Saudi Arabia will see a record 68 new hotels and 29,033 hotel rooms open across its major cities in 2017, according to a new report.
Riyadh, Jeddah, Al Khobar and Makkah are set to be the Kingdom’s busiest areas for hospitality development, according to the TOPHOTELPROJECTS Saudi Arabia Hotel Construction Overview, a report prepared for The Hotel Show Saudi Arabia 2017.
Major new hotels forecast to open throughout the Kingdom this year include Assila Hotel Rocco Forte (Q1 2017), TIME Qurayyat Hotel (Q2 2017), Nobu Hotel Riyadh (Q2 2017), Swiss-Belhotel Al Khobar (Q4 2017) and the highly-anticipated Abraj Kudai Towers, which will become the world’s biggest hotel when it opens its 10,000 rooms in Q4, 2017.
John Suzara, Event Manager of The Hotel Show Saudi Arabia 2017 said: “The hospitality landscape in Saudi Arabia is developing at pace, and this is a particularly exciting year.
“The largest hotel in the world – Abraj Kudai – is forecast to open in Makkah, whilst new brands are entering the market, harnessing the Kingdom’s potential at a time of major growth for its tourism, leisure and hospitality industries in the wake of the launch of Saudi Arabia’s National Vision 2030.”
Nobu Hospitality and Rocco Forte Hotels are international brands that will enter the Saudi Arabian market for the first time this year.
Rocco Forte Hotels’ Assila Hotel, opening on 12 March, 2017, is the luxury hotel group’s only property in the Middle East. Located in the heart of Jeddah, it includes 147 rooms, 63 suites, and a further 94 residential suites, spread across two large towers.
The residences will be the first fully serviced residential apartments in Saudi Arabia.
“It was important for us to have representation in the Middle East, as we have such a large client base coming from this region, particularly from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” said Christian Renz, Vice President Sales at Rocco Forte Hotels.
“KSA has a lot to offer and I hope that the country will further open itself for international tourism,” added Renz.
Renz said that Jeddah itself, as a fast developing city, has seen growth over the last few years in its hospitality sector.
“We are very optimistic that Assila Hotel will soon be well known as one of the best hotels in the region,” she added.
The Hotel Show Saudi Arabia will be held from 4 – 6 April, 2017 in Jeddah, and will celebrate its 5th edition this year as the event grows alongside the thriving hospitality market in the kingdom.
The event will be co-located for the first time with Stone & Surface Saudi Arabia, the kingdom’s only exhibition dedicated to connecting interior and exterior surface material with the decision makers responsible for specifying and procuring them.
Construction Week Online
22 February