Name: Henrique Tiago de Castro
School: Les Roches Marbella
Program: Hotel Management Diploma
Graduation Year: 2012
Current Job: Rooms Division Manager
Current Company: Novotel Edinburgh Centre
When did you discover your passion for the international hospitality industry?
Everything started 15 years ago when I decided to join a kitchen management course in Lisbon. After two enriching internships and successfully finished the course I then decided that I wanted to get to know the hospitality industry better.
What made you decide to study with Les Roches?
Back in 2010, I started researching which school to join and this is where I came across Les Roches’s counselor in Portugal, Pedro Martins. While I was at an open day where Pedro was explaining the vision and strategy of Les Roches I got this phone call from my dad, asking me where I was since it was dinner time (we all know how serious dinnertime is for Portuguese families). As soon as I explained to him where I was he suddenly decided to join me and understand better the dream I was chasing. From that moment on I just felt a huge support from my family to follow my dream.
Six months later I was walking in Les Roches Marbella to study Hotel management in what is one of the best hospitality schools in the world.
Where did you undertake your hotel internships abroad?
During my time at Les Roches Marbella I had the opportunity to do two internships; one in Mykonos, Greece and the second one in Munich, Germany where I learned to speak German.
After graduating from Les Roches Marbella, what did you do next?
With my diploma in hotel management finished, I was encouraged to apply for the Intercontinental Hotel Group’s (IHG) Future Leader Programme by Alex Soria a Les Roches alumni and also an IHG Future Leader Alumni. This fantastic programme gave me the chance to improve my German level by living and working at the InterContinental Dusseldorf. In the second year of the programme, I was then sent to Serbia to open the Crowne Plaza Belgrade and this turned out to be a very memorable experience.
After I left Serbia I was involved in the re-branding period of the Crowne Plaza Porto in Portugal and when this project finished, I then decided to widen my horizons by joining the InterContinental Bangkok in Thailand.
Living in South East Asia was one of my favorite life experiences. Very enriching in both personal and professional level. After leaving Asia one year and a half after I decided to come back to Europe. When I came back I worked for a year at the iconic InterContinental Berlin.
What area of work are you involved in currently?
At the moment I am living in Edinburgh where I decided to join one of the most dynamic and exciting hotel groups, AccorHotels. I couldn’t be happier with as I was recently given the opportunity to join the AccorHotels UK GM programme and, if everything goes well, I will finish it in June of next year. I am very excited to see what positions will come up next year when finished with the programme.
Where do you see yourself in the future?
In the future, I see myself returning to Portugal to work on a project that will add genuine value to my country’s growing hotel industry.
Learn more about Les Roches Global Hospitality’s undergraduate and postgraduate degree programs in global hospitality management.
