Ski slope remains big draw at Kempinski MoE (page 2 of 2)

'We also see focusing more on the Brazilian market, funnily enough, as more of them are coming here, and this is the kind of market we are trying to attract.'

Ski slope still popular

The indoor ski slope at MoE continues to be a major draw for the hotel, as it remains a novelty in the region. 'Everywhere in the world I go people know about the hotel in Dubai with the ski slope,' he said. However, even though the new Dubai metro has a stop at MoE, the hotel is not doing much to market its proximity to the rail service.

'It will take time for people to get used to the metro as such. I don't think that they are ready to go from the airport to the metro to come here as he might be in London, for example,' he says. 'But once people are more accustomed to the concept they will start to use it, knowing that they can get from the airport to the hotel without going outside.'

In addition to the opening of a new metro stop, the hotel's Barsha area of Dubai has also seen an influx of budget hotels. 'There are a lot of budget hotels that have cropped up around the hotel, including three that are on the same street, but they are a different market from us. Yes we will lose the odd one or two guests, but people that are used to travelling at the level of a Kempinski hotel would not go to their hotel and vice versa,' he says.

There may be even some advantages to having the new hotels close by. 'In some cases we will have synergies. For example, we sometimes get large groups where some are at different levels, and part of the group can stay at those hotels and the rest will stay with us.

'It also means more groups promoting Dubai and the Barsha area,' he adds.