Business | Tourism

Rotana expects to manage at least 80 hotels by 2012

Abu Dhabi-based hotel chain Rotana said it will have at least 80 hotels under its management by 2012 as it aims to become number one operator in the Middle East.

  • By Shakir Husain, Staff Reporter
  • Published: 00:12 May 6, 2008
  • Gulf News

Dubai: Abu Dhabi-based hotel chain Rotana said it will have at least 80 hotels under its management by 2012 as it aims to become number one operator in the Middle East.

At present the group has 24 hotels under operation in six countries, and 50 properties are under construction. "We are not far from 80 by the end of the year," Rotana president and chief executive officer Salim Al Zyr told Gulf News.

The group is opening four hotels in the UAE, one in Syria and one in Doha this year.

As the company snaps up new management contracts, taking advantage of billions of dollars of investor money pouring into hotel projects, Rotana plans to hire 22,000 people in four years to manage new properties coming into its portfolio.

Inventory

Rotana's inventory of rooms is projected to grow from 5,800 now to exceed 20,000 in four years.

"We want to be the largest hotel operator in the Middle East. Three things are helping us: our aggressive development and operation teams, reputation and the number of opportunities that are available in the region," Al Zyr said.

"For us the biggest potential is in Saudi Arabia and North Africa because we are not there yet, and we are going there in a big way," he added.

Rotana will set up an office in Saudi Arabia to secure management deals in the region's largest economy. In the UAE alone, Rotana aims to have 25 hotels in operation within three years.

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