Dubai has over 151,000 hotel rooms, and ‘there’s still demand for more’, says tourism chief

Dubai: Dubai currently has 151,417 hotel rooms in 825 hotel establishments, and there’s “still demand for more rooms,” said the CEO of Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DCTCM), Issam Kazim. The growth potential for more hotel rooms rests “on going to the right locations,” he said at the Future Hospitality Summit on Monday.

“In terms of the number of hotels, there's a lot of potential for us to grow, but it is also making sure that we're going to the right locations, because now we have different destinations within the city of Dubai, and also cater to different budgets,” said Kazim.

Moreover, he explained that Dubai doesn’t get only into the luxury segment, as it was perceived in the past. “Today, we know that there are amazing three-star hotels as well that can compete with many five-star properties around the world,” stated Kazim.

DCTCM, an entity under the Emirates’ Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), said Dubai recorded 10.2 million visitors from January to July 2024, a 3.7 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2023.

DET said the number of hotel rooms in the 5-star category had witnessed the highest growth in the past year, with a 35 per cent increase in room supply to over 52,000 rooms.

And according to real estate consultants Cavendish Maxwell, more than 2,700 new hotel rooms were delivered in Dubai in the first half of 2024, with a further 10,100 set to come onto the market by the end of 2025.

Growth in branded residences

Apart from the hotel sector, the Emirate’s branded residences sector is experiencing rapid growth. Two major hotel groups announced major developments in this space at the Future Hospitality Summit.

On Monday, Accor and The Summary Executive Properties signed a landmark deal for Swissôtel’s first stand-alone Branded Residences project.  The waterfront residences will be built in the Dubai Islands and open in 2027.

Also, homegrown Rove Hotels has forayed further into the branded residences market with the launch of Rove Home Dubai Marina. In collaboration with the IRTH Group, Rove Hotels unveiled the 600-unit project at the FHS on Monday.

“It will be launched for sale in November and competitively priced. It is designed and targeted towards active professionals and savvy investors,” according to chief operating officer Paul Bridger. This marks Rove’s fourth branded residence in the UAE and third in Dubai, “with more to come”, he said.

Following the rapid sell-out of previous projects, Rove aims to expand its footprint in the residential market by launching 3,000 branded residences over the next five years.

The hotel entity—a joint venture between Emaar Properties and Meraas Holdings—entered Dubai’s residential real estate market with Rove Home Downtown in September last year. The initial batch of branded residences sold out within six days and its second offering was unveiled during Sharjah’s Aljada master development.

Hotel expansion

The brand also remains committed to its hotel expansion plans. “This is on top of our hotel expansion plans, where we plan to open 10,000 rooms over the next five years,” Bridger added.  Rove Hotels currently has over 3,000 rooms in Dubai alone.

The COO said Rove Hotels enjoyed a healthy summer in terms of occupancies. “We are ahead of last year and ahead of our targets. We enjoy occupancy levels averaging at 85 per cent. Moreover, he added that our Q4 forward bookings look stronger compared to last year,” he added. Bridger also said the company’s latest hotel, Rove JBR, launched in July of this year and performed well over the summer.