ABU DHABI // The UAE is losing business travellers because the cost of hotels is too high, according to professionals who plan conferences and meetings.
"If prices are the determining factor for meetings planners, I don't think there is any doubt that a place with some of the highest prices in the world is deterring business," said Paul Kennedy, the exhibition director of GIBTM, the Gulf Incentive, Business Travel and Meetings Exhibition, which is being held in the capital this week.
Although prices have been lowered in Dubai, which has been affected by both the global financial downturn and the opening of new hotels, in Abu Dhabi both occupancy rates and prices are high. The Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority has acknowledged the need to increase the number of hotel rooms if it is to become a major centre of business travel. There are expected to be 25,000 hotel rooms in the capital by 2012, up from about 13,000 today.
Manish Nimkar, the UAE commercial manager at BCD Travel, a company that arranges events, meetings and incentive travel for corporations, said the country's hotel prices were out of line with normal global rates.
One travel agent who declined to be named said companies from the UK and Europe were no longer booking events in the UAE. Instead, he said, they were choosing cheaper locations in Cyprus or Asia.
"You used to be able to pick up a brochure and find several nights in a hotel on the beach for a few hundred dollars," the agent said. "Now, you just can't find that."
The demand for rooms has been further exacerbated in the capital by workers who are living in hotel apartments because rental properties are so expensive and difficult to find.
Mr Nimkar said: "In Abu Dhabi they have been bringing a lot of people in to work on projects like the Louvre and Saaidiyat Island, for example. They all need hotels and hotel apartments, which is part of the reason why rates are high. There are more long-stay guests."
Mr Kennedy said some delegates were staying in Dubai during the conference because rates were more affordable there.
For their part, hoteliers said prices were dictated by the market.
"The rates are a result of supply and demand," said Moritz Klein, the general manager of the Beach Rotana hotel in Abu Dhabi. High prices may have been normal last year, he said, but as more hotels open, the rates will start to normalise.
Mohammed Fouad, the group director of sales and marketing at Al Diar Hotels, added: "The entire country is going through a tremendous growth. In Dubai, you've seen hotels catch up to that, but in Abu Dhabi we are still getting all the business. The demand is there."
jgerson@thenational.ae
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
SCHEDULE
December 8: UAE v USA (Sharjah Cricket Stadium)
December 9: USA v Scotland (Sharjah Cricket Stadium)
December 11: UAE v Scotland (Sharjah Cricket Stadium)
December 12: UAE v USA (ICC Academy Oval 1)
December 14: USA v Scotland (ICC Academy Oval 1)
December 15: UAE v Scotland (ICC Academy Oval 1)
All matches start at 10am
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The biog
Birthday: February 22, 1956
Born: Madahha near Chittagong, Bangladesh
Arrived in UAE: 1978
Exercise: At least one hour a day on the Corniche, from 5.30-6am and 7pm to 8pm.
Favourite place in Abu Dhabi? “Everywhere. Wherever you go, you can relax.”
Profile
Company name: Jaib
Started: January 2018
Co-founders: Fouad Jeryes and Sinan Taifour
Based: Jordan
Sector: FinTech
Total transactions: over $800,000 since January, 2018
Investors in Jaib's mother company Alpha Apps: Aramex and 500 Startups
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Courses%20at%20Istituto%20Marangoni%2C%20Dubai
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THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
TOURNAMENT INFO
Opening fixtures:
Friday, Oct 5
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Paktia Panthers
Saturday, Oct 6
4pm: Nangarhar Leopards v Kandahar Knights
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Balkh Legends
Tickets
Tickets can be bought online at https://www.q-tickets.com/apl/eventlist and at the ticket office at the stadium.
TV info
The tournament will be broadcast live in the UAE on OSN Sports.
KEY%20DATES%20IN%20AMAZON'S%20HISTORY
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Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Mia Man’s tips for fermentation
- Start with a simple recipe such as yogurt or sauerkraut
- Keep your hands and kitchen tools clean. Sanitize knives, cutting boards, tongs and storage jars with boiling water before you start.
- Mold is bad: the colour pink is a sign of mold. If yogurt turns pink as it ferments, you need to discard it and start again. For kraut, if you remove the top leaves and see any sign of mold, you should discard the batch.
- Always use clean, closed, airtight lids and containers such as mason jars when fermenting yogurt and kraut. Keep the lid closed to prevent insects and contaminants from getting in.