CGI of the new Dubai Parks and Resorts site, which will include the Lapita, Bollywood Parks, Motiongate and Legoland theme parks.
Developers should be looking at the wave of new theme park development under way in the region to create new theme park hotels, according to property consultancy Colliers International.
The firm said that with a number of major theme parks currently under construction, including IMG World of Adventure, Bollywood Parks, Motiongate, Legoland and the Red Sea Astrarium, an opportunity exists for hoteliers to capitalise on their visits by offering new theme park hotels.
It said that traditionally, leisure attractions such as waterparks, have been developed to support existing hotel resorts in the region, such as Aquaventure at The Atlantis hotel at Dubai's Palm Jumeirah.
However, the firm's MENA region head of hotels Filippo Sona pointed to international research which showed that theme parks generally enjoy higher occupancy rates (by 2-10%) than city hotels, and those within theme parks also benefit from visitors staying longer and making more repeat trips.
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He added: “Globally, theme park hotels demand is primarily driven by leisure guests, especially families from domestic and regional markets. It is crucial to target them effectively. This means larger rooms and more of them, mid- and upscale hotels rather than luxury, the right mix of food and beverage outlets and facilities that cater to domestic tastes and preferences."
He added that given the higher costs associated with building hotels on theme park sites, hotels should have a theme that provides the maximum impact on guest experiences with a minimal impact on construction costs.
“There is a genuinely untapped opportunity," he said. "It is only a matter of time before we see a truly world class destination in this segment in the Middle East.”
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