The Hotel Show 2016

The 17th edition of The Hotel Show to take place this year with reports revealing that 10,000 new hotel rooms will go live in Dubai throughout 2016

More than 30,000 hospitality industry professionals are forecast to attend the 17th edition of The Hotel Show Dubai and co-located events, The Leisure Show and Piscine Middle East. The events are expecting professionals from the global hospitality industry, heads of major hotels, leisure resorts, spas, theme parks, aquariums, shopping malls and more to attend.

More than 600 international exhibitors include major brand names, featuring: Bang & Olufsen; Stylis; RAK Porcelain; Hartmann Tresore; Simmons; Philips; Lutron; 1765 Gemini; dorma+kaba; King Koil; Raha Oman; Sandalyeci — and major product launches are anticipated this year as well.

Product sectors that will be covered span 360-degrees of the hospitality industry from interiors & design to technology.

All of this is in response to a growing hospitality industry, with 10,000 new hotel rooms reported to open in Dubai throughout 2016, according to the Dubai Hotel Market Overview prepared by JLL for The Hotel Show Dubai 2016. This report revealed that 621 new hotel rooms opened in Dubai during Q1 2016, and 9,400 additional rooms will be added to the market by the end of the year.

New properties in the coming months include: Lapita Hotel Dubai at Dubai Parks and Resorts; Hard Rock Hotel Dubai Marina; Jumeirah Al Naseem, Madinat Jumeirah; and Nikki Beach Resort & Spa Dubai.

This news is also why, this year, there are two co-located events — The Leisure Show and Piscine Middle East. The spa market in the Middle East and Africa is valued at AED 11 billion this year (US $3 billion), according to a new report. The leisure market report prepared by Euromonitor International ahead of The Leisure Show 2016 and Piscine Middle East 2016 revealed that the UAE shares over 14% of this market with a value of AED 1.59 billion (US $435 million).

Rabia Yasmeen, research analyst at Euromonitor International, commented: “Hotel and resort spas are most common in this region. UAE hotels report 60% of total spa visitors are residents who are not otherwise staying on the property. Hotels are now leasing spaces for more spa related services as the demand increases.”

Yasmeen continued: “The trend towards health and wellness and medical tourism in this region is expanding. Health focused tourists usually spend more than 130% as compared to regular traveller as they seek such experiences as part of leisure activities.”

The Global Wellness Institute (GWI) has previously identified Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East and North Africa as the fastest growing spa markets in the world.

Euromonitor forecasts that the Middle East and Africa spa market will grow by 21.6% from 2015 until 2019. Spa openings across the region in 2016 include: Aurora Spa by Joelle at the Mövenpick Hotel Riyadh; Nikki Spa at the Nikki Beach Resort & Spa Dubai; R Resort & Spa Palm Jumeirah; and The Oberoi, Marrakech.

On the first day of Piscine Middle East, a ‘Pool Vision’ contest will award “beautiful” residential, tourism and leisure pools, alongside the “most innovative” pools across the region. The Middle East Pool and Spa Awards (MEPSA) will return for its fourth edition with 17 award categories for 2016 including: Best Innovative Body Treatment (new for 2016); Best Signature Body Treatment; Best Hotel Spa; Best Beauty Salon; Best Aqua Leisure Venue; and more.

Previous MEPSA winners (2015) include: Banyan Tree Spa Al Wadi; The Spa at The Palace Downtown Dubai; Yas Waterworld, Abu Dhabi; SensAsia Urban Spa, Emirates Golf Club; Point Zero Flotation Centre; and La’mar Spa at Marjan Island Resort & Spa, Ras Al Khaimah.

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