Mall of the World launched in Dubai

[Al Bhatti]

July 5, 2014

Artist’s impression of the Mall of the World, the world’s first temperature-controlled city, which will be built along Shaikh Zayed Road in Dubai. The mall will be capable of receiving 180 million visitors a year.

Mall of the World launched in Dubai
The world’s first temperature-controlled city will also have the largest shopping mall in the world

His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, launched the world’s first temperature-controlled city, Mall of the World, located along Shaikh Zayed Road in Dubai, on Saturday.

With a total area of 48 million sq. ft., the project will comprise the world’s largest shopping mall and indoor theme park, which will be covered by a glass dome that will be open during the winter months. The shopping mall, with an area of 8 million sq. ft., will take the form of an extended retail street network, unlike the typical shopping mall concept available in Dubai.

“Our ambitions are higher than having seasonal tourism. Tourism is key driver of our economy and we aim to make the UAE an attractive destination all year long. This is why we will start working on providing pleasant temperature-controlled environments during the summer months.” Shaikh Mohammad

Additional districts within the project will include a wellness dedicated zone catering to medical tourists, a cultural celebration district as well as a wide range of hospitality options comprising 20,000 hotel rooms catering to all types of tourists. Once completed, the City is projected to become a year-round destination, welcoming around 180 million visitors annually.

Commenting on the new project, Shaikh Mohammad said: “The growth in family and retail tourism underpins the need to enhance Dubai’s tourism infrastructure as soon as possible. This project complements our plans to transform Dubai into a cultural, tourist and economic hub for the two billion people living in the region around us; and we are determined to achieve our vision.”

“Our ambitions are higher than having seasonal tourism. Tourism is key driver of our economy and we aim to make the UAE an attractive destination all year long. This is why we will start working on providing pleasant temperature-controlled environments during the summer months. We are confident of our economy’s strength, optimistic about our country’s future and we continue to broaden our vision,” Shaikh Mohammad said in the presence of Mohammad Abdullah Al Gergawi, UAE Minister of Cabinet Affairs and Chairman of Dubai Holding; Ahmad Bin Byat, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Holding; and Khalifa Saeed Sulaiman, Director-General of Protocol Department.

Integrated Pedestrian City

The new project, developed by Dubai Holding, will introduce an innovative concept of an integrated pedestrian city connected to the mall and offering a wide range of leisure, retail, cultural, wellness, recreation and hospitality options under one roof. Tourists will be able to enjoy a week-long stay without the need to leave the City or use a car. The 7km long promenades connecting all facilities will be covered during the summer and open during the winter, ensuring pleasant temperatures throughout the year.

Hospitality District

The project will see the addition of 100 hotels and serviced apartments buildings, including 20,000 hotel rooms, to Dubai’s hospitality sector. The project will include designated parking areas with a capacity to host up to 50,000 cars on the ground level.

Dubai Cultural District

Dubai Cultural District will be the hub for national and multinational cultural festivities and events in the UAE. A dedicated theatre district with host of venues similar to some of the world’s most renowned landmarks such as London’s West End and New York’s Broadway. The Celebration Walk, similar to the Ramblas Street in Barcelona will connect the cultural district to the rest of the Mall. Dubai Cultural District will include a range of conference, wedding and celebration halls with a capacity to host thousands of revellers, befitting the multicultural social fabric of Dubai.


Wellness District

Another component of Mall of the World is the Wellness District, which will cover a total area of 3 million sq. ft. dedicated to providing wellness and rejuvenation services. It will offer a holistic experience to medical tourists and their families, ensuring access to quality healthcare, specialised surgical procedures and cosmetic treatments, wellness facilities and high-end hospitality options.

“Mall of the World presents an innovative concept in the international hospitality sector, further strengthening Dubai’s appeal as a tourism hub with a wide range of options. This project is a product of extensive research studying international and regional tourists’ requirements and preferences. The objective is to create an integrated city with a plethora of best-in-class options within pleasant environments. The project will be developed in phases in alignment with the gradual growth of family tourism in Dubai,” Al Gergawi said.

Ahmad Bin Byat, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Holding, said: “We are ready to move forward with this unique concept, whose distinctive offering and strategic location will play an instrumental role in advancing the growth of Dubai’s tourism sector. The project will follow the green and environmentally friendly guidelines of the Smart Dubai model. It will be built using state-of-the-art technology to reduce energy consumption and carbon footprint, ensuring high levels of environmental sustainability and operational efficiency.”

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Artist’s impression of the Mall of the World, the world’s first temperature-controlled city, which will be built along Shaikh Zayed Road in Dubai. The mall will be capable of receiving 180 million visitors a year.

Mall of the World, the world’s first temperature-controlled city launched in Dubai | GulfNews.com

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Dubai - UAE
Having a small population (with expats being the big majorly) did not stop the leaders to achieve big. (Total UAE population is around 9 million comprising of around 1.2 million local population)

Having a small area did not stop the leaders to achieve big

Having a harsh hot climate for most part of the year did not stop the leaders to achieve big

Pakistan
Having a local population with no need to get manpower or human resources from outside unlike UAE.(Pakistan's local population is around 190 million)

Having a vast area unlike UAE

Having all the four climates with areas in the north having very pleasant weather in the summer unlike UAE

What stops Pakistan to achive big?

The politicians and the people who give votes to them again an again. Shame on them, even the word shame is not enough for them for what they are doing with the common man and the nation just to keep their chairs with no far sightedness

As per a hadith, a muslim is never bitten form the same hole twice. We have been bitten by our politicians many many times again and again and again but we still insist on voting for them.

In the context of the hadith are we still Muslims?

