LIVE FROM THE HOTEL SHOW 2014: DAY ONE

Welcome to our rolling coverage of The Hotel Show, live from Dubai World Trade Centre. We'll bring you all the latest news from the event, where Hotelier Middle East and Caterer Middle East are the Exclusive Official Publications.

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06:45pm That's all from the team today. Remember to check back in tomorrow, when we return with more coverage of The Hotel Show.

05:30pm In one of the last panels of the day, we heard Bobby Krishna from the Dubai Municipality talk about food safety regulations, with a list of new developments for the years in the run-up to Expo 2020. Changes in inspection cultures and ways of motivating restaurants to stay at the top of their game are in progress. We look forward to seeing these changes being implemented!

05:00pm This year's Hotel Show also features a ‘Future Hotel’ sustainable design feature, showcasing international brands, their products, design concepts and future trend predictions.

04:15pm Panel discussion at Vision Conference on trends for interior design - Benjamin Piper (Director of Architecture, Perkins+Will) says there is demand among hoteliers for more characterful design becuase hotels are becoming more homogenous.

03:45pm BagnoDesign has launched two new bathroom suites at the Hotel Show - Biarritz and Metreaux - for the hospitality industry.

03:00pm Yousuf Lootah, executive director tourism development and investments at DTCM has revealed the new hospitality school, which will open by end of 2015, will offer a two-year diploma for students who have completed secondary education. 

02:20pm We popped over to the Boncafe stand, which was recently acquired by the MZB Group, and they have confirmed many interesting developments are in store. These include new products from MZB, as well as the Vitamix range of products that have now come into their portfolio. Watch this space as we follow the story.

01:50pm One of the more intriguing stands is Ingersoll Rand's. The company is showcasing its Club Car brand, with its new Carryall range. The range is its first new family of vehicles in 20 years and it is spreading the word in this region through Hydroturf International.

01:10pm Christopher Hewitt (senior consultant, TRI Hospitality Consulting) highlighted the development of more leisure projects, including malls and theme parks, as an important driving factor for hotel growth in the Middle East.

12:40pm The trends session in the conference also saw interesting points made by Rabih Feghali (director - business development, Roya International) about the growth of independent hotels, not just at the budget end, but also in lifetyle and luxury.

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12:30pm Already plenty of stimulating discussions at the Vision Conference here. Rahul Odedra (editor, HotelierMiddleEast.com) moderated one on trends in hospitality and leisure. Among the key points raised was the growth of the lifestyle segment and the development of multi-branded properties

11:45am Purell has recently joined up with Truebell as its distributor in this market and is planning to target the foodservice industry. We'll bring more from them soon.

11:00am Running parallel with The Hotel Show is The Vision Conference, which will feature around 80 speakers, covering a wide range of topics. We'll keep you up-to-date with any interesting developments there.

10:30am Halls 2-8 at DWTC rapidly filling up with plenty of exhibitors and lots of visitors already coming in.

10:00am Good morning from Dubai World Trade Centre, where exhibitors are getting ready to welcome thousands of visitors over the next three days. The Hotelier and Caterer teams are all on site and ready to bring you the latest news, gossip and updates from the event