12:50pm: From DTCM roundtable with His Excellency Helal Saeed Al Marri, we have found out that approximately 10,000 keys will come online around the expo site by 2020. In addition, the expo legacy plan includes museums, a university and commercial areas. "It will be a real example of what a world class smart city looks like" he said.

12:45pm: Dubai will never regulate hotel rates even if hotels double them, said His Excellency Helal Saeed Al Marri. "We are encouraging people to build hotels so demand and supply will regulate pricing." For ATM, part of DTCM's strategy is diversity in source markets. It is still focused on key markets of Europe, North America, India and GCC. But it is now planning to focus more on undeserved markets such as Africa, China, India and CIS, especially since India and China have double digit growth.

12.30pm: Accor has unveiled details of its new Majlis Grand Mercure brand, a five-star concept tailor-made for Middle East consumers but with the backing of an international chain. It is based on four key pillars of a sense of welcome, sense of food, sense of wellness and sense of culture and discovery. The first hotel has been signed in Saudi Arabia, the Majlis Grand Mercure Madinah, and Accor Middle East MD Christophe Landais revealed negotiations are underway in Doha for another. Arabic-themed brands are quite a talking point this ATM, with Manzil new from Emaar Hospitality Group, and Constella from Damac receiving official sharia-certification in Dubai.

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12.05pm: There have been several announcements from Damac Hotels during ATM, with Hotelier editor set to meet Damac Properties MD Ziad El Chaar later today to find our more. The company, which already operates the Damac Maison luxury serviced apartments brand, unveiled Naia serviced apartments, which will all feature with a fully-fitted kitchen and maid services, with access to a restaurant, kids club and swimming pool. Naia By Damac will operayte 2200 hotel apartment units in Dubai by the end of 2014, with NAIA Downtown Jebel Ali set to begin operations this month.The company has also officially launched the first fully certified Sharia-Compliant serviced hotel apartments in Dubai, Constella, a luxury tower under construction in Jumeirah Village. All funds for the project will be managed by an Islamic Bank.

11.50am: Attention foodies! Yassat Gloria hotel on Sheikh Zayed Road is going to add three new F&B outlets, adding to their existing two. Urbano, a third party Italian restaurant brand, a Turkish outlet and ‘Outdoor’, a new restaurant with live cooking stations and a terrace are coming soon...

11:35am: Britta from Breidenbacher Hof is excited about the new Royal Floor at the hotel that is currently undergoing a refurbishment from its former apartment state. The 11 suites, all connectable, are expected to be completed by Aug 1.

11:00am: We have just caught up with Brand USA's Jay Gray who is planning to have full time representation in the Middle East by Q4! A move that has been influenced by the increased airlines from the Middle East.

10.30am: Rotana is just six weeks away from the opening of Boulevard Arjaan by Rotana, to open in Amman, Jordan on June 14 followed by a second Jordan opening in June 2015 which will take the company to an 800-room portfolio in the country. According to COO, Guy Hutchinson, the hotels are “being phased” to make sure they’re differentiated and the first opening will be very “corporate and Embassy driven”. Exciting stuff!

10.00am: The 11-year old Chedi Muscat is going to go through a refurb to cater to GCC families in particular. According to general manager Markus Iseli, the addition of around five pool villas, and some family suites will be just the ticket. Iseli commented that currently there are 158 keys in the hotel but the addition of family suites and villas will increase RevPAR.

09.45am: As we revealed in yesterday's live blog, Germany's Oetker Collection is looking at Dubai, Oman and Istanbul for potential opportunities. Here's more on that story.

09.30am: Hospitality Management Holdings has revealed its ambition to have a hotel in every GCC country by 2020, as well as doubling its portfolio in Dubai. The company must be confident on the back of its recent performance, with a 10% increase in revenue per available room (RevPAR) in hotels it operates in the first quarter of the year.

08.55am: The announcements keep coming in: Abu Dhabi's Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort by Anantara has launched a 10-villa complex called the Royal Pavillion Villas by Qasr Al Sarab.

08.35am: Greg Allan, Rotana area vice president Abu Dhabi & Al Ain has recently added Dhofar in Oman to his remit and is overseeing the Salalah Rotana. Allan revealed to us that the hotel is to offer some quirky additions to the F&B offering with a destination dining concept seeing full dining tables being set up on the beach at a guest’s request! Honeymoon guests may also be treated to surprise breakfasts... watch this space.

08.30am: The team is getting ready for another busy day at the Dubai World Trade Centre. In case you missed it, make sure you check out our coverage of day one.