 

[Al Bhatti]

July 6, 2014

Mall of the World to strengthen Dubai’s tourism and retail position
Mega-project to include 100 hotels, wellness, cultural and theatre districts

Mall of the World, the latest addition to Dubai’s retail, hospitality and leisure offering, is expected to boost visitor numbers and further strengthen the emirate’s mall development pipeline, industry experts said.

Mall of the World was launched on Saturday by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice-President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai.

The focus of activity in Dubai has shifted towards the retail and hospitality sectors as development ramps up in the lead up to the World Expo 2020, which Dubai won the bid to host last November, real estate consultancy Cluttons said in a statement.

“Dubai has a significant portfolio of existing shopping malls and the string of new mall developments looks set to push Dubai further ahead of the region’s other emerging economies,” stated Faisal Durrani, international research and business development Manager at Cluttons.

The consultancy expects some 7 million square feet of new malls with a size of over 1 million square feet to enter the market over the next two years, apart from the current mall expansion activity in the city.

The Dubai Financial Market also welcomed the news. The index went up 4.41 per cent on Sunday to end at 4,593.57.

Located along Shaikh Zayed Road, Mall of the World will occupy 8 million square feet. The mall’s retail area will be connected to 100 hotels and service apartments offering 20,000 rooms. The masterplan includes wellness resorts, cultural theatres and an indoor park.

“The Mall of the World will pave the way for the next generation of the city’s malls, where the shopping element is combined in equal parts with entertainment and leisure facilities, creating destinations in theory own right, while catalysing the development of wider surrounding areas,” Durrani said.

The cost and timeline for completion of the project was not disclosed by its developer Dubai Holding. When enquired by ‘Gulf News’, no one at Dubai Holding was available to comment on Sunday. “Anchored by a mall, the destination seems to be planned as new and additional centre of Dubai,” said Chiheb Ben Mahmoud, executive vice-president and head of hotels and hospitality group for the Middle East and Africa at real estate consultancy JLL.

Property developer Nakheel’s Deira Islands Mall is the second largest shopping mall in Dubai’s new mall development pipeline after Mall of the World, occupying 6.7 million square feet, according to data by Cluttons.

Once complete, the Mall of the World project is expected to attract 180 million visitors a year.

“DTCM [Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing] plays a central role in coordinating the activities of industry and public sector partners to expand existing attractions and create new ones — like The Mall of the World — to enhance the overall visitor experience. We look forward to continuing our work with private sector partners as well as government agencies on this project,” said Issam Abdul Rahim Kazim, CEO of the Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DCTCM), an affiliate of DTCM, told ‘Gulf News’ in an emailed statement.

Hotel operators keen

With 100 hotels planned as a part of the development, hotel operators have expressed keen interest in the project.

The Rezidor Hotel Group, which has Radisson Blu and Park Inn by Radisson in its portfolio, is “in the process of initiating discussions” with Dubai Holding, which is handling the project, according to Elie Milky, the company’s director of business development for the Middle East and Africa.

“We are definitely looking at hotel opportunities in Mall of the World and to continuing to contribute to the growth vision of Dubai and the UAE, particularly in family tourism,” Milky said.

The Rezidor Hotel Group is considering introducing its mid-scale brand Park Inn by Radisson, Radisson Red, Radisson Blu and Quorvus Collection, in the new development.

“The inclusion of theatres, theme parks and medical tourism facilities along with the world class mall will certainly complement a wide array of hospitality projects [hotels and serviced apartments] needed to cater to related demand,” Milky said.

Other hotel operators have echoed similar views.

“Mall of the World is a destination which attracts our interest however the development is very new and there is nothing we can confirm in these very early stages,” said a spokesperson for US-based Hilton Worldwide, in an emailed statement.

Similarly, Accor said that it is interested in opening hotels in the development but it is not in discussions at present.

“Every project that comes to Dubai is good for the destination, and if it’s good for the destination, then it’s good for all of us,” said Pascal Gauvin, COO of InterContinental Hotels Group for India, the Middle East and Africa.

Marriott International, on the other hand, will not announce new properties in the Middle East and Africa at present other than those in its pipeline, Alex Kyriakidis, president and managing director of Marriott International for the Middle East and Africa, said in an emailed statement.

Analysts said that apart from growing Dubai’s visitor numbers, the project will expand Dubai’s range of accommodation.

It is understood that the hotels will have a relatively small size compared to the current average hotel size, according to JLL’s Ben Mahmoud.

The addition of 20,000 rooms to the 16,000 rooms that are expected to be delivered in three to four years, could meet demand in the market between now and 2020. But there is still room for growth, said Christopher Hewett, senior consultant at TRI Hospitality Consulting.

Hewett, however, does not expect an excess in hotel supply after 2020. Ben Mahmoud said that Dubai would need to attract more than 20 million visitors per year after 2020 to match the supply.

Dubai aims to double the number of hotel rooms to attract 20 million visitors per year by 2020 from 10 million in 2012, under the tourism vision announced in 2012.

“The increase in supply is based on the increase in demand,” Hewett said.

Mall of the World to strengthen Dubai’s tourism and retail position | GulfNews.com

 

[kbd-raaf]

No more debt worries then, clearly.

 

[Al Bhatti]

Dubai a small emirate is attracting tens of millions of tourists per year. Hundred times it’s local population.

What has Pakistan done to attract tourists? Forget about foreign tourists, what has the Tourism Department done to facilitate internal tourism? What has the government done to improve the standard of living of the common man and give him employment opportunities and sense of security and safety. Satisfaction and happiness of the common man will result in a big internal tourism. We have 190 million tourists right in Pakistan and hundreds of places for tourism across the country and Dubai wants to attract 180 million per year from outside.