The Ritz-Carlton, Bahrain Hotel and Spa celebrates its first year of operation

With 264 rooms and suites, and 550 multi-lingual and multi-cultural employees from 45 countries, guests experience a level of pampering, which has set new standards of Arabian hospitality.

The first year brought 69,720 guests from 80 countries to stay in the hotel, and 279,900 covers were served in The Ritz-Carlton restaurants. Ali, the sales manager who looks after the Eastern Province, has driven 58,320km on his daily sales calls and other members of the team have conducted almost 400 tours of the property to clients.

The hotel switchboard took over 2 and a half million phone calls, and restaurant reservations alone averaged at 185 calls per day. Conference and catering services served 44,456 guests and various events and banquets. The restaurants themselves served 22,000 litres of freshly squeezed orange juice, and the culinary team used 132,000 eggs and more than 7 tons of shrimps! The gentlemen in the stewarding department washed approximately 1 million pieces of cutlery.

Each of the guestrooms overlook the turquoise blue waters of the Arabian Gulf or the spectacular Manama skyline and with an innovative sports club & spa, it has become the first choice for health and fitness enthusiasts. It is therefor no suprise that 90,000 apples have been consumed in the health club. Add to this the selection of nine restaurants and bars and it is no wonder the hotel has been a resounding success in the region.

"Perhaps one of the most immediate differences to be noticed soon after we assumed management of the property was the style of service adapted by our ladies and gentlemen," quoted the hotels general manager - Pascal Duchauffour. "We were blessed that The Ritz-Carlton philosophy and commitment to quality that are the core values of our hotel company were embraced by all our employees. I am extremely proud to have been a part of this transition, and the generation of yet another beautiful resort in The Ritz-Carlton portfolio."

One milestone for the resort was the opening of The Sail Tower managed by The Ritz-Carlton. The first luxury furnished apartment complex fully serviced by a premier hotel company in the country, and a first for Ritz-Carlton in the Middle East. The Ritz-Carlton, Bahrain Hotel & Spa was the fifth Ritz-Carlton property to open in the Middle East, following The Ritz-Carlton Sharm el Sheikh, The Ritz-Carlton, Istanbul, The
Ritz-Carlton, Doha and The Ritz-Carlton, Dubai.