Marriott International MEA president and managing director Alex Kyriakidis. Marriott International MEA president and managing director Alex Kyriakidis.

Marriott International has announced plans for a week-long festival of community engagement, known as Global Customer Appreciation Week (GCAW), from October 28 until November 1.

Just some of the GCAW activities taking place right across the region include the JW Marriott, Kuwait where 20 associates will pay a visit to a local children’s hospital for cancer patients and gift them with a home-cooked lunch. While in Bahrain, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE a whole range of breakfasts, brunches and lunches for top customers are to be hosted. Additional initiatives include senior associates driving blood donations, cleaning up local beaches and cities, assisting traffic police and even hosting sports tournaments.

Marriott International MEA president and managing director Alex Kyriakidis said: “As the company grows across the Middle East and Africa, we are acutely aware that the regional hospitality sector is highly competitive; guests are highly sophisticated and have a choice of where to dine, drink and stay. The Global Customer Appreciation Week is simply a chance for us to personally thank our guests and customers, and to give something back to the communities we live and work in.”

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“Whilst this week is fun, it also allows us to pause for a moment and consider some of the sectors of the community less fortunate than ourselves. Marriott International is globally renowned as a great place to work and for its commitment to diversity, social responsibility and community engagement and our Global Customer Appreciation Week activities are testament to that,” he added.

Marriott International manages 12,237 rooms across 44 properties in the Middle East and Africa region, with these numbers set to double over the next five years with 48 new hotels in the pipeline, adding 11,567 rooms to the regional portfolio, while the group is in the process of recruiting an additional 12,000 employees.

You can follow the events of Global Customer Appreciation Week on photo-sharing website, Flikr.com (Global Customer Appreciation Week) and on Twitter; #Marriottsaysthx.