Gloria Hotels and Resorts, a Dubai-based hospitality chain, plans to strengthen its portfolio in the region with the opening of new properties in the coming years.
Freddy Farid, area general manager of Gloria Hotels and Resorts, says a new resort in Al Ain and 250-room Gloria Downtown Abu Dhabi are expected to be opened soon, while upcoming properties including those in Saudi Arabia will boost its total room count to around 3,000.'We’ve just acquired a new small apartment hotel in Abu Dhabi, while in Saudi Arabia we are on course to expand our footprint with one hotel each in Jeddah, Riyadh, Madinah and Makkah. We are also looking at a hotel in Ras Al Khaimah,' Farid tells TTN.The chain has also launched new global sales offices in UK, China, India and the Middle East along with new summer packages to target outbound travel from these markets.As part of the representation, Aviareps’s UK, China and India offices will be responsible for sales and marketing activities while Aviareps Dubai office will be responsible for PR activities, which will develop sales and marketing strategies and brand awareness campaigns on its two existing Dubai properties, Gloria Hotel and Yassat Gloria Hotel and Apartments.'UK, China, India and the Middle East have long been important markets for Gloria Hotels and Resorts. Commensurate to this, and demonstrating our commitment to these markets, we have appointed dedicated sales directors and PR representative in each of these markets to closely communicate the benefits and unique experiences that Gloria Hotels and Resorts have to offer. With Aviareps’ networks and local expertise we are confident we have the right partner to help us achieve our ambitious goals of growing our UK, China, India and Middle East market share,' he says.Located on Sheikh Zayed Road, exactly in front of Dubai Internet City metro station, Gloria Hotel boasts of completed meeting and banqueting facilities with a space of 1,845 sq m. The 41-storey towers offer options to Mice and meetings specialists to host large-scale events for up to 800 people as well as smaller gatherings.Yassat Gloria Hotel & Apartments offers short and long-term guests stylish hotel apartment-style accommodation and is equipped with a 400-sq-m space solely dedicated for holding meetings and events. The hotel is also outfitted with different facilities such as an outdoor mini-football, volleyball and basketball court, an indoor squash court, an outdoor swimming pool and Kids sports club with various activities.For team building, Gloria Hotel and Yassat Gloria Hotel & Apartments offer a range of exciting activities to combine a perfect balance between work and leisure. Some activities include soccer, basketball, volleyball, carting, golf courses, horse riding, sky diving and desert driving, among others.On feeder markets, Farid says besides India, China, Europe and the GCC, we are looking at Africa and South America also.Farid says corporate and Mice business will continue to be growth driver for Gloria Hotels and Resorts this year, however families also showed interest in the group’s properties.The group is engaged in a Dh80 million ($21.77 million) five-year refurbishment plan for Gloria Hotel at Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai. The 1,000-key property will undergo renovations of its 200 rooms this summer.He says that the refurbishment plan will be completed ahead of the Dubai Expo 2020 and the property will be fully ready for the mega event with 100 per cent capacity available.By K S Sreekumar