Dubai will implement a long-awaited new hotel classification system that will cover new categories from this year-end.
Presently, all hotels are classified on the basis of a global rating system — the one to five stars rating — but the new system will rate in new categories including business, beach, desert and heritage.
A break from the global classification system will mean ratings can be better tailored to the local market and take into account service and product standards in the region, hotel industry experts said.
The Dubai move comes close on the heels of a similar initiative a few days ago by the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority to include a new category designed to represent properties deemed as above five-star.The Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) said on Wednesday that hospitality properties would continue to be rated on the scale of one to five stars, but new categories have been added to highlight their uniqueness, a statement said.
The new categories include business, beach, desert and heritage properties. The new ratings will replace the system that has been in place for the past 12 years. Majid Al Marri, Director of Classification at DTCM's Licensing and Classification Division, said at the Arabian Travel Market that the new system had been in planning for the past three years.
He argued that the new system would pave the way for qualitative changes in the hospitality product offerings and enhance service standards.
"Under the new ratings, five-star hotels will have three categories — platinum, gold and silver. The selection criteria for other hotels categories, ranging from four to one star, have also been overhauled," said Al Marri.
Hotel apartments will now be rated in three categories instead of two - basic, standard and deluxe. There will be no changes in guest house classification.
Dubai, which lured close to seven million visitors in 2009, has currently 540 hotels — 352 hotels and 188 hotel apartments — offering a total 61,182 rooms and furnished flats. The number of properties is projected to go up by seven per cent by this year-end while the number of rooms and furnished flats will see a 30 per cent jump.
Tourism has become one of the main income generators for Dubai, accounting for 30 per cent of GDP indirectly, the DTCM statement said.
Dubai has 52 five-star hotels with a room inventory of 16,693, while 59 four-star hotels offer 10,817 rooms. There are 6,975 rooms in 55 three-star hotels, 3,807 rooms in 44 two-star hotels and 4,719 rooms in 126 one-star hotels.
Al Marri said the classification aimed at enhancing the accommodation service level, facilitating the selection of accommodations suitable to every category of visitors, international tour and travel. He said the new classification system has taken into consideration several factors to provide a system that matches international standards. The previous classification system was introduced in 1998. Hotels and hotel apartments already operating in Dubai were also studied to develop the new classification. The planned classification system will encompass several areas of hotel operations. Under the changes, existing hotel criteria could be upgraded to meet new minimum standards along with over structural elements.
He said the emirate's hotels and hotel apartments will be assessed under the new system from this year end. The need for a new system was identified as part of the quality assurance component of Dubai's tourism strategy.
