FAIRMONT Hotels & Resorts has announced its fourth property in the Middle East, a 300-room luxury property in downtown Amman. The Fairmont Amman is expected to open doors in 2014.
In 2012, the brand will debut in three new global markets in the first half of the year with the Fairmont Jaipur in India, Fairmont Grand Hotel Kyiv in Ukraine, and Fairmont Baku in Azerbaijan. In total, the luxury hotel operator will open five hotel projects, representing more than 1,300 guestrooms in 2012.
“2011 was a strong year for Fairmont in the UAE with our two properties witnessing 11 per cent year-on-year growth. The GCC market continued to travel during the summer months and the UAE benefited from tourism hit spots like Egypt, Tunisia and Syria, largely contributed to our high occupancies numbers” said Raki Phillips, area director for sales and marketing for the UAE, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts.
Occupancy levels in Egypt, where Fairmont operates two hotels, are unlikely to return to 2010 levels but Philips said that this would depend largely on the upcoming elections. “We are seeing travellers revisiting Egypt, but it will be atleast another year before we see those same levels of occupancy as 2010,” he added.
Also expected to open this year is the 300-room Fairmont Makati, Philippines and the 372-room Fairmont Palm Jumeirah on Dubai’s The Palm, Jumeirah. Looking beyond 2012, Fairmont is also working on a number of exciting hotel development projects in markets like Abu Dhabi, Beirut, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Fujairah, and China and remains focused on international expansion with brand growth targeted for key markets in Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
“Another key initiative for Fairmont will be our Green Partnership program. We have pledged to reduce our operational CO2 emissions by 20 per cent by 2013, and remain the world’s first luxury hotel group to commit to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions (GHG).”
Fairmont is keen to redefine their guest experience and has launched a new campaign to entice more visitors to join their 50,000-member strong Fairmont President’s Club – the brand’s complimentary guest loyalty program – with a tailored offer for the region. Members of the Fairmont President’s Club can now update their member profiles to reflect a number of interest-based themes - Food & Drink, Arts & Entertainment, Sports & Adventure, Spa & Fitness, and Leadership & Philanthropy - with custom offers and experiences being marketed to each respective group. Not only does the program track individual guest preferences across the brand, members will also have access to amenities that can enhance their stay such as private check-in and check-out, complimentary high-speed internet access, health club access, and complimentary use of TaylorMade golf clubs. The popular Great Rates-Great Dates promotions highlight monthly offers from some of the brandís sought after destinations.