan Riu started the first generation of the family business in 1953.
Mr. Juan Riu's son, Mr. Luis Riu Bertrán (the second generation) was the chief executive of the chain until his death at the age of 65 on 7th April 1998.

Since then, the company has been run by the third generation embodied by Mr. Luis Riu's two children, Carmen Riu Güell and Luis Riu Güell, who share the post of chief executive.

Following its solid expansion in the Canary Islands, in the nineties Riu Hotels commenced its internationalisation as a chain with the opening of the hotel Riu Taíno in Punta Cana (Dominican Republic). From this island, whose beaches are among the most beautiful in the world.

In the context of this internationalisation, the RIU family, owners of the chain, set up a company in 1993 with their traditional German partner TUI (Touristik Union International), the largest tour operator in Europe.