The Scene
For years, booking the Gulf’s most coveted hotels meant months of planning or very deep pockets. Prewar, spending a night at the St. Regis Saadiyat in Abu Dhabi over the weekend was more than $2,000. A villa at Shebara, the futuristic overwater resort on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast, was even more. That is changing.
After the war began on Feb. 28, international tourism to the region plummeted. In Dubai, hotel occupancy dipped to just 16% in the weeks after the conflict erupted. Saudi Arabia doesn’t depend as much on foreign tourists, but internal travel is driven by events, and as conferences, concerts, and major sporting fixtures like Formula 1 have been postponed, bookings have dried up.
That has forced hotels across the Gulf to offer deep price cuts, and target their only remaining market: local residents. Burj Al Arab in Dubai has marketed a 25% discount and FIVE Palm Jumeirah is converting room costs into credit for food, beverage, and spa services. Over Eid, a room at the St. Regis Saadiyat was about $300 a night.
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The offers seem to have worked, though some operational strains are emerging. Many hotels are operating with skeleton crews, with staff either relocated to properties outside the region or let go after occupancy collapsed, while demand driven by the discounts has meant service has suffered: Employees at the St. Regis said its beach was fuller than they had expected last weekend, so getting a snack took more than an hour. Hardly a travesty, but not what a 5-star guest might be accustomed to.
Some hotels, meanwhile, are targeting remote workers. Dubai’s Fairmont The Palm launched a “workation” package allowing guests to plug in their laptops in its lobby lounge while offering 30% off food, drinks, and the spa.
How long the deals will last will depend on when the war ends and how quickly tourists and events return. For now, Gulf residents are getting access to some of the region’s most exclusive properties at a bargain price.