MIDDLE EAST Accor Middle East has 18 hotel projects in its pipeline, expected to add some 4,850 guestrooms to its regional portfolio by 2014.
Accor’s primary growth focus is on two key markets—the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Eleven of the 18 new hotels will be located in the UAE, with two in Bahrain, two in Saudi Arabia and three in Syria.
“We have experienced sustainable progress in the region’s tourism and hospitality industry in 2010. With 2011 upon us, we plan to build a new image of the UAE as an affordable destination,” says Christophe Landais, managing director of Accor Middle East. “We believe that to attract a more diverse tourist base, we have to offer tourists and business travelers alike a wider choice of hotels to stay in.
“Focusing on our core strength, we plan to expand our internationally branded economy hotel Ibis and midmarket hotel brand Novotel in the UAE, which will drive tourism flows and redefine the Middle East hospitality industry in the long-term.”
Accor’s midscale extended-stay brand, Adagio City Aparthotels, will launch in the Middle East with an opening late this year or early in 2012 in Abu Dhabi. There are currently 30 Adagio properties open in Europe, and Accor aims to have 100 Adagio properties in operation globally by 2015.
Following the launch of Accor’s first upscale hotel in the region in September, Pullman Dubai Mall of the Emirates, Accor plans to launch the 354-key Pullman Dubai Jumeirah Lake set to open this year.
Accor’s regional portfolio is expected to number 54 hotels and 12,497 guestrooms by 2014.