A new Star shines in Dubai skies
Sheraton Grand Hotel, Dubai, on Sheikh Zayed Road, is connecting guests to the heart of the booming business district and the city’s main tourist attractions to ensure the property becomes a local landmark. The hotel which opened in November last year has
Are long flights, waiting for the cab or shuttle, or cab ride to the hotel, followed by the much-longer inevitable queues for check-in, taking a toll on you? Not if you are staying at the Sheraton Grand Hotel, Dubai. In one of the most innovative ways to check in at the hotel for larger groups of travellers, the Starwood property can do check-ins in the bus or cab itself on your way to the hotel.
“As conventions and group business grows, guest arrivals are sometimes compressed into very narrow timeframes.Thus, we want to consider multiple registration locations and other means of eliminating long lines and the amount of time our guests spend in the registration process,” says Ramon Von Schukkmann, Director of Sales, Sheraton Grand Hotel, Dubai. Located at the forefront of Dubai’s most prominent thoroughfare in Sheikh Zayed Road and in the proximity of Dubai World Trade Centre, the hotel’s target market is clear, he adds.“Primarily our guests are corporate and business travellers, and thus hasslefree check-ins and other innovative measures keeping them in mind becomes a critical aspect at our property.”
The hotel is the first new-build for Sheraton in Dubai in more than 30 years. It is also the first Starwood property within walking distance from the Trade Centre. The hotel is also targeting another niche market, which is the long-stay segment.“In a total of 654 keys, we have 180 apartments — fully serviced, with 100 one-bedroom apartments. So we specifically look at corporate customers who want to stay a bit longer, anything between one month and a year,” Schukkmann explains. With Dubai being an evolved MICE destination, MICE and groups will also be a key focus for the hotel, especially during trade shows and conferences at the convention centre, Schuckmann explains, refer- ring to the two-storey ballroom and six meeting rooms.
According to Carmen Ortiz, Director of Marketing, Sheraton Grand Hotel, Dubai, the hotel has positioned itself as offering a crossroads to Dubai. “First of all we’re in the middle of the city and we are very accessible to the old and new parts of Dubai. We have the metro station and we can target the corporate traveller since we are in front of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and you can walk to the World Trade Centre and the many offices nearby,” she points out. The hotel will also appeal to a small number of leisure travellers, in particular those with short stopovers in the city who do not require a beach or mall location, but would still prefer to be in close proximity to the city’s major attractions, she informs. “In 10 minutes you can get to the Old Souks or Dubai Mall and with the metro you can go to the marina or JBR or any other mall in the city,” she adds.
Talking about the importance of India as a source market for Starwood and this hotel in Dubai, Barun Gupta, Account Director-Global Sales, Starwood Hotels and Resorts, reveals, “Dubai plays a vital role for growth of the Starwood portfolio. It is the second market after NewYork where Starwood will be opening all its 10 brands. And, India is growing in terms of outbound partnership with all destinations.With Dubai being just a few hours away, it is one of the most-preferred destinations for Indians for leisure and MICE.Starwood wants to cash in on this growing set of travellers. Thus, we recently hosted a fam trip to Sheraton Grand Hotel, Dubai to showcase our properties to top MICE agents from India.” Sheraton Grand Hotel, Dubai, on Sheikh Zayed Road is the first newbuild for Sheraton in Dubai in more than 30 years