World’s Tallest Hotel Launches New Technology – Mobile Check In

Hotel guests can now check into JW Marriott Marquis from anywhere, anytime using their mobile application

JW Marriott Marquis has announced the launch of mobile Check-in and Check-out services which allows visitors to download a mobile application and have their room key arranged in advance on arrival.

The mobile application is user friendly as it allows Marriott rewards members to receive push notifications on their Apple iphones or Android devices after 4 pm of the day before their arrival alerting them that they can check-in. Post receipt of the push notification, the guests receive an automatic notifications when their room is ready, communicating in advance that the hotel is prepared for their arrival. As Member’s payment information Is stored within the member profiles, guest’s can simply walk up to the mobile check-in desk and collect their pre-arranged key. At the end of their stay, guests receive another notification alerting them mobile check out is available. Upon completion, guests will then be prompted to provide an email address where the bill will be sent, allowing them to bypass the front desk.

Bill Keffer, General Manager of the JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai said “As a leading business hotel with a huge focus on the meetings incentives conferences and events sector (MICE), the majority of our guests are international travellers with demanding schedules therefore we are always looking for ways to make their lives easier. The introduction of the mobile check-in service allows visitors to save time and access their hotel room quicker than ever before. It also simplifies the process for our international guests as the application is available in English, French, Spanish, German and Mandarin reducing the chance of any language barrier. ”

The JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai strives to be a leader within the technology field and all rooms are equipped with modern technology, including LCD TV’s, ipods stations, high speed Wi-Fi, and a master room control tablet. The conferencing equipment at the hotel includes state of the art LCD screens, the biggest in Dubai, making them ideal for hosting large conferences and events.

Globally, the Marriott Mobile Check-in is available across ten additional brands – The Ritz Carlton, JW Marriott Hotels & Resorts, and Renaissance Hotels, Autograph collection, Courtyard, Springhill Suites, Fairfield Inn & Suites, Residence Inn, TownPlace Suites and Marriott Executive apartments. The JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai joins a list of 1200 properties worldwide where the service is available.

To download the app please log onto http://mobileapp.marriott.com/. To register to become a Marriott Rewards member and take advantage of this service at please log onto http://www.marriott.com/rewards/rewards-program.mi

Abu Dhabi to Attract More Indian tourists

Indian visitors lead the pack as the largest international hotel guests for Abu Dhabi over the past year. TCA Abu Dhabi, the capitals tourism authority, is embarking on a 5 day road show to India to promote Abu Dhabi as a leading destination among the country’s outbound travelers mindset.

The group includes 14 representatives from Abu Dhabi Tourism stake holders including Etihad Airways, Yas Island, Hotels, tour operators and attractions. The committee will travel across the Indian cities of Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai and Capital City New Delhi from Aug 25 to Aug29.

According to the stats from TCA Abu Dhabi, in the first six months of 2014, 107,950 Indian  guests checked into Abu Dhabi hotels and resortS – up 35 % during the same period last year. The arrival of Indian tourists in the capital city delivered 408,862 guest nights, which was up 22% year on year with the average length of stay being 3.79 nights.

Mubarak Al Nuaimi, Director, TCA Abu Dhabi promotions and overseas offices director said "The destination is benefitting from excellent air uplift from India at the moment with our national airline, Etihad Airways, and its partner Jet Airways, providing convenient and quick travel options to Abu Dhabi from tier 1 and tier 2 cities all over the country,"

He also said that he expected increased interest among Indians in Abu Dhabi with the opening of Sanjeev Kapoor’s Signature at the Nation Towers on Abu Dhabi Corniche, as well as the release of the Bollywood movie Bang-Bang in October, starring the India superstar Hrithik Roshan and the Diva Katrina Kaif, parts of which were shot in the emirate.

Indian Weddings are also being pursued by the Abu Dhabi stakeholders. The Yas Viceory has successfully handled 3 large-scale Indian Weddings over the past few years.

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Burj Al Arab - Signature "Best of the Burj" Dream Experience

Jumeirah Group is rolling out an all inclusive “Best of the Burj” signature dream experience to celebrate 15 years of operations. 

The offer includes a luxurious suite, six course dinner and a signature spa experience. It commences with a pick up by a luxury chauffeur driven white Rolls Royce Phantom.

The package also includes a suite spanning 170 square meters over two floors with views of the Arabian Gulf and a culinary experience featuring the finest dishes at the signatureAl Mahara restaurant.

