Dubai building boom is still in full bloom and new hotels appear all the time. Just to prove this Al Habtoor Group has exposed its plans concerning the building of a new hotel in Dubai. This 2,000-key accommodation will become not only the biggest hotel in the city, but also the biggest hotel in the United Arab Emirates.
Currently the biggest hotel in Dubai is 1,539-key Atlantis The Palm. The new property is yet in the process of preplanning. Unlike many other builders, Al Habtoor Group is not going to search for a partner for managing or funding purposes. As the Chairman of the company Khalaf al Habtoor states “I hate partnerships”.
The company already owns several properties in the Middle East. Among them are 4 hotels in Dubai and 2 hotels in Beirut. This year the company will also open its seventh property – the 308-key Habtoor Island Resort & Spa hotel on the Palm Jumeirah.
Dubai is currently a hot place for opening new accommodations. More than 9,000 guestrooms were added to the citywide inventory within 9 months of 2010, showing an increase of about 15%. Another 10,000 of new guestrooms are expected to be added in 2011. Dubai becomes a popular destination for exhibitions and cruise industry, so hoteliers expect more tourists to attend this city. Currently tourism reaches around 19% of Dubai’s GDP.