Press Releases

Rotana commits to GIBTM

Expansion plans include increased hotel stock in Abu Dhabi

Rotana, the leading hotel management company in the Middle East and North Africa, has confirmed their participation at the GIBTM (www.gibtm.com) in Abu Dhabi, 29 – 31 March 2010, ADNEC.   Commenting on their participation, Selim El Zyr, President and CEO for Rotana said: “We are very pleased with Abu Dhabi hosting an important exhibition such as GIBTM, which will hugely assist in developing the MICE tourism. We have always been very active with the promotion of our MICE properties all over the Middle East through our local and International sales offices and our participation at GIBTM has assisted us in further developing this sector and in the showcasing our products and offerings.” The MICE business is an increasing segment throughout Rotana properties and destinations in the Middle East. The approximate current percentage of MICE business is 8% in Abu Dhabi, 8% in Dubai, 9% in Lebanon and 11% in Egypt, a figure expected to increase to 18% within the next two years. El Zyr adds: “In Abu Dhabi, home to GIBTM, the increase will be very significant; up to 14%, a growth of over 60%. This is due to the initiatives taken by the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority to promote the destination for the meetings, incentives, conferences and events sector. Hosting important exhibitions such as GIBTM assists hugely in the overall tourism development taking place and plays a major role in nurturing further growth in this sector.” Rotana manages a leading property in Abu Dhabi; the Beach Rotana which is a city conference resort and the recently opened Park Rotana located next to ADNEC. In addition, Yas Island Rotana has been added to the company’s MICE hotels located near the Abu Dhabi Airport, F1 Race Track, Marina and Links Golf Course. El Zyr continues: “The inventory of the hotel rooms to be managed by Rotana in Abu Dhabi will be increased to 1,600 within the coming few months. Although we are not really anticipating a surge of “mass tourism” in Abu Dhabi, we hope to appeal to the more discerning tourist and MICE organisers and GIBTM will be a huge contributor to this. “For the next four years, Rotana will open 10 hotels per year. The plan is right. The strategy is there. The execution and know-how are there. The objective is clear. Rotana is positive that as long as the company is able to manage growth in an efficient way, then there is the scope to take up further properties.” Rotana’s expansion includes hotel development in new markets such as Bahrain, Baghdad, Jordan, Oman, Iraq, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. In addition to exhibiting at GIBTM, Rotana are sponsoring the GIBTM media office. Further information on Rotana can be found at www.rotana.com and to register free for GIBTM log onto www.gibtm.com -Ends- For further Rotana information contact: Amal Harb Corporate Vice President - Marketing Rotana Hotel Management Corporation LTD. Tel:      + 971 2 699 44 44 Fax:     + 971 2 644 14 12 Email: amal.harb@rotana.com For further information on GIBTM please contact: Simon Greenbury / Andrea Klar Tel: +44 (0) 207 096 2960 / 56 Email: simon.greenbury@cut-coms.co.uk       andrea.klar@cut-coms.co.uk GIBTM Website: www.gibtm.com Reed Travel Exhibitions website: www.reedtravelexhibitions.com Notes to Editors: 1. GIBTM forms part of the RTE portfolio of Global Meetings and Incentives Events along with AIME (www.aime.com.au), GIBTM (www.gibtm.com), CIBTM (www.cibtm.com), AIBTM (www.aibtm.com) and the ICCA Exhibition in association with ICCA Congress (www.iccaworld.com). EIBTM (www.eibtm.com) is the annual global meetings and incentive exhibition held in Barcelona, Spain.   2. Reed Travel Exhibitions organise 14 events worldwide, including World Travel Market, Arabian Travel Market, European Incentive, Business Travel & Meetings Exhibition (EIBTM), Americas Incentive, Business Travel & Meetings Exhibition (AIBTM), Asia Pacific Incentives & Meetings Expo (AIME), International Golf Travel Market, Top Resa, ICCA Exhibition, in association with the ICCA Congress, International Luxury Travel Market (ILTM), La Cumbre, City Break, China Incentive, Business Travel & Meetings Exhibition (CIBTM), Gulf Incentive Business Travel & Meetings (GIBTM) and Asia Luxury Travel Market (ALTM).   3. For further press information, please visit the Reed Travel Exhibitions’ website on www.reedtravelexhibitions.com. 4. Reed Exhibitions is the world’s leading events organiser, with over 470 events in 37 countries. In 2008 Reed brought together over seven million industry professionals from around the world generating billions of dollars in business. Today Reed events are held throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific, and organised by 38 fully staffed offices. 5. Reed organises a wide range of events, including exhibitions, conferences, congresses and meetings. Its portfolio of over 470 events serves 44 industry sectors, including: Aerospace & aviation, automobiles, broadcasting, building & construction, electronics, energy, oil & gas, engineering, manufacturing, environment, food service & hospitality, gifts, healthcare, interior design, IT & telecoms, jewellery, life science & pharmaceuticals, machinery, medical education, printing & graphics, property & real estate, security & safety, sports & recreation, travel. 6. Working closely with professional bodies, trade associations and government departments Reed ensures that each and every event is targeted and relevant to industry needs. As a result, many Reed events are market leaders in their field. 7. Reed Exhibitions is part of Reed Elsevier Group plc, a FTSE-100 company and world-leading publisher and information provider. In February 2009, Reed Elsevier reported revenues for 2008 of £5,334/€6,721m.