Leading hoteliers from Jumeirah Group, Starwood Hotels and Resorts, Atlantis The Palm and Hilton Worldwide have congratulated the leaders of the UAE and Dubai on the emirate’s successful bid to host Expo 2020.
Gerald Lawless, president and group CEO of Jumeirah Group — which was one of six Premier Bid Partners since the start of the selection process — said: “This is a testament to the great achievements of Dubai under the visionary leadership of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and the bright prospects for the future of the emirate.
“It is expected that around 20 million tourists will visit Dubai in 2020, up from 11 million in 2013. By then Jumeirah will have extended its presence to more global destinations, as well as having strengthened its portfolio of hotels in the United Arab Emirates.”
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Guido de Wilde, senior vice president, regional director, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Middle East, added: “From everyone at Starwood, we want to take this opportunity to congratulate the UAE and Dubai’s leaders and the World Expo 2020 bid organizing board on this tremendous achievement.
“Dubai is an exciting, cosmopolitan city that has evolved as an international business and leisure hub under the vision of its leaders, the efforts of DTCM and growth of Emirates Airlines. It has truly earned its success of being named the host city for the World Expo 2020.”
He said Dubai was a hugely significant market for Starwood, second only to New York with regard to number of hotels.
“In terms of Starwood’s performance in the Emirate, our hotels in Dubai continue to perform extremely well. Starwood currently operates 14 hotels with over 4,000 rooms in Dubai, making it our second largest market behind only New York City. This market is very strong,” said de Wilde.
“Starwood firmly believes in the future of Dubai and the potential that lies ahead for the UAE and the region. The World Expo 2020 will help continue to highlight Dubai as one of the most highly sought-after travel destinations for business and leisure anywhere in the world, reinforcing to a global audience the huge opportunities that are available in the Emirate now and in the future.”
Atlantis The Palm, Dubai, president and managing director, Serge Zaalof, agreed that Dubai would keep going from "strength to strength".
"Winning the World Expo 2020 bid is fantastic news for the hospitality industry, reaffirming Dubai as a world-class tourism destination and is a well-deserved win for the United Arab Emirates," Zaalof told Hotelier Middle East. "Dubai will not stop there, with the additional demand created by World Expo 2020, the emirate, which has adopted the best standards in organizing exhibitions and events, will go from strength to strength. Dubai continues to implement a clear vision that leads this emirate and the UAE to more successes in various fields and sectors, travel and tourism in particular. Both the exhibitions and tourism sectors are achieving great growth in Dubai, the investment allocated to embrace Expo 2020 is very large and this is what will bring more success to this international exhibition”.
He added “Atlantis The Palm has always shown great support and excitement in the bid to host Expo 2020. As the leading entertainment destination resort in the region, our dedicated team is looking forward to showing our extraordinary hospitality in the lead up to Expo 2020 and beyond.
Hilton Worldwide, which recently opened Conrad Dubai, joined the hoteliers celebrating the bid win.
Rudi Jagersbacher, president, Hilton Worldwide MEA said: "Hilton Worldwide extends our warmest congratulations to the Emirate and to all those who worked so tirelessly to secure this momentous occasion in Dubai's history – very exciting times ahead".
Conrad Dubai director of business development Sanjay Nair added: ‘Expo 2020 is a truly global platform that will inevitably increase both business and inward investment into Dubai, creating an opportunity to showcase the city’s strengths. The hospitality industry will be reinforced by the growth of business and leisure travel and we very much look forward to it.”
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