Starwood confirms new Mall of Emirates hotel

US-based Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide on Sunday confirmed that it has signed an agreement with Majid Al Futtaim Properties to open a Sheraton Hotel at Mall of the Emirates in Dubai.

Scheduled to debut in the first quarter of 2013, Sheraton Dubai Mall of the Emirates Hotel will comprise 481 guest rooms including 94 suites, four restaurants and lounges and nearly 9,000 sq ft of meeting and event space.

The US operator will reflag Accor’s Pullman Dubai Mall of the Emirates hotel.

The hotel will be directly connected to Mall of the Emirates , which is home to over 535 international brands and features the Middle East's first indoor ski slope.

"The signing of Sheraton Dubai Mall of the Emirates Hotel is part of Starwood's strategic growth plan to open more than 60 Sheraton hotels around the world over the next three years," said Guido de Wilde, senior vice president and regional director, Middle East Region, Starwood Hotels & Resorts.

"With this hotel, we expand Starwood's footprint in Dubai and bring our most iconic brand to city's premier shopping and entertainment destination, Mall of the Emirates."

Peter Walichnowski, CEO of Majid Al Futtaim Properties, added: "When looking for a new partner for our hotel at the Mall of the Emirates, it was clear that Starwood and its Sheraton brand were the perfect fit for our distinctive mix of luxury retailers and unique entertainment and leisure offerings."

Starwood today operates close to 50 hotels and resorts in the Middle East under eight of the company's nine brands including The Luxury Collection, St. Regis, Sheraton, Westin, W Hotels, Le Méridien, Four Points by Sheraton and Aloft.

With the opening of Sheraton Dubai Mall of the Emirates, Starwood will operate 14 hotels in Dubai representing the largest concentration of Starwood hotels in any single city outside New York.