Makkah witnesses a boom in hotel construction
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Recent reports have detailed that the city of Makkah is leading in hotel development with 24,133 rooms currently in the construction pipeline. Riyadh follows with 10,053 rooms and Jeddah with 6,980 rooms under development.
As per the report, majority of rooms forecast to open to the public over the next five years. The report by TopHotelProjects has been commissioned by Hotel Show Saudi Arabia 2016.
Makkah is therefore the second top city in the Middle East and Africa for number of hotel rooms set to enter the market, behind only Dubai, with 43,714 rooms currently in the pipeline.
“With the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah forecast to exceed 17 million visitors by 2025, the number of local and international hoteliers looking to invest continues to grow,” said Christine Davidson, group event director of the dmg events hospitality portfolio, organisers of The Hotel Show Saudi Arabia 2016. “With the Abraj Kudai forecast to open in Makkah in 2019, adding 10,000 new rooms to the market, it is not surprising that Saudi Arabia leads the way in hotel construction.”
The new report identifies The Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group as one of the top 10 international brands with most projects currently under development throughout Saudi Arabia. Its pipeline includes two new hotels set to open in Makkah: Park Inn by Radisson Al Naseem Makkah (2016), and Park Inn by Radisson Aziziyah Makkah (2017).
Basel Talal, district director, The Rezidor Hotel Group Saudi Arabia and general manager of the Radisson Blu Hotel in Riyadh said: “The evolution of religious tourism has been a priority for Saudi Arabia’s government over past years and has resulted in considerable investment and interest from developers and operators alike. In addition, Umrah is now available the whole year and the Government has recently announced its intention to increase the number of visas over the coming ten years parallel to the completion of the ongoing infrastructure and transportation projects. A result this will, of course, mean an increase in number of pilgrims.”
Projects and trends moving and shaping the hospitality industry in Saudi Arabia will be covered in detail at The Hotel Show Saudi Arabia’s Vision Conference. The event is scheduled for 17-19 May 2016 at the Jeddah Centre for Forums and Events.
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