DESTINATION REPORT


Capital gains


Key players in Abu Dhabi are collaborating to attract diverse business to the region


ByPAUL REVEL


AT FIRST GLANCE, ART AND AVIATION ARE CURRENTLY the prominent face of developments in UAE capital Abu Dhabi. The ethereally beautiful Louvre art museum, which appears to float on the blue waters of the Arabian Gulf, is due to open this year. Meanwhile, looking out from the luxurious upper deck of my taxiing Etihad A380, the spectacular new $3bn Midfield Terminal is taking shape at Abu Dhabi airport. It’s due to open in 2019 – both these projects have seen delays, but compared to developments such as, say, a new runway at Heathrow, the terminal is happening in the blink of an eye. National carrier Etihad sees the new Midfield Terminal project as a key factor in Abu Dhabi’s progress. “It will be a vital component in the continuing growth of Etihad Airways and the development of the region” says Linda Celestino, the airline’s VP of guest experience. “We are continuing to develop our supporting programmes, such


120 BBT May/June 2017


as new lounge facilities, that will enable us to deliver strong passenger growth at the new facility.” She says the new terminal will be a “fantastic venue” with 65 aircraft gates and 742,000sqm of space, including 35,000sqm for retail and F&B, and is a key element in Abu Dhabi’s strategies for growing tourism and business opportunities. Over the bridge on Saadiyat Island,


anticipation builds for the long-awaited opening of the Louvre, its cool interiors shaded under a white 180m-wide, 7,000-ton steel dome, with its interlaced palm-leaf design dappling the interior in a shifting ‘rain of light,’ according to architect Jean Nouvel. Estimates on the cost of the project vary widely; Bloomberg cited just over US$1 billion when it recently described US$37 billion of Abu Dhabi projects due for completion by 2020. Nearby, the Guggenheim museum


project is amassing a world-class permanent art collection, though construction on


the fantastical Frank Gehry-designed building (set to be over 10 times the size of the Guggenheim in Manhattan) has not yet started.


MAKING ROOM As always in the UAE, the hotel pipeline is flowing. Recent and upcoming openings include brands such as Millennium, Hyatt, Rotana, Fairmont, Four Seasons and Marriott. Hotel data specialist STR noted for February this year, the UAE occupancy rate of 84 per cent was the highest for the period since 2008. I’m in town for the opening of the


400-room Marriott al Forsan (see review, p125) in the Khalifa City district, within the Al Forsan sports resort with its Olympic-standard facilities that include an equestrian centre, shooting ranges and wake-boarding park. This follows the opening late last year of


the Marriott Downtown, and is the 12th Abu Dhabi property in the Marriott-Starwood portfolio – and the 47th in the UAE.


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