Abu Dhabi: Despite prices starting at Dh2,000 per night, Emirates Palace continues to see strong demand, with occupancy levels at an average of nearly 70 per cent, according to general manager, Holger Schroth.
“The occupancy level in 2014 was one of the highest we ever had. We are a couple of percentage points ahead of the competition in the city, and we are expecting similar levels in 2015,” he told Gulf News in an interview.
Emirates Palace, operated by the Kempinski Hotels & Resorts group, is one of a few ultra luxury hotels in the UAE, with a lot of its customers being business guests.
However, Schroth said that falling oil prices and the resulting slowdown of economies have not had an impact on demand at Emirates Palace, with the hotel marking its best year yet in 2014 in terms of occupancy and revenues.
Schroth added that the hotel’s largest overseas markets are the GCC countries, Germany, UK, Russia and China.
Asked whether the hotel has seen a dip in the number of Russian guests due to the tumbling rouble, the general manager said: “In early January we had the Russian New Year, and we did not see any change. However, now the change is reflected by the competition in Abu Dhabi and Dubai is dropping rates for the Russian market in order to keep the guests, so sometimes the competition keeps them away from Emirates Palace.”
The hotel is also looking to other markets such as Brazil to attract more tourists from there.
Emirates Palace is currently the only Kempinski hotel in Abu Dhabi, but there are no plans to develop any more.
“For Abu Dhabi, given the nature of Emirates Palace, it will only be Kempinski at Emirates Palace. There are two more coming in Dubai; one in Business Bay, and the other one is a residential Kempinski,” Schroth said.
In 2014, Emirates Palace recorded an 8.1 per cent growth in occupancy compared to 2013, with total revenues rising 8.8 per cent, the hotel said in a statement earlier.
Chiheb Ben-Mahmoud, head of hotels and hospitality at Jones Lang LaSelle, commented on the luxury hotel market in Abu Dhabi saying that it was competitive, especially with more brands expected to enter in the next few years.
“While Abu Dhabi has positioned itself in the upmarket segment, hotel operators in Abu Dhabi have displayed a reasonable level of competitive flexibility in order to adjust to demand levels and business segments. This is all the more relevant because of the leisure demand for Abu Dhabi as a resort destination,” he said.
