New General Manager for Turnberry Resort

Turnberry Resort, the world’s first golf resort, has announced the appointment of a new General Manager to lead the award winning destination through a new phase in its enviable history.

Mr Jordi Tarrida joins from within Starwood Hotels and Resorts and as the former General Manager of the Arabella Golf & Spa Resort in Mallorca.

With a passion for golf and fine dining, Mr Tarrida is well placed to make his mark on the iconic Ayrshire resort. He commented;

“I’ve long admired Turnberry particularly now it has been renovated to an unbeatable standard. The hotel is simply immaculate and together with its incredible charm, wonderful history and location, I am very much looking forward to working with the team to be the best we can be.

“The newly refurbished Lands of Turnberry apartments and lodges give us a new dimension to our product and have also opened up many new corporate and family visitors to Turnberry to enjoy our many facilities on offer.”

To add to his many golfing credentials, Jordi will now oversee the management of Turnberry’s xx-strong golf team as they prepare to host the 2012 Senior Open Golf Championship. Next year will be the seventh time Turnberry has hosted this event, making it the most popular venue in the history of the tournament.

Jordi will also manage the 800 acre estate and three world-class golf courses: the legendary Championship Ailsa golf course; the Championship Kintyre Course and the Arran Course, as well as the Colin Montgomerie Links Golf Academy and Scotland’s first and only TaylorMade Performance Lab.

The news comes after former General Manager Stewart Selbie accepted a new role within Starwood to join the Sheraton Dubai Creek Hotel & Towers overseeing the property’s multi-million pound refurbishment and ensuring it was ready in time to host the 2009 Open Golf Championship.

Michael Wale, Senior Vice President, Starwood Hotels & Resorts said of the announcement, “We are delighted to welcome Jordi to Turnberry. He brings with him a wealth of experience in the international luxury resort business and I have no doubt that Scotland’s Luxury Collection Resort will benefit immensely from his knowledge and expertise.

“We would also pass our deepest gratitude to Stewart Selbie who leaves Turnberry in excellent condition and we wish him well in new post in Dubai.”

Turnberry Resort may be best known for golf but its food and drink offer has been the subject of recent critical acclaim under the management of new Australian Head Chef, Justin Galea. The resort boasts its award winning signature restaurant 1906, in addition to the elegant Grand Tea Lounge, James Miller Room, Ailsa Bar & Lounge, Duel in the Sun bar, panoramic Tappie Toorie restaurant. For leisure guests, Turnberry is home to the UK’s first ever ESPA spa and has also made many improvements to its on-site outdoor activity centre which offers quad biking, horse riding, fishing, off-road driving and falconry.

For more information about Turnberry, a Luxury Collection Resort in Scotland, visit www.luxurycollection.com/turnberry.

BIOGRAPHY

German-born Jordi Tarrida began his career with Starwood Hotels & Resorts in 1980 as a Front Office Clerk at the Macuto Sheraton Caracas in Venezuela, moving to Frankfurt the following year to join the team at the Sheraton Frankfurt Hotel & Towers where he remained until 1986.

Over the following nine years, Jordi held a succession of sales positions, including Sales Manager in the Sheraton Sales Office in Germany; Director of Sales at the Sheraton Abu Dhabi Hotel & Resort and Director of Sales at the Sheraton Frankfurt Hotel & Towers.

In 1995, he was promoted to Area Director of Marketing, Spain and Portugal, for Starwood Hotels & Resorts. In this position Tarrida was responsible for the marketing strategy of all properties including the Luxury Collection Hotel Maria Cristina in San Sebastian and Hotel Alfonso XIII in Seville.

In March 2000, Tarrida was promoted to the role of General Manager of the Westin La Quinta Golf Resort in Marbella, Spain where he managed the opening of the 172-room hotel and the development of the resort’s spa. He then moved to Mallorca in 2006, to take up the position of Area Manager Mallorca where he oversaw the renovation and rebranding of the 133-room St. Regis Mardavall Mallorca Resort.