THE Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group is set to makes its debut in the region with a new luxury hotel and serviced apartments in Doha. The property, which is being developed by Dohaland, is scheduled to open in 2014.
Speaking to TTN editor Shalu Chandran during his recent visit to Dubai, Christophe Mares, vice president for operations for Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, said: “We are excited to announce that our first property in the region will open in Doha at the end of 2014, marking a milestone for the company.
Launching the brand in the region has been a priority for us and as we announce our first hotel here, we continue to seek new opportunities and projects that we wish to engage in.”
Mandarin Oriental had previously announced a property in Abu Dhabi scheduled to open on the Saadiyat Island, its construction expected to start in the near future. “Further afield, we announced a long- term agreement to manage a luxury resort currently under development in Marrakech, Morocco,” he added.
Mares is confident that the company will be in a position to announce a project in Dubai followed by another one in Beirut, within the next 12 months. The company is also looking for new opportunities in Saudi Arabia and Oman.
For Mandarin Oriental, this has been a long but fruitful wait. “As a company with a relatively small portfolio of hotels, we had a long list of cities we were keen to go into before entering the Middle East, including London, New York and Paris. We are also a company that believes in growing organically and ensuring our infrastructure grew at the same time.”
“So it wasn’t a strategic delay, but more about waiting for the right time and ensuring that when we do come here, we remain uniquely different in terms of location and architecture, Our property in Doha is a testament to that as it sits in the newly developed Souq Waqif area,” said Mares.
The Mandarin Oriental, Doha will feature 160 guestrooms and suites, as well as 95 serviced apartments designed with some Arabesque influences together with some Asian touches.
“Another unique differentiator in the Mandarin Oriental properties is its cutting edge food and beverage concepts not shying away from new and unique kitchen concepts and design. Our holistic Asian-based spa concepts also remain a popular in all our properties and when we launch in Doha, we will continue to be unique to the region.”
With a surplus of hotel rooms now available in both Doha and Abu Dhabi, Mares adds that the company is conscious about the RevPar wars they face. “Our decision to open the property on the Saadiyat Island was predominantly based on the city’s plans to develop the Louvre and Guggenheim museums, which is sure to drive in a humongous leisure demand, over and beyond the existing demand. Hence the slight delay in the commencement of construction has not affected us and will eventually link with the opening of the museums.”
“As for Doha, the city is rapidly growing and we expect that the supply and demand should balance reasonably well, provided there isn’t a sudden influx of more rooms than currently planned. Given the size of our hotel there and the location we are in we hope to outperform the market,” he added.
Business from the region has remained strong contributing a 15 per cent growth year-on-year.