Le Royal Meridien Abu Dhabi opened its doors in May after adding its extension, the new royal tower of seven floors with 35 suites and 42 rooms. Hailed as an architectural icon, the property underwent a major refurbishment and expansion to 264 suites and rooms with nearly a dozen restaurants, a ballroom and six conference rooms.
After over three decades in hotels worldwide, Majeed Khalil took over as General Manager of the property to also oversee the final stages of the refurbishment that started two years ago.
The seasoned hotelier who has worked in places such as London and Hong Kong, got his feet into things swiftly and is currently tying up the final loose ends and showcase the property with new standards.
Khalil spoke to Gulf News.
Gulf News: Is the rebranding process of the hotel completed?Majeed Khalil: It is almost complete with just a few more outlets to be opened. Everything should be completed soon after summer and by end-2004 the entire hotel would be ready. We are on target.
GN: How is the response to the new brand?MK: It is phenomenal. Tour operators, corporate companies, travel agents are all impressed by the standards of the hotel and the product. In the coming months we will fine tune the services with the focus being on service delivery and people.
The brand is catching on quickly as Le Meridien is known worldwide and Le Royal Meridien equally well known in the five star-plus segment. The property itself is unique, a landmark because of its revolving restaurant atop the hotel which people refer to as a space ship.
GN: The five star hotel business in the capital is extremely competitive. How are you going to compete in the market?MK: I agree competition is intense but it is healthy and in the end it will make us all excel. As I said, our service delivery, our people and our product will be different and we have the support of the Meridien global distribution system.
Additionally, we have our own strategies and plans locally and regionally to promote the product. Also, the tourism promotional plans in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain with the backing of the government will help the hospitality sector greatly.
GN: Tell us about your clients and promotional plans.MK: We will continue to target corporate and leisure travellers. Leisure is new to Abu Dhabi but it will grow quickly. I must state that there is a lot of interest from tour operators in Dubai to extend their programmes to Abu Dhabi and we are talking with such operators.
We have aggressive marketing and sales plans and our new team is ready to take up the challenges to attract local and international guests. I am optimistic about solid business starting from 2005. In fact, 2005 is the year for Le Royal Meridien.
GN: Would you do anything different?MK: The whole experience in Le Royal Meridien is different. You will see new things happening in Abu Dhabi at our hotel. We are planning many events and all this will raise occupancy levels. As for our food and beverage side, we have almost a dozen different outlets with a wide selection of cuisine and entertainment.
GN: Finally, what challenges do you foresee for Abu Dhabis hospitality industry?MK: The region as a whole is promising for the hospitality industry because the growth in this region is the highest in the world. The challenge is to keep up standards and attract business, corporate and leisure travellers.
A lot of new hotels are coming up in Abu Dhabi and this is clearly to meet the growing needs of the leisure and corporate segment in future.
I think the worst days are over, the challenges of SARS, the Iraq war and such things are finished. Things are poised to turn around and we will see the hospitality sector here booming.
Gulf News
