The first of the hotels expected to open is the five-star Ibn Battuta Gate Hotel, which is part of the vast salmon pink development next to the Ibn Battuta Mall. The hotel is scheduled to open in September.
The Ibn Battuta Gate project also includes apartments and offices. Its developer boasts that its archway is larger than that of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
The hotel’s launch comes at a time when hotel revenues in Dubai are down about 30 per cent compared with the peaks of 2008. But because of its proximity to the mall, Jebel Ali and the new Al Maktoum International Airport, Moevenpick is confident that the Moroccan-influenced, 396-room hotel, which is themed on the travels of the 14th century explorer Ibn Battuta, will be a success.
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