Radisson Hotel Group has announced plans to open five new hotels in the UAE and another three in Saudi Arabia this year as it works towards doubling its portfolio in the Middle East over the next five years, Tim Cordon, senior vice president for the Middle East and Africa, tells TTN.
In the UAE, the hotel openings include the 206-key Radisson Blu Hotel Dubai Canal, the 171-key Radisson Red Hotel and Apartments in Dubai Silicon Oasis, 481-key Radisson Hotel Dubai Damac Hills, 253-key Radisson Blu Hotel Apartments in Al Sufouh Gardens and the 408-key Radisson Resort Ras Al Khaimah. Currently, the group operates 13 hotels in the UAE, including the two new hotels that opened in Abu Dhabi at the start of the year. “In the wider Middle East and Africa region, Radisson is set to open 14 new hotels [including the eight hotels in the Middle East] by the end of this year,” Cordon said. The expansion plan also includes a new property in Casablanca, Morocco, which will feature 120 rooms. Over the next few years, the group is set to open another 50 hotels and over 13,000 rooms across the Middle East and North Africa (Mena), with a continued focus on the UAE and Saudi Arabia, as well as expansion in Egypt and Morocco, bringing its total portfolio to over 100 hotels and 24,000 rooms in operation across the region. “In the last 24 months' we have opened over 30 hotels across MEA which has been especially pleasing as we see our strong pipeline materialising. This year we have some very exciting hotel openings coming up, in particular the brand debut of Radisson RED in the region, a new Radisson Blu next to the Dubai canal, our first resort in Ras Al Khaimah and our first Radisson Blu in Casablanca,” Cordon said. With Saudi Arabia slowly opening its market to tourists, hospitality giants such as the Radisson Hotel Group are keen on capitalising on the new opportunity. “Saudi Arabia remains integral to the success of our regional expansion. It continues to offer development opportunities and we see potential for further expansion across the kingdom as it works towards Vision 2030,” Cordon said. This year, Radisson plans to open three hotels in the kingdom, including the 355-key Park Inn by Radisson Makkah Aziziyah, the 84-room Park Inn by Radisson Jeddah Madinah Road, and the 171-room Park Inn by Radisson Riyadh.Radisson currently has 19 hotels in operation in the kingdom, and more than 20 properties in the pipeline.