The building on the left housesVinesse, the main restaurant, which is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Because of the elevated location of the restaurant, the guests dining on the terrace can enjoy direct views of the sea.
The Oberoi Beach Resort, Al Zorah opened its doors last month within the Al Zorah master development, which has been planned by Solidere International and is a joint venture with the Government of Ajman. Across one million square metres of rich wetland, Al Zorah’s biodiversity is home to almost 60 species of birds and marine life. The Oberoi Beach Resort, Al Zorah is located in close proximity to the two million square metres of green mangroves.
Al Zorah CEO Imad Dana says the choice to sign up with The Oberoi Group was, in some ways, a no-brainer. “Oberoi is famous for quality which we were seeking at Al Zorah,” says Dana, who adds that the developer liked that the operator had just one hotel in the UAE so far, making it more exclusive in its eyes.
Dana praises the design of the resort, and says that the contemporary design has been something which The Oberoi Group also loved. Dana says: “It’s transparent and uncomplicated, and every piece is selected after careful thought, and with the space in mind. It’s a big resort and a limited number of suites — we don’t have rooms, just suites and villas.”
Designed by Italian architect Piero Lissoni, the resort’s accommodation includes suites and villas with private terraces and swimming pools. Meanwhile, Sensio Spa by Oberoi offers Eastern, Western and signature massage therapies, Turkish hammams and ayurvedic treatments. The resort also has a fully equipped 24-hour gymnasium and a temperature controlled 80m-long swimming pool.
The property, which is the fifth five-star hotel and the first five-star resort in Ajman, offers 113 keys, 25 units of twin bedded and 88 units of king bedded rooms, suites and villas with one, two or three bedrooms. In addition to the terraces, the villas offer a private sundeck with a temperature controlled swimming pool.
The Oberoi Beach Resort Al Zorah general manager Burkhard Wolter, who has been in the UAE for two decades and counting, joined the project in October 2015, and was involved in sharing The Oberoi Group’s thought process.
He says: “Oberoi wants to be part of building a property, so the engagement was done in 2013. We were on the drawing board in the early stages. I’ve been fortunate to come in on the project earlier, to have a say. We have a very tolerant developer who was involved with us, which is not always the case. And seeing the hotel in renderings, and then seeing how it actually assembled together was a highlight.”
The Oberoi Beach Resort Al Zorah director of sales & marketing Albert Meow joined the pre-opening team in July 2016 from the erstwhile Banyan Tree properties in Ras Al Khaimah, and tells Hotelier that the idea is to develop Al Zorah as a destination. He says: “It’s quite similar to what Yas Island used to be. Now whenever you see the words ‘Yas Island’, you think ‘Abu Dhabi’. Eventually when people think about Al Zorah, they will think about Ajman.
“In all our collaterals, we don’t mention Ajman with the idea of developing Al Zorah as a destination. This gives us positive opportunities to create ourselves.”
One of the selling points, Meow says, is that each suite will be able to avail of butler service, with the property also being one of the first few within the entire operator group to implement the Oberoi Enhance system which will allow guests to explore the resort’s offerings and book tables or order room service via iPads. Once settings are saved by a guest, when s/he returns, those settings will be saved against their guest profile.
Meow reveals that the team expects approximately 40% of its business to come from the local market, and will use a balanced mix of social media marketing and generic advertising to target this sector. “In the bigger picture we target Germany, the UK, Switzerland and Russia,” he adds.
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