The experience is inclusive of a Burj Al Arab signature massage for him and her, blending the traditional shiatsu, Thai, Swedish and Balinese techniques at the hotel’s spa.

In addition to this, a full set of Hermes amenities for him and her are offered, along with a private butler and a daily in-suite breakfast dinning.

Prices for this package start from AED 5990 (US $1630).

Guests can book the experience by visiting Jumeirah.com, calling 04 3017400 or emailing BAAreservations@jumeirah.com

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Atlantis, The Palm: ALS Ice Bucket Challenge Accepted..!!

Atlantis, The Palm Jumeirah took on the ice bucket challenge with 350 staff members pouring ice cold water on themselves to raise awareness and funds for the fight against Amytrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).

People around the world have been accepting and setting the challenge, with a number of high profile celebrities participating in this generous cause.

Atlantis, the Palm was nominated by Ski Dubai to take on the Challenge, and the lifeguards, chefs and senior manager accepted it. Gerard Moss, The Senior VP of Human Resources, said that the guests enjoyed seeing the staff participate in a worthwhile cause for charity.

The hotel also made a donation for each of the participants to an international ALS-affiliated charity in addition to recording a video of the challenge. Click here to view the video

The hotel has gone ahead and nominated Emirates Airlines, football club Bayern Munich, and the most interesting nominee from the lost, The Buckingham Palace to take on the ice bucket challenge.

Picture courtesy: http://www.worldette.com/

Dubai Hotel Revenues In H1 Top $3billion

The hospitality industry in Dubai benefited from a record number of visitors in H1 and revenue at Hotels in Dubai hit AED12.47 billion (US$3.18 billion). The industry also experienced growth from emerging source markets.

According to figures from Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM), the revenues, for hoteliers and hotel apartment operators was up 10.9% compared with the same period last year, with room revenue up 15.3% and F&B up by 3.8%.

During the first half of the year, a record number of guests checked in across all Hotel establishments with numbers reaching 5,828,449.

Total guest nights went up by 6.7% for hotels and 4.1% for hotel apartments, while the average length of stay increased with an average of 3.9 days. This was split out into 3.4 days at hotels and 5.7 days at hotel apartments.

His Excellency Helal Saeed Almarri, director-general of DTCM, said: “The figures for the first half of 2014 are encouraging and we continue to build on this growth to ensure a successful second half of the year.

“The figures show an increase in visitors from many of our key source markets – for example we are seeing strong growth from China, Brazil, Australia and many countries in Europe.

“The increase comes despite the reduction in flights due to the refurbishment and upgrading of the runways at Dubai International, which is testament to the work conducted by Dubai Airports and our industry partners in ensuring minimal disruption.” 

Saudi Arabia continued to be Dubai’s primary source market, while there was a huge influx of visitors China, up by 26 %. Dubai has added more than 7000 hotel rooms to its inventory up until the end of June, with the total reaching 88,680 across 634 establishments.

Picture courtesy: http://www.geolocation.ws/

Dusit Thani Dubai Recognized For High Environmental Standards.

Dusit Thani Dubai has been awarded for the fourth year in row with a silver certification by EarthCheck for its high standards of environmental efforts.

EarthCheck is an internationally recognized environmental management and certification program designed for Travel and tourism industry. This certification helps determine a company’s effort towards environmental, social and economic performance based on international standards.

Dusit had to submit a year’s worth of operational data to Earth check to obtain the certification. Earth check compared it to the operational data submitted by similar organizations, before being rated against best practice levels.

In addition to this, Dusit was required to submit the data to an independent, third party auditing, to verify the accuracy of sustainability claims. The hotels policies require use of energy-efficient lighting, the minimization of water consumption, recycling of solid waste products, and use of recycled products whenever possible. This has resulted in reduction in Green house gas emissions (GHG) for the hotel’s operations.

The chief engineer at Dusit Thani Dubai, Sebastian Ferrao said that “After continuously certifying with EarthCheck for four years, the entire team of Dusit Thani Dubai celebrates this success with a strengthened enthusiasm to aim for Gold Certification in 2015. Years of certification against the EarthCheck Company Standard is a true testament to our commitment in adhering to the highest science-based standards to enhance the environmental, economic and social sustainability of our initiatives.”

Dusit is now eligible for a gold certification in 2015, and the property is currently taking necessary measures to undertake Certification next year.

