LIVE FROM ARABIAN TRAVEL MARKET 2014: DAY THREE

Welcome to HotelierMiddleEast.com's rolling live coverage of day three of Arabian Travel Market 2014. We'll bring you all the latest announcements from the event at Dubai World Trade Centre, exclusive news and essential industry gossip...

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05.50pm: Once again, we come to the end of the day at Arabian Travel Market. as you can see below and the next few pages, it's been another busy few hours at DWTC, with plenty of news and announcements. One more day to!

05.40pm: Planet Group's hospitality division have lots going on at the moment with two new heritage collection clusters under negotiation. If confirmed, one will open in Sharjah in October this year and the other is to be in Al Ain, with Planet Group currently weighing up options. Additionally, the group is to own a new project near ADNEC, Abu Dhabi - a two-tower complext with a 397 room hotel and 410 unit appartment block. The hotel will be internationally operated but the operator hasn't been confirmed as of yet. We look forward to an announcement soon!

05.35pm: Hotelier caught up with David Shackleton, chief operating officer of Dusit Thani who revealed some really exciting new developments. Apparently the group's operating portfolio is to tripple in the next five years with forty new hotels in China coming on line. In the Middle East, the company is going to have a new sales office in Jeddah and hotels are in the negotiations stage for Makkah, Jeddah and Riyadh. Also a first venture to the ME for the Dusit D2 brand is to be signed for a Dubai location within the next month - keep your eyes peeled for our story!

04.55pm: Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group president and CEO Wolfgang Neumann has criticised Dubai’s new tourism levy as potentially “hindering” business. Speaking to Arabian Business, he said it went against Dubai’s mantra of promoting the emirate as a top destination. “We view it ... with caution because essentially it’s not trade and business enhancing but could well be seen as obviously a hindering point,” he said.

04.30pm: Calling all Middle East hoteliers: Have you completed our Salary Survey yet? So far 67% of respondents have said that salaries will not increase at the same rate as the cost of living following the Expo win – can this be true? We’ve asked a few opinions at ATM....For example, Anders Dimblad, regional general manager at Banyan Tree Ras Al Khaimah said that the win has already affected the cost of resources for hoteliers in terms of staff housing and this is something hoteliers have to start guarding against with long term rental agreements and retention plans to keep down recruitment costs. What do you think? Have your say now before the deadline tomorrow (May 8)! Click here to complete the survey.

04.15pm: Did someone say there was going to be a new Banyan Tree in Bahrain in the next couple of years? That’s a rumour we heard but nothing can be confirmed yet – and we never reveal our sources either..!

03.45pm: Accor managing director middle east Christophe Landais has hinted at bringing the Sofitel So brand to Dubai by 2017 or 2018. "The brand is more trendy and lifestyle-oriented, and Dubai is well-suited for that," explained Landais, who also said the group is currently in talks talks with investors but could not reveal more details. Sofitel CEO Robert Gaymer-Jones previously spoke about the group's plans to introduce the brand in Dubai during an exclusive chat with Hotelier Middle East last year.

Landais also told Hotelier that Dubai's first Ibis Styles Hotel, which will be located in Dragon Mart, will open in Q1 of 2015. Work on the 250-key hotel is scheduled for completion by the end of 2014.

03.25pm: Yas Island VP, Destination Management Karim El Guanaini tells us we can expect some announcements soon about new hotel and residential projects on the island. There will also be a raft of new rides at Ferrari world. All this on top of the opening of a new shopping mall - the biggest in Abu Dhabi - to coincide with the emirate's Grand Prix in November. Talk about running at full rev!

03:00pm: City Season Group director marketing & communications Elise Sarkis-Talj tells Hotelier the group is developing a budget brand for the UAE. She also revealed the group is eyeing locations near the Expo 2020 site for its first location.

02.55pm: HMH's CEO Laurent A. Voivenel has revealed that the company is just on the cusp of signing two Dubai deals for its new Ecos brand. The hotels will be around the 1-star mark and he says they'll be "way cheaper than Ibis"! One of the hotels is to be located around Dubailand and the others location hasn't been confirmed yet. We'll keep you posted!

02.50pm: We caught up with Raki Phillips from FRHI today and he told us that the company is having talks with strategic owners in Oman and that Muscat will be a very important market for the group. Raki also suggetsed that Salalah would be of interest to the company. Raki invited any interested investors to drop by the stand today. He also said that the company is eyeing Qatar for its three brands that we should watch this space for an exciting announcement soon!

