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Hilton powers GCC expansion

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Following another year of landmark growth, Hilton has over 21,000 rooms in its pipeline across the Gulf, more than 16,000 of which are already under construction and scheduled to open before 2020. The six markets of the GCC contribute more than a third of Hilton’s pipeline rooms across the Europe, Middle East and Africa – where the company is active in over 60 countries.

Carlos Khneisser, vice-president, development, Middle East, North Africa & Turkey, Hilton, said: “Our active pipeline of 16,000 rooms under construction in the GCC is more than double the number of our nearest competitor. The deals we are signing are not just there on paper, they are quickly progressing through design and construction. The value we drive for our owners facilitates the speed of this growth as owners want to come back for more. 60 per cent of the hotels in our pipeline are being developed together with existing Hilton owners.”

Hilton has the largest active pipeline in the GCC both in terms of the number of rooms and properties in construction. Saudi Arabia is the market undergoing most extensive growth with the 7,900 rooms Hilton is developing there set to near triple the company’s presence in the market. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait and Oman all count Hilton as the hotel company with largest number of rooms under construction.

Hilton is extending a truly warm welcome to Middle Eastern guests this summer as it doubles the number of properties offering its exceptional, memorable Marhaba service.

The Middle East continues to be one of the world’s fastest-growing outbound travel markets; Germany alone is expected to receive 3.6 million visitors from the GCC annually by 2030. In response to this, the Hilton Marhaba programme is a tailored experience that will provide a bespoke service to guests, ensuring that their cultural needs are considered during their stay.

The bespoke service offers Hilton guests a home-from-home by providing everything from Arabic-speaking front desk and concierge team members, in-room prayer mats upon request, daily Arabic coffee service, Middle Eastern breakfast delicacies, a selection of Arabic TV channels and newspapers, and importantly, halal food is available upon request.

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