Left to right: Akram Touma, regional vice president, Jumeirah, and Nicholas Clayton, chief operating officer, Jumeirah Group, with Ctrip president Fan Min and Xiao Liang Ding, Ctrip vice president

Jumeirah Group has announced Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts and Ctrip.com International, China’s leading travel service enterprise, have signed a Global Direct Connectivity Partnership Agreement in Shanghai.

This is the first time a luxury hotel group from the Middle East has signed an agreement of this nature with Ctrip.

This partnership further illustrates Jumeirah’s commitment to the China market as it will allow Chinese travellers to directly book some of the world’s most luxurious and innovative accommodations via Ctrip.com’s platform. 

As a result of this agreement, expanded visibility among Chinese travellers will result in an increase in visitors for Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts, especially those located Dubai, the Maldives and Shanghai. 

Direct connectivity between Ctrip and Jumeirah will allow Ctrip customers’ reservations to be delivered automatically and within seconds to the Jumeirah hotels.

According to Jumeirah Group and Ctrip.com, once the direct connect technology is in place, special offers and a consumer contest to celebrate this agreement will be launched.

Jumeirah expects a growth of 14 per cent from the Chinese market to its worldwide portfolio in 2013 and the numbers of visitors to the Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel in Shanghai, which recently celebrated its first anniversary, are expected to increase as well. 

China now ranks as the sixth most important source market for Jumeirah hotels internationally, with the most popular destinations in the Jumeirah portfolio for Chinese visitors being Dubai and the Maldives, as well the company’s first hotel in mainland China Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel, Shanghai.

The group has five future hotel projects in development in China, including Jumeirah Guangzhou (opening in late 2014), Jumeirah Macau, Jumeirah Clearwater Bay Resort in Sanya, Jumeirah Hangzhou and Jumeirah Thousand Island Lake Resort, Qiandaohu.

Growing presence in China

With such a robust development pipeline and more Chinese guests choosing Jumeirah hotels in the Maldives and Dubai, the Group has been researching the market closely and was one of the first hospitality companies to make its website available in Mandarin, as well as become actively engaged in the local social media.

Early this year, Jumeirah strengthened its commitment to Greater China by appointing a seasoned Asia professional, Graham Kiy, to the position of general manager of Jumeirah Guangzhou.