Surprises expected to help boost hotel occupancies

The Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS) will see some hotels achieving heavy occupancies due to the special promotions and discount offerings. Naeem Derkezali, Vice-President of Sales at Rotana Hotels, said he expects occupancies of UAE hotels this summer to hover around 80 per cent. Moevenpick Hotel Deira, meanwhile, expects occupancy levels to exceed 70 per cent during the DSS, according to Joydeep Ghosh, director of sales and marketing. "Unfortunately we do expect a small drop during Ramadan as there is less travelling traffic in the region. This will affect the occupancy and revenues in a negative way," he told Gulf News. Article continues below For some hotel companies such as Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts, on the other hand, summer is traditionally a "softer period". Christian Pertl, vice-president of sales and marketing - Dubai for Jumeirah Group said: "Summer is traditionally a softer period for Jumeirah hotels in Dubai and we always develop special packages during that period." In the mid-market segment, hotels are upbeat about their occupancy levels this summer. Beat the heat Landmark Group's three-star hotel brand Citymax, for instance, is ready to beat the heat with 80 per cent occupancies for the summer festival. "We are expecting our three Citymax Hotels in Dubai to clock 70-80 per cent occupancy levels during the period of DSS," Russel G.H. Sharpe, Landmark Hospitality's chief operating officer for the Hotel Division, told Gulf News, adding that the summer festival period is likely to bring in more guests than average. Citymax Hotels, which launched operations a year ago in Dubai and today has three properties in the emirate, averaged 70 per cent yearly occupancy in its hotels, according to Sharpe. What is boosting Dubai hotels' occupancies is attractive promotions and discount packages being offered by hotels to mark the summer festival. A number of hotels have launched offers specifically designed to attract visitors to DSS, the annual summer festival organised by the Dubai Events and Promotions Establishment (DEPE) targeting families and visitors across the Gulf Cooperation Council. The festival in some way is also aimed at bringing respite to Dubai's hotels and help them sustain their occupancy levels during an otherwise weaker tourist season. As Rotana's Derkezali, pointed out: "Hotels utilise events like DSS as an opportunity to create packages that are affordable and offer value-for-money experiences." He added that Rotana hotels, in an attempt to offer a range of innovative offers to its customers [especially in the Gulf market], is offering nightly room rates starting from Dh200 on long stays for the DSS period. Similarly, Jumeirah Group is offering residents of the GCC, India and Iran an "extra 10 per cent discount" on its best available rate, according to Jumeirah Group's Pertl. "It will certainly appeal to the regional market," he pointed out, adding the luxury hotels group has developed more packages during the DSS weeks. Moevenpick Hotel Deira revised its room rates for the summer, according to Ghosh. He said: "We have revised our room rates for the summer period in general, which coincides with the DSS period," without divulging the revised rates. The hotel is offering complimentary shuttle services and access to the private beach on the Palm Jumeirah, and also to the city's major shopping malls. And then there are others that are adding value to the visitors' shopping and leisure experiences. The package offered by the InterContinental, Dubai Festival City, for instance, includes free shopping vouchers with some offers that give up to 50 per cent off at the hotel's health club.