Photo credit: www.hospitalitybusinessme.com 

15 Things That Make Luxury Hotel Guests Happy

A survey conducted by Small Luxury Hotels among 13,000 customers provides some insight into the demands of the luxury hotel guests.

Their demands range from breakfast and WiFi, to pampering pets and Nespresso machines. Here is a list of what the guests are looking for during their stay:

• Nespresso coffee machine was rated as the favorite in-room accessory by 58% of the respondents.

• I-pod docking stations were the next favorite in-room accessory, with 22.8% of the respondents.

• In the Minibar, Coca-cola was the favorite brand among most of the markets with the exception of guests from UK, Russia, and Australia.

• Bombay Sapphire was the favorite mini bar brand for respondents from UK, while the Russians fancied Evian and Australians opted for Moet & Chandon.

• Among spirits, Wine, Beer and Champagne were popular across all markets, i.e. 33.5%, in the Mini bar product consumption.

• Majority of the German respondents (38.7%)preferred soft drinks over spirits and snacks.

• When it comes to picking a Hotel attribute, majority of the respondents preferred a Michelin star restaurant over a roof top bar (51.5% Vs 48.5%).

• A knowledgeable hotel guide or concierge was preferred over in-room hotel guides (71.3% Vs 28.7%).

• Guests preferred exclusive adult’s only hotels over child friendly hotels (77.4% vs 22.6%).

• Majority of the respondents voted for free WiFi over complimentary breakfast (53.1% Vs 46.9%).

• The preference of respondents from UK and Germany differed over the rest, as they opted for breakfast over free wi-fi (55.5% over 58.4%).

• The guests, while picking a Luxury Hotel, opted for character/charm as the most important characteristic, selected by 59.6% of all respondents, followed by five star facilities (28%).

• 7.3% of respondents those who were surveyed for Luxury travel with pets, said that they would travel with pets whenever required.

• 15.1 of the respondents were willing to premium for their pets to be pampered, some of the top pet items identified by respondents in this category were luxury bedding and food (14.1% vs 11.2%) and pet grooming (7.9%). 

• The respondents selected Italy and cities within Italy as their favorite luxury hotel destination (chosen by 13%).

Images obtained from creative commons: 

http://www.singleserveespresso.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourism_in_Italy

http://www.triplepundit.com/

Flickr.com (c) Wayda Dreamscape

http://www.crookedbrains.net/, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bombay_sapphire_bottle.jpg

http://www.wearetraveller.com/

Dubai Has One Of The Largest Concentrations Of 5 Star Hotels In The World

The New York Times said that Dubai has one of the largest base for 5 star Hotels in a long report released on Dubai on Tuesday, July 29^th. http://nyti.ms/1AIKUBc  

The hotel occupancy has remained above 80%, which is on par with London and New York, the paper reported.  “Dubai has one of the highest concentrations of five-star hotels of any major city in the world and one of the highest occupancy rates for hotel rooms,” said Chiheb Ben-Mahmoud, executive vice president and head of hotels and hospitality, Middle East and Africa at Jones Lang LaSalle. “Dubai is seen as trendy and dynamic, which is why designer hotels are now in line.”

Designer hotels are aiming to take a piece of the growing pie with luxury products, spa offerings and a keen attention to detail, according to the report. A Roberto Cavalli branded hotel is in the pipeline while the Palazzo Versace hotel is scheduled to open in 2015, it said. The Armani hotel in Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world opened in 2010 through a collaboration between Giorgio Armani and Emaar.

The paper reported that, several five star hotels have opened in many of the tourist hubs. “A drive along the Palm Jumeirah reveals newly paved paths leading to the luxurious entrances of the Waldorf-Astoria, Sofitel Dubai the Palm, Anantara Dubai the Palm and billboards for a coming W Hotel.”

“Like other hotels in the five-star segment, designer hotels have identified Dubai as an important market as the city strengthens its role as a business and leisure hub,” Ben-Mahmoud said. “But these fashion-branded hotels will only work as solid propositions, not a gimmick.”

According to research by consultancy Jones Lang LaSalle, international operators control about 68 percent of the 93,000 hotel rooms available in the city and a majority is in the five-star category. By 2016, more than 28,000 rooms will be added, mainly at the highest price point, where room rates are around $1,200 a night or as much as $10,000 for a suite, it said.

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