Middle East perspective
Starwood, Hilton and IHG are focused on rolling out initiatives worldwide, and many other chains will likely follow suit, but how far have hotels operating in the Middle East considered — and acted upon — the Chinese potential? And how aware are Chinese travellers of Middle Eastern destinations?
Currently in its pre-opening period, St. Regis Doha has already identified China as a market of great importance. As the country’s economy continues to grow, the number of tourists seeking upscale, bespoke service in attractive locations is also set to rise — which is where St. Regis Doha has seen an important opportunity.
General manager Tareq Derbas and senior executives recently visited Shanghai to promote Doha as an up-and-coming global destination and St. Regis Doha as the ideal vantage point for travellers seeking luxury and bespoke service.
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“The global hospitality industry sees China as an exciting emerging market, where tastes are changing and an increasing number of travellers are seeking new and unique experiences. There is already strong interest in visiting Qatar and we believe that we can leverage the history and heritage of the St. Regis brand to attract a distinct new audience to Qatar in the future,” said Derbas.
And like IHG, Mövenpick is focused on increasing its presence physically in China in order to bring travellers out to this region.
Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts Middle East and Asia chief operating office Andreas Mattmüller said that following the signing of the group’s first hotel in Shanghai the company is now registering there — even registering a new name following consultation with a feng shui expert.
“It’s very important, everything has to be in Chinese if you want to do business there,” said Mattmüller. “We have representation there, so once the company is registered we are building our team there in order to go after this outbound market.”
Already, he said Mövenpick’s hotels in Dubai, such as Ibn Battuta Gate, had noticed a growth in Chinese travellers over the Chinese New Year Period and observed: “They pay some top rates, by the way”.
Home-grown hotel brands have also taken action to capitalise on China’s potential.
Jumeirah Group has benefitted from a strong Chinese customer base for a while — over Chinese New Year in mid-February, 80% of the occupancy at Burj Al Arab for a few days was Chinese, reported Jumeirah executive chairman Gerald Lawless.
Chinese customers now represent about 5% of guests for Jumeirah, up from less than 1% three years ago.
Lawless attributed the growth to increased airlift — Emirates Airline, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways have all increased their routes — and the signing of Approved Destination Status between the UAE and Chinese authorities in 2009.
Since then, the Chinese can travel freely to the UAE and tour operators can promote the UAE in China.
“That is important, that you make it easy to buy literally,” observed Lawless. “And I think most of the Chinese like the culture here, they like the atmosphere and how Dubai is run and they will continue to come.
“They’re very curious, they want to fly and they want to see things and they want to get around the world plus they’re quite affluent — the ones who have money now, the middle class is quite an affluent middle class,” said Lawless.
Following in Jumeirah’s steps is Rotana: in June the group announced a new outbound sales office in China, as well as in India and Russia.
Omer Kaddouri, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Rotana said: “China, India and Russia are key feeder markets for Rotana and it is important for us to grow the Rotana brand and stature in these respective markets.
“The objective is to increase our market share, whether business or leisure, of outbound travellers to all Rotana properties.
“The main responsibilities of these new offices will be to promote and sell our properties based outside of their physical location. This is in line with the overall expansion of Rotana. The three new sales offices will assist Rotana on its brand awareness,” concluded Kaddouri.
Numbers to know
• In 2010, 57.4 million Chinese travelled out of China to see the world and to spend money on outbound tourism, marking an increase of 20.4%.
• For 2015, the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) forecasts there will be 100 million outbound travellers.
• The China Tourism Academy forecasts that Chinese international travellers will spend a record US $55 billion in 2011.
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