The Hotel Show Dubai reveals theatre
The sixteenth annual Hotel Show Dubai – taking place from 28-30 September at the Dubai World Trade Centre – has revealed its new Design Theatre for 2015.
Created by Italian designers WT Studio, it will play host to international experts discussing the future of hotel design in the Middle East and Africa, focusing in particular on high-tech features in the industry. The kind of project the show looks to concentrate on is exemplified by the futuristic design of the ME Dubai Hotel by award-winning architect Zaha Hadid. Melia Hotels International is set to discuss the US$400 million project, due to open in Business Bay in 2016, in more detail at The Hotel Show’s 2015 Vision Conference as part of the ‘MEGA Projects – An Inside View’ panel on 28 September. This is the first hotel designed by Iraqi-British architect Hadid, famous for her distinctive, neo-futuristic buildings. Gabriel Escarrer, Vice Chairman and CEO of Melia Hotels International, recently described ME by Meliá as a “new-generation hotel brand” and the architecture of the ME Dubai Hotel, which features innovative style with metallic finishes, as “jaw-dropping”.
Issam Ezzeddine, Project Director and Design Architect at the National Engineering Bureau – who is presenting on the ‘Sustainable town square in UAE’ – says: “Architects and experts in the design industry sector are working hard to come up with innovative aspects that shape the future of architecture. The future is closer than you might think – current projects are already answering the imagined needs and desires of the next generation. While much remains to be done, the young population and significant capital resources of the MENA states are key advantages. Hotels are scrambling to anticipate travellers’ future needs, and some changes already taking effect can help us get glimpse of what’s to come.”
He continues: “Lobbies will become high-tech multi-use spaces and overall, hotels will integrate high-tech amenities that border on sci-fi. Hotels are literally looking to science fiction to gain an edge on competitors, launching futuristic amenities like robot butlers (the Botlr, currently only at the Aloft Cupertino and Aloft Silicon Valley), robot luggage handlers (the Yobot at New York’s Yotel), virtual reality experience (WXYZ bars at Aloft Hotels), fingerprint scan room entry (at the Alma Barcelona), retina scan room entry (at the Nine Zero Hotel in Boston) and finally, infrared body scanners (at Seattle’s Hotel 1000). Dubai is still to catch on, but given its tendency to take themes from the world’s best and create them into something uniquely impressive, we can anticipate an interesting, high-tech future.”
Italian architect Simone Micheli, with studios based in Florence, Milan, Dubai and Rabat, renowned for futuristic hotel design, will present ‘Hotel as Opera’ on day two of the Design Theatre. He comments: “In Dubai, architecture and design is developing so much, enriching the landscape with new forms, structures, ideas; giving birth to extraordinary works when the desire of trying something new is associated with smart research based on proper human needs. Architecture and design in the MENA region is both influenced by ultramodern thinking and advanced research, combined with the strength of a culture which kept clear the values of its ancient past. The original combination of intents is showing great, unexpected results! Restaurants and hotels are becoming organic and interconnected spaces able to offer to visitors everyday more detailed, deeper, unique experiences that stay in people’s minds.”
A number of talks are lined up for The Hotel Show, exploring different aspects of hotel design: Anil Mangalat, Design Director at MMAC Design Associates, will contribute to a panel discussions on ‘Delivering on the design for hotel projects’; there will be a debate on ‘local authenticity vs international polish’, and ‘innovative and sustainable vision in architecture and design’ will also be considered.
The Hotel Show will also include a number of interiors exhibitors, including its Interior Partner, S&T, who will be revealing a new brand and unique fit-out concept at the fair.
