JEDDAH — The Middle East is witnessing a massive development in the hospitality sector with a total of 453 hotel projects planned in the next five years, a report said. The new hotels will add 134,217 rooms to the hospitality offering in the region, said the report by JLL for The Hotel Show Dubai, to be held in September. “The UAE currently leads hotel construction with Abu Dhabi and Dubai featuring as strong markets, and Saudi Arabia and Turkey following closely behind,” said Christine Davidson, group event director of the dmg events hospitality portfolio including The Hotel Show Dubai, the largest forum for the industry in the Middle East and Africa. About 5,300 rooms are likely to be added to Abu Dhabi's luxury hospitality offering by 2017, pushing the emirate's total room tally to 26,000 from 20,700, said a report. Around 2,300 rooms will enter the market by the end of the year alone, mainly in response to the boom in hotel guests during the first quarter of the year, up 20 per cent in comparison to Q1 figures from 2014, said the report. With 45 per cent of the current supply being five-star hotels, the new hotel room openings will also be in the luxury segment with openings in the end of 2015 including the upscale Bab Al Qasr Hotel near Presidential Palace, set to boast 677 rooms and a private beach. Abu Dhabi has been witnessing positive growth due to a large number of government initiatives to grow the emirate as a high quality tourist destination. The expansion of its International Airport and national carrier Etihad Airways, further improvement of its leisure offering and attractions, hosting world-class events, and major campaigns by the ADTCA to promote the emirate on a global scale have played a major part in its development. Attractions launching in Abu Dhabi in coming years include the new Louvre and Guggenheim museums and Warner Bros theme park on Yas Island. – Agencies
