The entertainment concept could open doors in Dubai in three years; will court high-end celebrities frequenting the emirate
Its lights, camera, action for the hospitality industry as Hollywood's entertainment juggernaut, Paramount Pictures, lands a tie-up to host a new themed hotel in Dubai.
The property could open doors as early as 2015, according to Paramount Hotels and Resorts, the official licensees of Paramount.
Speaking to Emirates 24|7 at the ongoing Arabian Travel Market, CEO Thomas Van Vliet said: "As the official licensees of the Paramount name, we have already narrowed down source markets and are looking at Dubai and Abu Dhabi as potential cities for the brand concept.
"We are currently under discussion with potential developers and should hope to make an announcement in a few months."
The Dubai-registered company, which retains the global license for the hotels and resorts brand of Paramount, has also sourced international markets that include Qatar and Oman in the region, along with Brazil, Russia, South Africa, Indonesia and the UK.
Van Vliet further explained: "Depending on the location, different concept hotels will find a home, with urban themed properties, to casinos, to integrated resorts that would also feature a Paramount Pictures theme park. But as we are not the license holders of the theme park concept, the decision of constructing one at a destination won't belong to us."
The CEO, however, recommends that Dubai is ripe for such an integrated resort complex, "considering there is no such theme park in the emirate."
He added: "As mentioned, the decision isn't ours, but if asked, my recommendation would be to introduce this concept to the UAE and I would facilitate it in any way I can."
Speaking further about the Paramount theme, Van Vliet say that each hotel or resort will have an integral Hollywood theme that pays tribute to the 100 years of the Hollywood production house.
"We are not going to go the route of a Hard Rock Hotel or a Planet Hollywood," he stressed. " What we will showcase will be unique, be it a transformed lobby with video walls and 3D celebrity moving pictures to a giant screening room that can be utilised by guests or corporates, alike.
"In fact, the screening room could even host a mini film festival that pays tribute to Paramount films; the potentials are endless."
He also elaborated that guests will certainly have access to a Paramount Pictures video library.
So, could we expect a "Godfather" themed restaurant to welcome guests in three years in Dubai?
"Like I said, even if we open such a restaurant here, it most certainly won't be a tacky affair," he said. "What we will bring with Paramount Hotels and Resorts is a luxury lifestyle brand that will pay a tribute to Hollywood and its legends."
© Emirates 24|7 2012
