Rijeka’s Continental hotel signs franchise agreement with Accor

A franchise agreement has been signed with international hotel group Accor for the Continental hotel in Rijeka, Croatia, which will operate under the Handwritten Collection brand following refurbishment. As Novi list reported on 26 October, the investment in the Continental forms part of the plans of hotel group Jadran hoteli, which has just reopened the refurbished Jadran hotel under Marriott’s Tribute Portfolio brand.

Continental: agreement signed, refurbishment planned

For those following Croatia’s franchise market, the key point is that the Continental’s partnership with Accor has been confirmed through a signed franchise agreement. The hotel’s future brand is therefore more than a possibility: the plan is for the refurbished property to operate as part of Handwritten Collection. However, the project’s current status must be clearly distinguished from the start of operations under the new brand.

According to the investment sequence described by Novi list, the Continental will follow the planned refurbishment of the Grand Hotel Bonavia. No start date for work, reopening deadline or investment value has been given for the Continental. The news therefore confirms the franchise arrangements for the future refurbishment, rather than signalling an imminent opening.

This distinction also matters to business partners monitoring the development of Rijeka’s hotel sector. The signed agreement confirms the chosen international group and future brand, while the refurbishment schedule will determine when guests will see the results. The agreement itself should not be confused with a completed investment or a hotel already operating under the new brand.

Refurbished Jadran already operating as part of Tribute Portfolio

The reopening of the refurbished Jadran hotel in Rijeka prompted the review of forthcoming investments. In its report dated 26 October, Novi list states that the hotel reopened the previous week. Part of Jadran hoteli, the property has 67 rooms and three suites and has retained its four-star rating following refurbishment.

The Jadran now operates under Marriott’s Tribute Portfolio brand. The report describes the brand as bringing together distinctive properties with their own stories, and presents the refurbished Rijeka hotel as combining tradition and design. One stage of linking the Jadran hoteli portfolio with international hotel brands has therefore already been completed.

However, the nature of each partnership needs to be described precisely. The Jadran is confirmed as operating under the Tribute Portfolio brand, while the Continental is explicitly reported to have a signed franchise agreement with Accor. These two facts do not automatically mean that all the hotels have the same contractual arrangements. When following franchise news, it is useful to distinguish confirmed brand affiliation from a confirmed type of contract.

Bonavia is the next major investment project

Before the Continental, Jadran hoteli’s next major investment programme concerns the Grand Hotel Bonavia. Following a comprehensive refurbishment, the property is expected to become an AC Hotel by Marriott. At the time of reporting, Jadran hoteli said that preparations for the project were actively under way, without providing a more precise implementation schedule.

The future Bonavia is described as a contemporary, elegant city hotel aimed at business travellers, independent guests and year-round demand. This is the clearest market positioning outlined for any of the forthcoming projects in this investment programme. It should not, however, be presented as an achieved business result or evidence of future occupancy levels.

Three international hotel brands thus feature within the same portfolio, but at different stages: Tribute Portfolio at the reopened Jadran, AC Hotel by Marriott as the planned brand for the refurbished Bonavia, and Handwritten Collection as the agreed future brand for the Continental. This sequence provides context for the Accor agreement without suggesting that all the announced investments will lead to simultaneous openings.

What to watch from a franchise perspective

The Continental offers a concrete example of an existing Croatian hotel joining an international brand through a franchise agreement. The story centres not on the construction of a new hotel, but on the future refurbishment and rebranding of a well-known Rijeka property.

For entrepreneurs considering a similar route, it is important to assess brand selection, contractual arrangements and investment in the property separately. In this case, the franchise agreement is confirmed, while operations under the new brand depend on completion of the refurbishment. The published information provides no basis for conclusions about franchise fees, the total project cost or the expected return on investment.

The next relevant updates will be the timetable for the Continental’s refurbishment and details of its future operations. Until then, the most accurate description is that an agreement has been signed and the hotel is scheduled to join Handwritten Collection following refurbishment.

Practical takeaway: when assessing a hotel franchise, clearly distinguish between a signed agreement, investment preparations and the actual opening. For now, the Continental confirms the first of these steps, with refurbishment a prerequisite for future operations under the new brand.