Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
The fourth Arabian Hotel Investment Conference ended on a positive note with speakers and delegates unanimous on the strength of the regional hospitality sector, and potential for future growth.
The Middle East, along with India and China, was confirmed as one of the global hotspots for the industry while developed markets are stagnating in the wake of the credit crunch and weakening consumer confidence.
Around 1,100 senior industry professionals attended the conference at the Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai, where a line-up of local and international experts repeatedly announced expansion plans, new brand launches, soaring revenues and rates, mega projects and more.
Reams of statistics were presented to support the bullish view of growth potential: executive chairman for the Jumeirah group, Gerald Lawless said that recent MasterCard research indicated around $3.63 trillion was being invested in travel-related projects in the next 12 years.
"Around 170 million arrivals are expected by 2020, and some 830 new hotels are under development to give an additional 750,000 rooms across the region," he said.
Hospitality consultancy, HVS managing director, Russell Kett, supported these numbers saying more than 90,000 rooms were under development in Dubai alone, while at least 10,000 were planned for Saudi Arabia and also Oman, another 11,000 in Qatar, some 7,000 in Jordanian hotel projects, 13,000 at sites on Egypt's coasts and capital city, plus 6,000 in Bahrain and 3,000 in Kuwait.
