TIME Hotels Management plans to enter the Oman market

Muscat: TIME Hotels Management, headquartered in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), plans to enter the Oman market soon.

“We are planning at least two hotels in Oman. One is in Muscat and the other is in Salalah,” said Mohamed Awadalla, CEO, TIME Hotels in an exclusive interview with the Times of Oman.

He, however, confirmed that the property in each of the places has not been finalised, and currently they are looking at land and some existing properties as well.

“We have properties in the UAE, Egypt and Qatar and my next destination is Oman,” confirmed Mohamed Awadalla.

He also described Oman, which has got a very rich culture, as a very promising destination for tourists.

“For this, I will be visiting Oman quite often this year to take things forward,” he said.

An international hotelier with over 28 years of experience, Awadalla has worked with some of the leading global hospitality companies including Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, Hilton International, Rotana Hotels and now TIME Hotels Management L.L.C.

TIME Hotels Management are currently managing 10 hotels in the UAE, Egypt and Qatar while four other hotels are in the pipeline.

“We are planning to open 20 hotels in the Gulf Cooperation Council region by 2020,” he said.

He also said that there is a growing demand across the GCC for new budget brands with a quality pedigree from respected operators that travellers can trust to deliver comfort, connectivity and creativity when it comes to supporting services and facilities.

“For this we are very excited to debut our brand in Oman soon,” he said.

He also unveiled the details of a second hotel in Doha plus news on the Dubai Healthcare City property status and imminent launch of the TIME Express brand.

Located in Al Khail, just 10 minutes from Hamad International Airport in Qatar, the four-star hotel is scheduled to open in the first quarter (Q1) of 2017.

“It has been a busy year for TIME Hotels with the launch of our first luxury resort in Hurghada, Egypt, plus a raft of announcements including two new Residences in Abu Dhabi, our first footstep into Doha, and a new five-star hotel for Dubai. We have also launched a number of new corporate initiatives such as our Slow Food programme and taken our hugely successful Carbon Offset Hotel Stay into its second year. Now we are setting our goal in the Oman market,” he said.

He also provided a detailed update on the status of two properties currently under development, the TIME Royal Hotel & Spa, Dubai, and TIME Rako Hotel, Qatar.

The first five-star UAE-based property for the company, the 277-room TIME Royal Hotel is located in the Dubai Healthcare City, adjacent to the popular Wafi shopping and leisure complex.

Set to open in Q2 2016, it will have a strong medical tourism focus with facilities specifically designed to accommodate the needs of wellness tourists, such as signature spa featuring temperature-controlled pools, gymnasium with rehabilitation equipment, and health and juice bar. It will also have 20 rooms accessible to the differently-abled.

The other property will be the four-star 112-room Time Rako Hotel & Suites, situated in Al Wakra on the outskirts of Doha.

TIME Hotel’s pipeline of current projects also includes the first in its TIME Express brand.

“The three-star no frills, city centre-based concept will target budget-conscious business travellers and will launch in Dubai with a 133-room property, which is set to open in Q3 2016,” he added.

To get in touch:rahuldas@timesofoman.com Source: timesofoman.com