To the backdrop of revving engines, The Yas Hotel took centre stage at last month’s Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, as host to the who’s who of motorsport and the world’s celebrities. As it opened its doors, the hotel welcomed the VIPs and officials of the race and concerts.
Built by Aldar Properties and operated by Aldar Hotels and Hospitality, the hotel consists of 499 rooms and 14 entertainment and dining options in two separate buildings, connected by a bridge overlooking Yas Marina Circuit. The bridge atop the circuit offers unrivalled views of the track from two levels, VIP access and Rush, Abu Dhabi’s hottest new night spot.
The first hotel in the world to span a race track, The Yas Hotel’s extraordinary 5,000 LED panel gridshell drapes the building in a vibrant shroud of lights, enabling it to act as a light show providing different shades and colours, including animations, making it the largest colour LED display in the world. For the grand finale of the race, people around the world watched as the hotel lit up as a chequered flag waving in the wind.
Stephen Banks, director of sales and marketing for Aldar Hotels & Hospitality, said: “Our 14 entertainment and dining options at the hotel are already proving to be very popular. More than 600 million people watched the Grand Prix this year, so as you can imagine, there are a lot of people who are coming to see the architecture and design of the hotel. In the future, we will have another fine dining restaurant and a 10-treatment room spa. The elements of Yas Island are growing, by January we will have a playable 18-hole links golf course and then Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, the world’s largest indoor theme park, to follow in 2010.”
Post race, the rush of celebrities has not stopped at The Yas Hotel as it hosted the Miss World competitors before they flew out for the pageant in South Africa. It will also be the official hotel for the Capitala Tennis Championship at the end of the year, which attracts major players such as Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
“The last two-and-a-half weeks, our biggest source market has been the GCC market. Like most hotels in Abu Dhabi, we expect our strongest markets to be the UK, Germany and the GCC. Looking ahead, we are seeing a very strong interest in meetings business as well as for weekend leisure business,” added Banks.