Rotana Hotel Management Corporation appointed Bassam Khanfar as General Manager of Al Marwa Rayhaan by Rotana Hotel in Makkah, the company said. In addition to his long tenure at the hotel, Khanfar has a distinguished track record in the luxury hotel industry, combined with deep knowledge of the Saudi market, making him the ideal man to take hotel services in the holy city to the next level, and making the stay of pilgrims that much more comfortable and spiritual. “Mr. Khanfar's appointment is a natural part of the hotel's efforts to bring itself up to the highest possible level of readiness for the holy month of Ramadan, during which Makkah sees a dense influx of pilgrims both from within the Kingdom and abroad, all looking to take advantage of the divine graces of the holy month in close proximity to the Holy Mosque as they stay at Al Marwa Rayhann by Rotana Hotel,” said Mohamad Haj Hassan, Area Vice President of Rotana in KSA, Sudan, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan and Bahrain. Khanfar had joined Al Marwa Rayhaan by Rotana in August 2009, when he became financial manager. He then moved on to become director of guest services, from which he was promoted to deputy general manager. His career in the hospitality industry started in 1990, when he became a supervisor, and later financial manager, at the Movenpick Kempinski in Aqaba, Jordan. Before that, he was deputy financial manager of the Nile Sheraton Hotel and Towers in Amman. Al Marwa Rayhaan by Rotana is Rotana's first hotel in Saudi Arabia to carry the “Rayhaan by Rotana” brand. The hotel is situated right next to the Holy Mosque, with a direct line of sight to King Abdulaziz Gate, the Holy Kaaba and the mosque's yard. The hotel is next to the Abraj Al-Bayt project, as well as a shopping center that includes a large mosque, a multi-story marketplace, and a 24-hour medical center. — SG
