Twenty-eight million euros was invested in the renovation of the hotel by the owners, Croatia's Atlantska Plovidba shipping company, Hilton International, and the Austrian construction company Strabag.
Hilton Imperial Dubrovnik was opened for guests two months ago and since then 80 per cent of its rooms have been booked, according to director Jan Wijnen.
About 300 guests attended today's grand opening, at which PM Sanader said the opening of the hotel would help make Dubrovnik Croatia's most famous brand. He congratulated the investors on the renovation of one of Dubrovnik's oldest hotels and Atlantska Plovidba on its 50th anniversary of business on the world market.
Sanader recalled the recent opening of the highway connecting Zagreb with the southern Adriatic city of Split, saying that this year construction would continue to extend the highway south to Ploce, which he added would make Dubrovnik even easier to access.
The PM also said construction would soon begin on a bridge connecting the mainland with Peseljac peninsula in the southern Adriatic, which he added would boost tourism and strengthen Croatia's position on the international market.
The president of Hilton International for Europe and Africa, Wolfgang Neumann, said the Hilton in Dubrovnik would be successful because it was in the most beautiful city in the world. He added the Hilton chain was interested in opening four to six more hotels in Croatia and that negotiations had already begun with the owner of the Marjan hotel in Split.
The Hilton chain has more than 500 hotels in more than 75 countries and more than 11 million guests annually.
The Hilton in Dubrovnik is one of the smallest in the chain, with 147 accommodation units, three restaurants, several conference halls, it is the only hotel in Croatia with a car lift, and has many other amenities in keeping with Hilton's standards. The hotel's staff numbers 130 and is mostly from the Dubrovnik area.
Atlantska Plovidba is the owner of 67.7 per cent of Hilton International Dubrovnik, Hilton has a 17 per cent interest and Strabag 13.8 per cent.