IT WILL be a year of big events for the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company with four properties opening doors in 2011. The first will be The Ritz-Carlton, Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) on January 12, followed by the brand’s re-entry into Canada with The Ritz-Carlton,Toronto in March. Later that same month the tallest hotel in the world The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong opens and in the spring, the first Ritz-Carlton-managed golf course will make its debut in Palm Hills, Cairo.
With a marked improvement in 2010 over the previous year, in terms of occupancy and revenues, the brand is cautiously optimistic about the economic climate in the Middle East for 2011. According to Pascal Duchauffour, area vice president, Europe, Middle East and Africa: “The addition of new hotels this year will see the brand presence considerably raised in the coming months. Further, our two hotels in Egypt, specifically in Cairo and Palm Hills, are scheduled to welcome guests in 2012 and we are in discussions with potential owners within the region to manage their hotels starting in 2011 and beyond.”
The Ritz-Carlton is currently considering adding top capital cities such as Riyadh, Muscat, Abu Dhabi and Kuwait to its portfolio.
Duchauffour adds: “Currently, there are only five Ritz-Carlton properties in the entire Middle East region, so we are not in any danger of ‘saturating the market’ by far. On the contrary, feedback from our loyal guests has solidified our ambition to expand The Ritz-Carlton brand into the major capital cities within the region.
“The biggest challenges will be to find the right locations and develop the talents of our ladies and gentlemen.”