The Geneva based Swiss company, Swiss Hospitality Holding, SA, has launched their first hotel in the Middle East. Dr. Christian Rey, President of the company, said they plan to have 20 Alps Hotels in the GCC in the next five years. Their first Alps Hotel is located in Ras Al Khamai, and is franchised to UniEstate, a master franchise in the Middle East and North Africa which covers 23 countries. The next two UAE hotels will be built in Dubai and Sharjah.
Dr. Christian Rey believes the Alps Hotel fills a gap in a market filled mainly with 5 star hotels or almost no star hotels. Dr. Rey said “Generally speaking, in the next five years the hotel market of 3 stars should be around 10 per cent of the total capacity of the GCC.” The 90 room Alps Hotel in Ras Al Khamai required an investment of about Dh17 million.