The AHEAD MEA shortlist has been announced, featuring luxury urban skyscrapers alongside secluded mountain lodges, and representing the premier new hotel openings throughout The Middle East and Africa.
Celebrating the most ambitious, accomplished and innovative hotels from across the region, winners will be revealed on 15 November at the inaugural AHEAD MEA ceremony at W Al Habtoor City, Dubai.
A panel of judges, chaired by Marc Dardenne, Group Chief Operating Officer, Jumeirah Group, will now assess each project in terms of both creative and commercial excellence, with the winners going on to compete in a global AHEAD biennale in 2019.
Bar, Club or Lounge
- BOA Lounge & Club at W Al Habtoor City – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Cubano Lito at Ibis One Central Hotel – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Little Black Door at Conrad Dubai – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Siddharta Lounge at Grosvenor House Hotel – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Event Spaces
- Mövenpick Hotel Mansour Eddahbi & Palais des Congrès – Marrakech, Morocco
- Rove Downtown – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Sofitel Jeddah Corniche – Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
- Sofitel Tamuda Bay Beach & Spa – Tangier, Morocco
Guestrooms
- Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar Resort – Nizwa, Oman
- Jumeirah Al Naseem – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- La Ville Hotel & Suites City Walk – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Room Mate Emir – Istanbul, Turkey
Hotel Renovation & Restoration
- Kempinski Summerland Hotel & Resort – Beirut, Lebanon
- Mövenpick Hotel Mansour Eddahbi & Palais des Congrès – Marrakech, Morocco
- Radisson Blu Hotel & Residence, Cape Town – Cape Town, South Africa
Landscape & Outdoor Spaces
- Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar Resort – Nizwa, Oman
- Burj Al Arab Jumeirah – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Six Senses Zil Pasyon –Félicité, Seychelles
- The Oberoi Beach Resort, Al Zorah – Ajman, United Arab Emirates
Lobby & Public Spaces
- Fairmont Fujairah Beach Resort –Fujairah, United Arab Emirates
- Le Royal Meridien Beach Resort & Spa – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Media One Hotel – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Rove Downtown – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Lodges & Tented Camps
- Asilia Highlands – Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania
- Belmond Eagle Island Lodge – Okavango Delta, Botswana
- Elewana Loisaba Tented Camp – Laikipia, Kenya
- Singita Lebombo Lodge – Kruger National Park, South Africa
Resort Hotel
- Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar Resort – Nizwa, Oman
- Fairmont Fujairah Beach Resort –Fujairah, United Arab Emirates
- Jumeirah Al Naseem – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Sofitel Tamuda Bay Beach & Spa – Tangier, Morocco
Restaurant
- Address Boulevard – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Miyako at Grand Hyatt Dubai – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Rüya at Grosvenor House Hotel – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- The Daily at Rove Downtown – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Spa & Wellness
- Anantara Spa at Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar Resort – Nizwa, Oman
- Dahlia Spa at Four Seasons Hotel Abu Dhabi – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Nikki Spa at Nikki Beach Resort & Spa Dubai – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Ô de Rose Spa at Mövenpick Hotel Mansour Eddahbi & Palais des Congrès – Marrakech, Morocco
Suite
- AlRayyan Hotel Doha, Curio Collection by Hilton – Doha, Qatar
- Royal Suite at Jumeirah Al Naseem – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Villa Suites at Six Senses Zil Pasyon –Félicité, Seychelles
- Villa Suites at The Oberoi Beach Resort, Al Zorah – Ajman, United Arab Emirates
Urban Hotel
- Address Boulevard – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Fairmont Quasar Istanbul – Istanbul, Turkey
- Four Seasons Hotel Dubai International Financial Centre – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- La Ville Hotel & Suites City Walk – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
