Dubai to have region's first women-run hotel

Two of the floors will be reserved exclusively for female travellers

The region's first women-run hotel with dedicated facilities for female guests will soon come up in Dubai's Al Barsha 'shopping' district. Two of the floors of the four-star hotel will be reserved exclusively for female travellers. It will also offer options to book women-only taxis and parking spaces only for females.
Time Hotels Management unveiled the plans for the hotel on Tuesday. The Time Asma Hotel will aim for 80 per cent of staff to be female, led by general manager Ghada Mahgoub.
The announcement was made during a press conference at Arabian Travel Market, which is currently taking place at Dubai World Trade Centre.
Video: This Dubai hotel has a ladies-only floor
"The concept will provide career opportunities for more than 100 women, contributing towards goals set out by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to increase the presence of women in the workplace," pointed out Time Hotels CEO Mohamed Awadalla.
The property will feature 232 rooms over six floors, a gym, swimming pool, jacuzzi, four meeting rooms, a business centre and two restaurants, for both male and female guests.
Due to open in Q4 2017, two floors of the hotel will be reserved for female travellers, with dedicated room service, a female-only check-in counter, women-only guest relations, in-house babysitting services, in-room tablets highlighting all of the services offered for women such as bespoke beauty products, in-room beauty treatments, as well as enhanced amenities in each room.
"True to its name, the hotel will offer a truly unique experience for women, we want to make them feel special. And that message is also extended to our female staff, we want them to feel special as well, part of an exciting initiative advancing the case for more women in hospitality board rooms," added Awadalla.
With a target of 80 per cent, women will be integral to the hotel's recruitment and HR policies.
"TIME Asma Hotel will hold open recruitment for female employees, with training and development offered in-house to support the successful candidates in achieving their career goals," said TIME Asma Hotel's female GM Mahgoub.
Gender issues apart, the concept of women-run hotel has a commercially viable strategy. Globally, women make 80% of all decisions concerning travel and spend more than $125 billion every year, with women aged between 40 and 60 representing the largest growth of any age bracket.
Unaccompanied female travel is also on the rise - Lonely Planet reported that 51% of surveyed travellers plan to take a solo trip in 2017, with the number rising to 80% in Germany. Due to its reputation for personal safety, Dubai would naturally be a top choice.
"Time Asma Hotel will also be ideally positioned to attract the growing number of female visitors to Dubai, whether travelling with their families, friends, or alone," said Mahgoub.
Time Asma Hotel is one of upcoming properties in the pipeline for TIME Hotels in the Middle East, with new properties scheduled to open over the coming 10 months in Dubai, Ajman, Fujairah, Luxor, Riyadh, Jeddah and Doha.
Awadalla said, "This is a very exciting chapter in Time Hotels' history and we look forward to introducing a number of new destinations and concepts to the region over the coming months."

• Dubai