02.35pm: Interesting green initiative by Time Hotels, which has launched what it claims to be the Middle East’s first carbon offset accommodation at two of its hotels in Dubai. Guided by UAE- based facilities management company Farnek, the initiative involves Time Oak Hotel & Suites and Time Grand Plaza Hotel, where guests are offered a chance to contribute towards climate protection. You should be able to find out more about it on the Time Hotels stand (HC5300).

01.45pm: Jumeirah Messilah Beach Hotel & Spa in Kuwait has appointed Hakan Petek as its general manager. The Turkish-British national has been serving as acting GM since December and was a key player in the pre-opening period of the hotel as well as a member of the Executive Committee. Jumeirah Group has also made two other GM appointments: Christophe Mousset joins Jumeirah Bilgah Beach Hotel in Baku, while Mete Atakuman will lead the pre-opening at Jumeirah Guangzhou in China. Congratulations to them all!

01.15pm: JA Resorts & Hotels is to develop a third property at the JA Jebel Ali Golf Resort. Set to officially open in 2017, the new property will overlook the championship-standard nine-hole golf course and the marina. It comes not long after the company launched its second international property, JA Manafaru, in the Maldives. We got a sneak peek of the 84-key property earlier this year.

12.45pm: Rixos Bab Al Bahr general manager Haytham Omar has been speaking to us about how the performance of the first all-inclusive property in Ras Al Khaimah has exceeded expectations. Over the next few months they'll be hiring more than 250 more staff and opening all its rooms. And Omar reveals they'll also be adding two more pools and another all-day dining restaurant. If you've ready our interview with him from earlier this year, you'll know about just how ambitious he is.

11.55am: We had a chat with Richard Power, director of communications at Rocco Forte hotel in Jeddah. The two tower hotel with 19 floors each will mark the company’s 12th hotel worldwide and first in the region (not forgetting the previous venture in Abu Dhabi which is no longer operated by the company). With Rocco Forte having seen a 29% increase in Middle Eastern visitors to its European properties last year, Richard is confident there is plenty of brand awareness to guarantee success in KSA. Good luck Rocco Forte!

11:35am: Arabian Travel News editor Daniel Andrews had a great catch up with Amadeus Gulf's MD Graham Nichols. There is a lot going on for the company. Yesterday it launched Travel Wizard, an integrated travel solutions tool and has recently purchased New Markets International in order to develop IT solutions for hotels.

11.30am: Rabih Zein, the GM of the new Park Inn by Radisson Hotel & Residence Duqm in Oman, tells us the property should open in August. Zein is also GM of the Park Inn Muscat and he's excited by the opportunity to open one of the first international brand hotels in Duqm.

10.50am: Hotelier held a female GM roundtable at ATM to discuss the opportunities and challenges for women in the hotel industry – with surprising results! According to the ladies, there are no barriers for females to become GMs in the UAE and Expo 2020 will provide a catalyst for upward movement in the industry for women and men. Present at the roundtable were Anke Glaessing from Movenpick Deira, Chantel Moore of Burjuman Arjaan Rotana, Eleni Tsolakou, GM at Centro Barsha Dubai and Debrah Dhugga from Dukes London. Thanks ladies for attending! And stay tuned for the full story...

10.20am: Rosewood held a roundtable yesterday at ATM to talk about their expansion plans globally and one of the most interesting developments for us at Hotelier Middle East is the Rosewood Dubai to open around quarter four next year. The hotel will be located in DIFC and is to have two F&B outlets, a ballroom, business centre and a signature spa! We look forward to hearing more...

09.50am: Millennium & Copthorne yesterday announced the launch of three new brands for the Middle East - M Hotel, Studio M, and Millennium Executive Apartments. Read all about it here.

09.25am: It's been a big few days for Hilton Worldwide, which has not only manage a 366-room resort being developed on Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi, but also a new Hilton Garden Inn to be developed adjacent to Mall of the Emirates in Dubai. No wonder senior management were in such good form at the company's Media Souk last night at The Conrad Dubai.

09.05am: The Hotelier team has recharged its batteries and is raring to go for the third day of ATM. We're past the halfway point on the event now and, with all the meetings, press conferences and seminars on our schedules, we can expect plenty more news today.