REVEALED: The 20 most popular news stories of 2013
It's been a busy year for the Middle East's hospitality industry, from new openings and rebrands to the inevitable delays - and all along, Hotelier Middle East has kept you updated.
Here, we list the 20 most popular news stories of 2013 (in no particular order):
1. Qatar's Banana Island resort nears completion
The project aims to create a Maldivian-style resort, with lush landscaping enveloping chalets that stretch the length of the island. There are 11 over-water villas, 34 chalets and a 72-key hotel block.
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2. Four Seasons to launch loyalty programme in Q3
Regional vice president and GM Four Seasons Hotels Thailand Rami Sayess told Hotelier Middle East: "One thing that we have been working on for a long time and been hearing feedback from guests on is a loyalty programme. We’re one of the companies that has resisted having a programme for many, many years. But today, we realise that like everything else, this is changing in the world and we are going to have to roll out [a loyalty programme]."
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3. Fast & Furious 7 begins filming in Abu Dhabi
Filming for the Hollywood movie Fast & Furious 7 started in the UAE in November, the Abu Dhabi Film Commission (ADFC) and Universal Pictures confirmed.
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4. Emirates Palace to pay $54K to 2008 guest in coma
The Emirates Palace Hotel, Kempinski Hotels and Abu Dhabi National Insurance Company (ADNIC) have been ordered to pay AED 200,000 (US $54,450) to former guest Natalie Creane after a weekend break turned into a five-year-long, ongoing fight for survival for the 33-year old Brit.
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5. Dubai's Global Village shuts funfair after tragedy
All funfair rides at Dubai's Global Village were suspended following an accident in which a visitor died. The tragedy happened when a person was killed by a metal bar which fell from the Freij World Wheel.
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6. Pier 7 F&B development opens in Dubai Marina
Pier 7, the seven story F&B development located in Dubai Marina has opened the first of its seven licensed outlets ahead of its planned grand opening after Ramadan this year.
Previously known as Gourmet Tower, the building was originally part of the Emaar development that included The Address Dubai Marina hotel and the Dubai Marina Mall but will now be operated as a standalone development by The Emaar Malls Group LLC.
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7. New visa regulations may damage Omani tourism
The UAE emirate of Sharjah has introduced new regulations that require all non-GCC female UAE residents to obtain the written permission of their employer or male relative before they can cross the Omani border.
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8. World's safest and unsafest airlines named
The UAE's Emirates Airline and Etihad Airways are among the world's safest carriers, according to a survey by Hamburg-based Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Centre (JACDEC), that examined 60 of the world's operators.
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9. Injured Emirates Palace guest begins appeal
Natalie Creane, the British tourist who suffered head injuries during a stay at the Emirates Palace hotel, Abu Dhabi was staying with her husband and stepson at the five-star hotel in July 2008, when a loose wooden panel covering the AV unit fell, hitting her on the temporal lobe (the front part of her head) as she opened the door to the wardrobe in her room, according to an account of the incident published on the ‘Justice for Natalie’ Facebook page.
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10. Four Seasons' debut Dubai hotel will open Q4 2014
Canadian luxury hotel chain Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts is on track to open the doors of its first Dubai hotel Q4 2014. The 237-key Jumeirah Beach resort finally plants the Four Seasons’ flag in Dubai soil, following its exit from plans for a venue at Dubai Festival City four years ago.
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11. UAE restaurants take over-fished Hammour off menus
A number of UAE-based hotels and restaurants have opted to take Hammour off the menu, but many continue to offer the endangered fish.
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12. Zanzibar resort opens underwater hotel room
The Manta Resort on Pemba Island, Zanzibar, has unveiled a room with a unique view with the opening of Africa’s first underwater hotel room. he room offers an almost 360 degree view of the ocean floor, with a double bed allowing for some chilled out fish-watching.
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13. Rihanna kicked out of UAE Mosque for indecent pose
Pop superstar Rihanna was asked to leave the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi after being accused of posing for “indecent pictures”. The singer – who was in the UAE capital on Saturday to perform a concert – posted a number of pictures on her Instagram account, showing herself in various poses at the mosque courtyard.
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14. Hilton takes over former Rocco Forte Abu Dhab
Hilton Worldwide is the new operator for the Al Maqta Hotel Abu Dhabi, previously managed by Europe’s Rocco Forte Hotels. The hotel, which opened back in November 2011 and is famed for its curved glass exterior, was re-branded and re-opened as Hilton Abu Dhabi Capital Grand in summer 2013.
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15. Fairmont Abu Dhabi construction contract awarded
Arabtec has won a $272.3m (AED 1bn) deal contract from The National Investment Corporation to build a new 39-storey tower in Abu Dhabi containing a new Fairmont hotel and apartments. The company has been appointed to build the 155,000m2 structure close to Marina Mall and Abu Dhabi's corniche by National Investment Holdings.
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16. New delay for Doha's Hamad International Airport
The launch of the long-awaited Hamad International Airport, the planned $15.5bn hub for Qatar Airways, has been delayed yet again. The airport was originally supposed to open three years ago, but has missed a series of launch dates, including April 1 this year.
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17. Iconic '7-star' hotel resorts to Groupon promotion
In a series of four promotions, on the 5 and 9 June 2013, Dubai's Burj Al Arabl – famously dubbed the world's only seven-star hotel – offered an Assawan wellness package with high tea from AED 555, Friday Brunch at its Al Muntaha restaurant from AED 919, a seven-course Afternoon Tea at Sahn Eddar for two or four people starting from AED 599 and a Moroccan Night at its Al Iwan restaurant starting from AED 699.
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18. InterCon Cairo tweets SOS as gunmen storm hotel
Panic-stricken staff at Cairo Semiramis, an InterContinental Hotel, turned to the hotel’s Twitter page to call for help as masked gunmen stormed the building in the early hours of Tuesday, January 29.
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19. Qatar clamps down on hotel alcohol sales
Authorities in Qatar issued a written notice to hotel managers at the weekend banning the sale of alcohol in swimming pool areas or on the beach, leading to the last minute cancellation of some beach parties around the capital Doha, it was reported. Officials have not yet commented on whether the new notice is a new regulation or the reinforcement of an existing rule, the report added.
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20. Bride plunges to death from Dubai hotel window
A 27-year old British bride, on honeymoon in Dubai, is believed to have fallen to her death from a hotel room window at Jumeirah Creekside hotel.
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