Hotels forced to turn away motorists stuck in rain

Dubai: Hotels on Shaikh Zayed Road were unable to cater to the residents of Dubai on Tuesday night who tried to take refuge away from the strong winds and heavy rain.

After three days of constant rain and reports of traffic accidents, residents were adamant not to drive through any peril on their way back home and decided to go to hotels instead.

Many hotels, however, said it was impossible for them to cater to the unexpected number of visitors who arrived in the evening as they were fully booked for the upcoming Dubai Shopping Festival.

Shopping festival

"Many people are coming because of the Global Village, and they are occupying the available capacity to the maximum," said Passang Lama, receptionist at Golden Tulip at Al Barsha.

"We were able to receive two families, but had to turn away several guests because it was very difficult to accommodate all those who made last-minute bookings," she said, adding that all visitors who were told to leave were suggested alternative hotels to stay in.

Hotel visitors who were due to arrive at Dubai airport on Tuesday night missed their flights as a result of the inaccessibility from Shaikh Zayed Road towards the airport. Many of the visitors ended up extending their stay to catch the next day's flight.

"It was difficult getting to and from the airport, and early in the day one of our bus shuttles had a delay of one hour-and-a-half," said Richard Senior, Director of Business Development, Novotel.

"Many airlines had delays and our customers came back to the hotel and wanted to stay for another day," he said, explaining that it was the main reason why people trying to escape the route home were unable to find a room.

"We received many visitors because of the bad weather and the majority chose to have supper at our restaurants. Many decided to use our free shuttle bus to Mall of the Emirates, so that they could get out of Shaikh Zayed Road," said a receptionist at Fairmont Hotel.

Leakage: Shopping centres drip

Shopping centres in Dubai and Sharjah faced water leakages yesterday as a result of Tuesday's heavy downpour.

Management at several shopping centres took swift action yesterday morning to repair the damage.

"There was a slight water leakage on the ground floor below Magic Planet, but it was well managed and did not affect any customers," said a customer service representative at Deira City Centre.

The control room operator at Sahara Centre, Sharjah, admitted that there were leakages in several areas of the shopping centre on Tuesday, which was repaired.