Las Vegas leisure operator to run three Dubai hotels

Las Vegas leisure operator, MGM Mirage, has won a contract to run three brand hotels in a long-planned luxury development near the Palm Jumeirah, Dubai, it was reported on Tuesday.  

The three hotels in the Dubai Pearl development will be a 250-room Bellagio hotel, a 350-room MGM Grand hotel and a Skylofts hotel that will be managed by MGM Mirage Hospitality.

No casinos would be operated at the hotels, confirmed MGM spokesperson Gordon Absher in an interview with UAE daily The National.       

“While our company is well known for operating luxury casino resorts in Las Vegas, what people forget is that beyond the casinos lie some of the best, most luxurious resorts in the world,” he said.

“So we’re taking that aspect of our experience and we’re now carrying it other parts of the world – without the casino.”

The announcement comes just days after the Dubai Tourism Authority revealed that hotel guest nights were down 16 percent and revenues had dropped 15 percent in the first quarter of the year.
 
However, the chairman of Pearl Dubai, which owns the development now valued at AED15bn, said the move was part of its on-going commitment to partnering with world-class brands.

The entertainment element MGM would provide the development would set it apart from others in Dubai, added Abdul Majeed Ismail Al Fahim.     

“The project’s entertainment elements will help complete the vision of making the Dubai Pearl a true landmark that will deliver an unforgettable experience through its diverse components and unmatched services,” he said.

Last October Pearl Dubai paid AED100m for an island at Nakheel’s The World, which will be developed for exclusive use by Dubai Pearl residents.

Dubai World, a government investment company, has a 9.5 percent stake in MGM Mirage, and is building an $8.5bn entertainment complex in Las Vegas.

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