Not content with its 2,000-plus rooms and near-60 restaurants, Atlantis Dubai will continue to expand over the next decade. Both Atlantis, The Palm and Atlantis, The Royal, will continue to add facilities, while the Aqauaventure water park will have a theme park added, and a seven-hectare plot between the two resorts will be used to “merge the two brands.”

These are the ambitions of Timothy Kelly, executive VP and MD, Atlantis Dubai who spoke to HME last month on the direction of his pair of mega-hotels.

“We have more development to do at Atlantis Dubai. We are working on a masterplan to build more rooms, more restaurants, more entertainment facilities,” he revealed.

Aquaventure – already 22.5 hectares – and the world’s largest water park, will transform into the even bigger Aquaventure World.

“We have a seven hectare plot of land we can develop on,” Kelly added. In particular, in addition to rooms, restaurants and a theme park, Atlantis Dubai will focus heavily on its “entertainment pillars.”

Kelly explained: “We want to fill that entertainment pillar in a big way. For the rest of the decade, we’re building that out. One of things we are yet to unveil is entertainment. Into next year, we want a lot more entertainment. That’s a direction we want to go. More events, more performances.

“I want entertainment, I want theatres, I want shows, I want performances. I want to give our guests a reason to stay. Our focus is on optimising our two resorts.

“There’s a lot more surprise and delight still to come. A lot more we can show the world. It’s tempting to launch all at once, but you need to be methodical and practical.”

A unified Atlantis Dubai
As per Kelly’s plans, Atlantis The Palm and Atlantis The Royal will “merge brands,” and stand as a unified Atlantis Dubai destination.

Kelly explained: “What you will really see very soon is the merging of the two brands. We are Atlantis Dubai: One destination with two hotels, separated by the largest waterpark in the world. You will see we will co-blend Atlantis Dubai as a standalone destination.”

Staying ahead of the competition
Already two of the most recognised and popular hotels in Dubai, the question arises, why expand?

According to Kelly, “threats are always over the horizon,” and the Atlantis team has to constantly stay ahead of the curve.

85 percent of guests checking in to Atlantis, The Royal, are first time guests, meaning two things: The resort has to have a wow factor, and it always has to make people want to return.

Kelly explained: “We need to make the experience special enough that they want to come back. The worst thing you want to be, particularly in dining, is being a ‘one and done’ space.

“Our goal at Atlantis Dubai is to ensure the resorts are never the same the next time a guest visits. We have new stories to share all the time.”

Source: Hotelier Middle East