Movenpick to manage mixed-use Muscat development including 274-room hotel, serviced apartments, restaurants and leisure offerings.
Hospitality management company Movenpick Hotels and Resorts (profile) has signed a deal with Oman’s Civil Service Employees Pension Fund (profile) to operate its first property in Muscat.
Part of a design-led upscale mixed-used development, the Movenpick Hotel and Apartments Al Azaiba Muscat will capitalize on its prime location in Muscat’s commercial hub, the Ghala district, close to the new international airport and Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Movenpick Hotel and Apartments Al Azaiba Muscat will feature 274 guest rooms and suites and 50 serviced apartments. Facilities will include six market-oriented food and beverage outlets, a rooftop restaurant, swimming pool, meeting and event space, a ballroom, a rooftop gym with spa, executive lounge and a residents’ lounge.
“This new property will be a welcome addition to our already extensive portfolio of hotels in the Middle East,” said Andreas Mattmüller, COO, Movenpick Hotels and Resorts, Middle East and Africa. “With Muscat undergoing rapid development and significant funds being invested into major tourism infrastructure projects, the time is right to put the Movenpick brand on the map in this important regional city.”
Oman is considered a market brimming with opportunities for the hospitality sector, with some USD 640 million invested in travel and tourism projects in 2015, according to World Travel and Tourism Council statistics.
In 2016, Oman was on track to receive more than 1.8 million international tourists – a figure expected to almost double to 3.34 million by 2026.
“Oman’s tourism industry is flourishing, and we are enormously encouraged by the government and private sector’s commitment to exploit its true potential,” said Amir Lababedi, Movenpick’s vice president of development – Middle East and Africa. “This management agreement consolidates Mövenpick’s position as one of the region’s leading hotel operators and marks another milestone in our strategy to maximize our exposure in every major Gulf market.
“As we accelerate our regional expansion, signing management deals at a record pace, we will certainly be seeing more opportunities to grow our footprint in the sultanate,” he added.
The Movenpick Hotel and Apartments Al Azaiba Muscat is scheduled to open in 2019.