Superlatives seem inadequate when discussing Dubai, so a new one has been introduced: ‘wower.’ Having only just got our heads around The Palm and The World developments plus the concept of Dubailand, the most recent announcement is the £15.4 billion (wow, wow, wower…) Bawadi project, featuring 31 hotels and 29,200 rooms, which will be located within Dubailand itself.
Skiing in the morning followed by a gala dinner in the desert, anyone?
Skiing in the morning followed by a gala dinner in the desert, anyone? It seems anything is possible in Dubai, as long as your imagination can cope with it.
Having only just got our heads around The Palm and The World developments plus the concept of Dubailand – more all on those later – the most recent announcement is the £15.4 billion (wow, wow, wower…) Bawadi project, featuring 31 hotels and 29,200 rooms, which will be located within Dubailand.
Bawadi will boast the world’s largest hotel, as well as
the greatest concentration of leading hotels anywhere in the world
Billed as a hospitality and tourism development project, Bawadi will boast the world’s largest hotel, Asia-Asia, as well as the greatest concentration of leading hotels anywhere in the world as Bawadi will add 31 hotels to the emirate’s fast-expanding portfolio of iconic properties over the next eight years. Out of the nearly 30,000 rooms, some 12,450 will be in the developer’s own 12 themed hotels, with a further 19 hotels providing the remaining 16,750 rooms. About a quarter of the accommodation will be five-star, two thirds will be four-star and the remainder will be three-star. Asia-Asia, will alone provide 6,500 four- and five-star rooms.
The Badawi project is also expected to feature a number of entertainment centres, shopping malls, theatres, restaurants and convention centres - and yes that is meant to be in the plural. It will be 10 km long and is expected to host 3.3 million guests by 2016.
Developed and maintained by Tatweer (part of Dubai Holding), the themed hotels are set to include Desert Gate Hotels & Resorts, Desert Beach Hotel & Resort, Land of Arabia Hotels & Resorts, Wild West Hotels, Africa World Hotels, Europa Hotels & Resorts and Pirate’s Cove Hotels & Resorts.
The projects will open in five distinct phases in line with the growth of the anticipated inflow of visitors to Dubai. Initially, five luxury hotels will open by 2010, with a further six to open by 2011. Seven hotels will be completed in 2012, another seven in 2013 and the final fifth phase will see six further hotels in 2014, bringing the total to 31.
£15.4 billion investment
The £15.4 billion investment will comprise £4.6 billion from Tatweer in hotel developments, and £1.6 billion in infrastructure investment. The remaining £9.2 billion is expected to come from investors, with some 50 per cent of all plots of land available for private development reserved during the first nine hours of opening, raising £4.6 billion.
‘With relentless optimism and bold leadership, the emirate steers a course that ensures it is always a step ahead of the expectations of the increasingly demanding global citizen,’ commented Bärbel Kirchner, director of the UK and Ireland office of Dubai Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM).
Well you don’t say.
Although palling somewhat in comparison to the above, there are also a number of properties scheduled to open within the next couple of years that also have that touch of glamour and escapism, including the 335 rooms and apartments at the Armani Hotel which is due to open in 2007/8 in Burj Dubai, the Palazzo Versace will be opening a 220 suite/204 villa resort in the Business Bay by 2008 and the Conran Hotel by Hilton will be opening a 350 room hotel next year.
Dubai welcomed over 6.1 million international visitors in 2005 (680,000 from the UK) and is predicting a whopping 15 million by 2010.Yet for some time now, Dubai has marketed itself very successfully as a must-visit leisure destination, but it has really only fairly recently begun getting serious about the potential of the MICE industry. The exhibition sector has taken off dramatically – witness the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre’s hosting of the Annual World Dental Congress of the Federation of Dentist International next year for a mere 15,000 delegates – the conference market has been relatively untapped.
Billed as a hospitality and tourism development project, Bawadi will boast the world’s largest hotel, Asia-Asia, as well as the greatest concentration of leading hotels anywhere in the world as Bawadi will add 31 hotels to the emirate’s fast-expanding portfolio of iconic properties over the next eight years. Out of the nearly 30,000 rooms, some 12,450 will be in the developer’s own 12 themed hotels, with a further 19 hotels providing the remaining 16,750 rooms. About a quarter of the accommodation will be five-star, two thirds will be four-star and the remainder will be three-star. Asia-Asia, will alone provide 6,500 four- and five-star rooms.
Dubai welcomed over 6.1 million international visitors in 2005 (680,000 from the UK) and is predicting a whopping 15 million by 2010.Yet for some time now, Dubai has marketed itself very successfully as a must-visit leisure destination, but it has really only fairly recently begun getting serious about the potential of the MICE industry. The exhibition sector has taken off dramatically – witness the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre’s hosting of the Annual World Dental Congress of the Federation of Dentist International next year for a mere 15,000 delegates – the conference market has been relatively untapped.
