The Palace, The Old Town: Accor out, Address in

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HEUCHENNE: the move to change was understandable.

Accor will no longer operate The Palace, The Old Town under its Sofitel brand after Emaar Hospitality Group (EHG) assumed the management and operation of the 242-room property last month.

As late as July 21 a spokesperson for EHG was confirming that the hotel continued to be operated by Sofitel, and played down rumours of a change in management.

But a statement on August 2 from EHG confirmed what many in the industry had been speculating for months.

The decision of the two parties was mutual, the statement continued, "following the conclusion of the management agreement".

EHG chief executive Marc Dardenne said Sofitel's contribution "has been invaluable".

"We thank them for their support and creating a direction of growth since October 2007," he said.

"By integrating the hotel under The Address umbrella, as a separate collection, we aim to achieve service and operational consistency and efficiency, while enhancing the overall value offering of the hotel group."

The property's general manager Olivier Heuchenne said the move to change was "understandable".

"Emaar has put its own management company together so they don't really need Sofitel to manage their property," he said.

"It's understandable; it's clearly a logical evolution for Emaar Hospitality to be able to manage their own property and it was absolutely amicable. The name will stay the same - so it is ‘The Palace, The Old Town, managed by The Address'."

With EHG set to open another The Address-branded hotel nearby in the Downtown Burj Dubai area, Heuchenne said the two properties would complement each other in attracting guests.

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