Rotana, the leading hotel management company in the Mena region, is expanding its portfolio to more than 68 properties by 2012.
The move is the result of new management agreements signed by Rotana for properties across the region, including new projects in Cairo, Jordan, Oman, Iraq, Qatar, the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
SELIM EL ZYR, president of Rotana Hotels speaks to TTN about the company’s growing portfolio of Mice properties.
What percentage of your business is Mice and how has this grown over the past five years?
Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharm El Sheikh and recently Lebanon are the most popular destinations of corporate/Mice events for Rotana. The Mice business is an increasing segment throughout Rotana properties and destinations in the Middle East. The approximate current percentage of Mice business is eight per cent in Abu Dhabi, eight per cent in Dubai, nine per cent in Lebanon and 11 per cent in Egypt.
Mice business relies not only on the property’s offering but also on the destination itself. In Egypt, we are forecasting, or in fact working on, increasing the Mice business within the next two years to 18 per cent. Sharm El Sheikh is emerging as a conference paradise and our five-star luxurious resort, the Grand Rotana Resort & Spa, boasts some of the most hi-tech facilities combined with the resort’s exclusive services.
In Abu Dhabi, the increase will be very significant; up to 14 per cent which is a growth of over 60 per cent and this is due to the initiatives taken by the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority to promote the destination for Mice.
Our property locations add great value to the Mice guests. The Beach Rotana is a city conference resort, the recently launched Park Rotana is located next to Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (Adnec). In addition, Yas Island Rotana is located in close proximity to the Abu Dhabi Airport, F1 race track, marina and links golf course. In Dubai, Rotana has more than 90 meeting / conference rooms with upwards of 14,000 sq m of meeting space.
Before the end of 2011, Rotana will operate its fourth property in Lebanon, Solidère Arjaan by Rotana, situated in the newly rebuilt historical city centre of Beirut. Lebanon has rebounded and is again attracting Mice business.
Where has this growth come from?
Primarily local and regional, followed by the UK, Germany and the rest of Europe. We have been witnessing an increase in the number of inter-regional meetings from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to the UAE and specifically to Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Fujairah.
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Work and play at Mice events |
What prospects are there for growth in your Mice business and what are you doing to develop those prospects?
Rotana offers a wide range of conference and banqueting facilities to suit every conference, meeting and incentive group. Many of the hotels have business centres and dedicated conference teams to help plan the perfect event.
Prices are certainly important but Mice organisers look mainly at the whole ‘package’ in terms of the destination and whether it’s interesting and attractive so that participants can work and enjoy themselves at the same time. Standards and facilities are vital factors for both the participants and organisers. Customers are attracted and retained by the offer of a wide and increasing number of personal choices in terms of location, type, budget and style of property.
This is of course a very important sector that we are focusing on through our outbound sales offices in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Cairo, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the UK and Germany and the many road shows that we initiate in these countries. Furthermore, and as mentioned earlier, Mice business relies not only on the property’s offering but also on the destination itself.
What do you hope to achieve by attending GIBTM?
We are very pleased with Abu Dhabi hosting an important exhibition such as GIBTM, which will hugely assist in developing Mice tourism. We have always been very active with the promotion of our Mice properties all over the Middle East through our local and international sales offices and our participation at GIBTM has assisted us in further developing this sector and in showcasing our products and offerings.
Taking into consideration the fact that Abu Dhabi is our home base, our participating in GIBTM comes as a support to Abu Dhabi’s development and the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority’s efforts in the promotion of Abu Dhabi. We hope to appeal to Mice buyers and to promote Rotana properties and Abu Dhabi as a destination in the most adequate way.
How can travel agents work with you to maximise their Mice business/sales?
We provide the Mice organisers with all the tools and selling points for each of our destinations and properties in order to facilitate the process.
Furthermore, we tailor-make packages to suit their specific requirements. Organisers prefer to deal with a team that is not only professional and experienced but with a team that cares. Our properties are geared to handle complex and demanding needs whist making the destination interesting enough.
What is your advice for travel agents wishing to get more out of Mice/ expand their Mice business?
Explore new and interesting destinations and work more closely with the hotels to achieve the best results