Rixos Premium Belek dominating high-end market

Capitalising on its stunning surroundings, the five star Rixos Premium Belek resort in Antalya, Turkey, is leading the pack in the region’s high end hotel sector due to a massive investment in ultra luxurious facilities and a highly effective ‘all exclusive, all inclusive’ ethos.

The hotel covers an area of 400,000 sq m and is located in a pine forest alongside a 1,000 sq m sandy beach.

With a lake and French themed boulevard, the resort offers high standards of accommodation with top notch service and has a range of a la carte restaurants to suit all culinary requirements. The restaurants are part of the all inclusive aspect which also include a gym, tennis courts, volleyball, squash, aerobics, football, basketball, pedaloes and regular evening entertainment. The resort also boasts an on site aqua park and dolphinarium

One of the key attractions is a huge and spectacular spa centre that offers Turkish baths, massage, sauna steam, snow room and a vast range of treatments. The spa concept, which bridges old Turkish traditions with modern luxury, has been developed with vigour by Rixos and is proving central to the group’s success.

 “The spa here is extremely popular with our guests; it’s the biggest in Turkey and is a real selling point for us,” said Chris van Dam, general manager. “Our guests are used to luxury and high end facilities, which is why we’ve made the spa so inspiring – plus they love that it has a traditional Turkish look and feel.”

Premium Belek has 730 guest rooms and suites, plus 37 special villas and three residences. Rooms come in several sizes and concepts, all have a double bed plus extra bed and child bed (if required), centrally controlled air conditioning, plasma-screen TV, telephone, hairdryer, full bathroom and balcony or terrace with sea view.

Rooms for sole use and interconnecting family suites with double bed and twin bedrooms (sleeping three adults or two adults and two children) are also available. The hotel also has a range of VIP and superior suites.

Rixos Belek is being bolstered by the fact Turkey’s tourism industry is thriving, illustrated by the fact that the number of foreign visitors this year to Antalaya alone is up by around 20 per cent so far.

The chain presently owns and operates nine luxury hotels in Turkey, Ukraine and Kazakhstan, and is set to open further hotels in Croatia and Austria later this year. Plus, 2008 sees the launch of the high profile five star Ottoman Palace hotel and villa project located on Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah.

The company has also embraced its online presence by creating Rixos Hotel World on the virtual reality website ‘Second Life’ where members can tour Rixos and even make bookings. The space has been created with 3-D technology and is currently the biggest tourism and hospitality project on the site.

by Emma Procter