Site visit: Rove Healthcare City

Three-star hotels in the region are rarely synonymous with lifestyle, design and attention to detail but these points are the cornerstones on which Rove Hotels have built its brand and this approach seems to be striking a chord with their guests also known as ‘Rovers’.

Six days after Rove Healthcare City opened on February 2, 2017, it was already operating at capacity. For hotel manager Naveen Advani, the high occupancy less than a week after opening to the public came as a surprise: “It’s been great. Since opening, the hotel has had tremendous numbers of people who want to stay with us. Far more than what I initially expected but it makes me a very happy man. And the feedback has been great too.”

Advani attributes the hotel’s early success to its experiential offering: “There isn’t another product like Rove in the market. People are always looking for something that’s a bit different but also has great value and great service. That’s a big part of why people are staying with us. We’re for the young and the young at heart. Whether you’re a 20-year-old looking for somewhere different to stay in Dubai or whether you’re a 60-year-old traveller who’s on their way to another part of the world, we’re happy to have you.”

BY DESIGN

Visually, the Rove brand has struck a chord with its customers, most of whom share quirky signs and accessories on social media. Talking about the features specific to this property, Advani said: “As you walk through the hotel, I can point out several things that link us to the neighbourhood we’re in. The same happens in Port Saeed which is where Rove City Centre is located and in Za’abeel at Rove Downtown. Each hotel is unique in its design characteristic and that creates a character amongst the hotels that somebody who’s visiting Rove would say ‘Ok I’ve stayed in Rove Za’abeel. I’ve seen Rove City Centre. Let me see what Rove Healthcare city is about.’ It’s recognisably the same brand but the details are different.”

The brand has achieved this individual yet cohesive look by working with local artists and designers. Emaar Hospitality Group senior manager corporate communications Vida Rizq shed light on the design process saying: “There are several Emirati and Dubai-based artists who consistently provide us with art and the interiors are done with heart and passion. Our interior designer’s biggest source of joy was when she walked into the first hotel and saw people sitting with their feet up on the sofas. She felt that she’d achieved the feel she needed to achieve.”

STAY LOCAL

Positioned within a 10 minute drive of Dubai International Airport and in close proximity to Dubai Healthcare City, the hotel offers access to the neighbourhoods of Karama, Satwa and Deira and is near schools and businesses. “What we want to do is to create an environment where in every Rove that you visit, there’s something that’s different. We work with artists to create a unique experience in each hotel so Rove Healthcare City is based in Oud Metha so the artists have worked with us to create a link back to the heritage of Dubai but also to the heritage of Oud Metha. It creates an environment that’s very unique to this property but also allows us to tell a story,” he says The hotel’s interior designer uses nostalgia to create a ‘lived-in’ feel and create a sense of time and place.

“We have a cabinet of curiosity made up of picture frames and each picture frame has a little story of its own. I walk around residents from the surrounding area to show them the little design aspects and explain why we’ve done things a certain way because as much as we’re a hotel, it’s really important that we link to the people around us as well. Neighbourhood is important to me. It’s important to work with businesses around us but also to welcome our neighbours. I want them to feel at home here as much as I do,” he adds.

HOSPITAL HUB

Rove Healthcare City also serves as a venue for business events and Continuing Medical Education (CME) training programmes, which will appeal to healthcare companies, distributors and others seeking to engage medical professionals in Dubai Healthcare City. Its proximity to Rashid Hospital and the American Hospital means guests of in-house patients, especially wellness tourists, will have a place to stay. Advani believes that capitalising from its strategic location was always the plan for Rove Healthcare City, “One of the reasons we named our hotel Healthcare City was to link to the area. The Dubai government is investing heavily in the future of medicine and being close to so many key hospitals in the area, we believe that we will have interest from this sector. We’ve already started to see it with the type of Rovers that we that are coming in to the hotel.” And Advani assures that the hotel’s licensed all day dining F&B offering, The Daily, is prepared to cater for health-conscious guests. “We know that our Rovers are looking for good value, and healthy food options. Our menus are very much about offering food that’s fresh with great portions and sharing platters because people with families like to sit together and create that social community feel.”

ROVE RIVALS

This new property offers smart services including self-check-in stations and the convenience of late check-out at 2pm. In addition, a 24-hour gym, a 24-hour self-service laundromat, a boutique convenience store, luggage store rooms and safety deposit boxes all complement the fuss-free lifestyle of its guests. “A lot of hotels in the area offer accommodation but what we do is offer it with a twist. I know there isn’t another hotel around us that offers it in this combination. Many people fail to recognise that the future of hospitality is in the midscale market. People want value and they want an experience at the same time. Rove does that perfectly. That’s the reason people come and stay with us and why you may pick Rove over another property.” Rove Healthcare City has also been able to build on the success of its predecessors, Rove Downtown and Rove City Centre, and capitalise on the popularity of the brand amongst residents and travellers. Still, Advani has a novel proposition for his competitors: “Most hoteliers won’t have seen anything like Rove before and I’d like to welcome them. Come rove with us. Come and see what we’re all about. I think we’re the future of the hotel industry. ”

NEW NEIGHBOURHOODS

Developed by Emaar Hospitality Group, the locations chosen for Rove properties tend to be in residential areas. Advani explains the reasoning behind this decision: “We want people to have a place where they can come and call home when they’re here but then be able to go out and explore Dubai. Working with the 2020 vision of Dubai we’re keen to open a number of different properties all around the city. One of our slogans is ‘Exploring without borders’ and rove means to wander, to go out, to look. We have a number of properties in the pipeline. The next one will open next to the Trade Centre in an area called Jafiliya and then we have Dubai Marina as well which should open within the next 12 months.” With three properties in under a year, the Rove portfolio has grown rapidly and shows no signs of slowing down. Five additional Rove Hotels are due to open in Dubai within the next three years with a strong possibility that more properties will follow. Advani concludes: “We don’t wait around! The Dubai Rovers are asking for it. We’ve announced 10 properties but I’m sure there will be more in the future.”