MIDdle EAST 2014
The “right properties” for the Middle East in 2014 are eclectic and there will be nine new hotels and nearly 3000 rooms across the region by the end of the year.
Starwood made its debut in Ajman, the smallest of the emirates with the opening of Ajman Saray, A Luxury Collection Resort. It is increasing its presence in the Holy City of Medina with Sheraton Medina and Four Points by Sheraton Medina.
Dubai will see the 660-room Sheraton Dubai Tower Sheikh Zayed Road open its doors, while in Lebanon, Grand Hills, A Luxury Collection Resort, a conversion signed last year will undergo a refurbishment.
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The Aloft brand will make its debut in Saudi Arabia next year with the 238-room Aloft Riyadh and the company will open its first properties in Iraq (Sheraton Dohuk), Tajikistan (Sheraton Dushanbe) and Kazakhstan (Sheraton Aktobe).
“Along with new openings, we are undergoing renovations in nearly 25% of our properties in the region, mainly across the Sheraton and Le Méridien brands,” Guido de Wilde, senior vice president, regional director, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Middle East tells Hotelier.
Starwood will also be adding another 200 rooms to the renamed Le Méridien Dubai Hotel & Conference Centre by Q2, 2014, and 238 rooms to Four Points by Sheraton Kuwait.
However as the market loosens its belt with the amount of product coming online, there is a real need to diversify.
“Starwood is setting its sights on expanding mid-market brands in secondary and tertiary markets in the region where there are opportunities to grow reliable and affordable hospitality,” Wilde explains.
“Our mid-market brands represent 30% of our development pipeline in the Middle East.”
Part of this can be seen in signings of Aloft Erbil and Aloft Sharjah, both of which will open in 2015, and mark the debut of the brand in Iraq and Sharjah. Scheduled to debut in 2016, Aloft Al Ain will be the first Starwood property to open in Al Ain and the second Aloft hotel in the UAE joining Aloft Abu Dhabi, which opened in 2009.
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