Turkish hotel Rixos Palm Dubai opens

His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, inaugurated the Turkish hotel Rixos The Palm, Dubai, on Saturday. Operated by the Rixos Hotels Group, a Turkish chain, it is the operator's first venture in the Middle East. A second is planned in Ras Al Khaimah. "We have 10 more hotels currently in the pipeline [in this region]. We are also in talks with a number of investors and developers constantly looking out for opportunities," Basak Erel, senior vice president of brand management for Rixos Hotels, told Gulf News. She added that the Antalya-based company is also considering diversifying into Abu Dhabi, "benefiting from the metropolis' constant expansion". After the hotel's opening, which included a fireworks display, Shaikh Mohammad toured the property, which offers luxury suites and hotel apartments, according to a WAM report. Boost to tourism Shaikh Mohammad said that the property is a "new addition to luxurious hotels in the UAE in general, and the Jumeirah Palm Island in particular, which will contribute towards enhancing the tourism sector". "If anything, this is an indication of the trust in the UAE, its investment laws and national organisations among the trade and fin-ancial global community, in addition to the logistic facilities that these individuals and companies enjoy in a safe environment," Shaikh Mohammad said, according to WAM. He congratulated Al Fattan Properties and the Rixos Hotels Group for completing the project, and welcomed businessmen and global investment companies looking at Dubai and the UAE as a regional hub to launch their projects and investments, the WAM report added. Lt. General Musbeh Rashid Al Fattan, chairman of Al Fattan Properties, expressed his gratitude to Shaikh Mohammad for the special attention he gives to national organisations and global investment companies who favour the UAE as an investment destination. Fettah Tamince, chairman of Rixos Hotels, said that the inauguration of the first Rixos hotel in the UAE reflects the importance of the country's strategic location between the Arab world and European countries, and as a market for traditional Arab hospitality in the Arabian Gulf and Middle East, WAM reported. According to Erel, the company's Palm Jumeirah property will attract guests from Dubai's traditional markets such as Europe and the GCC. "It would be further supplemented by Rixos' stronghold markets i.e. Turkey and CIS," she said, adding that the company expects "strong occupancy performance" during the first year of operation.