Coral International opens its first hotel in Fujairah

The grand opening was attended by top dignitaries, VIPs and prominent businessmen.

Speaking to the select gathering, Souhail Khalifa Shahheen Al Murar, the owner of the hotel said, 'Thanks to the government's strong emphasis and vision of developing Fujairah as a leading tourist attraction, the emirate is quickly emerging as a popular destination for leisure and business. Quality hotels are definitely the biggest need of the hour and we feel proud to offer Coral Residence Tower, Fujairah, which has been designed to provide world-class hospitality in the heart of the city.'

Coral Residence Tower, Fujairah, is a charming hotel featuring 176 fully-furnished apartments. The units range from studios (60 units), to two-bedroom apartments (56 units), and two-bedroom apartments with maid's rooms (58 units). Beautifully decorated in contemporary urban style, the rooms offer all modern and classic comforts.

Coral Residence Tower - Fujairah provides superb dining, conference and banqueting facilities too. Al Nafoora restaurant offers a range of international and local flavours in a relaxed environment. For small meetings and seminars, Masafi meeting room offers a perfect setting. It can easily accommodate 50 persons and is fully equipped with the latest technology. Fitness freaks can work out in style in the hotel's state-of-the-art health club Gym & Tonic.

Michel Noblet, Managing Director, Coral International Hotels, Resorts & Spas, said, 'We are extremely excited to announce the opening of Coral Residence Tower, Fujairah. Tourism is catching on fast in Fujairah and our aim is to provide quality accommodation to meet this growing demand. Currently, some 250,000 to 300,000 tourists visit Fujairah annually. However, this number is expected to grow exponentially in the coming 3 or 4 years, as the Fujairah government works on schemes to improve tourism infrastructure and make the emirate more appealing to visitors.

'Equipped with the finest amenities and services, the Coral Residence Tower, Fujairah is an outstanding property. We guarantee our guests a warm welcome and exceptional customer service in modern and comfortable surroundings.'

Coral Residence Tower, Fujairah is brilliantly located merely 5 minutes from the beach. Fujairah International Airport and Trade Centre are less than 7 minutes from the hotel.

In 2006 Fujairah government allocated Dhs2.94bn for the development of tourism in 5 years. As a result many significant steps have been taken to enhance the facilities in the emirate. One of the biggest moves was building a new 76km road costing an estimated Dhs1.2bn to connect Fujairah to Dubai. The highway is expected to open by the end of 2008 and will drastically reduce the traveling time between the two emirates to a mere 30 minutes.

Fujairah currently has somewhere between 1500 and 1600 hotel rooms. The picturesque emirate aims to increase its total room capacity to 5000 in the next five years. The development of new hotels will give a major boost to tourism in Fujairah.

Establishment of the new Creativity City, enhancement of Fujairah Airport facilities, and addition of new entertainment facilities and shopping malls, are some of the other steps expected to stimulate tourism in the emirate.

Adding to it is Fujairah's natural beauty that speaks for itself. Rich in history, wildlife, archaeological sites, mountains, mineral springs and spectacular scenery, it has the potential to become a leading tourism economy in the region. Beautiful sandy beaches and snorkeling and scuba-diving sites are also big attractions for visitors.

Michel expects the hospitality industry grow rapidly in the emirate. 'We stand steady to be part of this wonderful progress and to position ourselves competitively'.