Radisson Blu Hotel Apartments Dubai Silicon Oasis general manager Christopher Pike tells Hotel News Middle East how the property is perfectly placed to offer guest convenience…
It is a sign of Dubai’s never-ending growth that the satellite areas are becoming vibrant hubs of activity that are home to diverse communities.
That point has never been better illustrated than with the successful opening of Radisson Blu Hotel Serviced Apartments Dubai Silicon Oasis.
The hotel apartments only opened at the tail end of December but they have already proven to be a huge success – as Christopher Pike, general manager Radisson Blu Hotel Serviced Apartments Dubai Silicon Oasis, explains.
“Dubai Silicon Oasis is a fast up and coming area,” he says.
“People might think we are a little out of the main thoroughfare of the Sheikh Zayed Road, but we are seeing now though, through our sales work, there are new companies coming to Silicon Oasis constantly, there is a whole new development called Silicon Park which will be hosting a whole new range of companies upon completion.”
The location is highly convenient, says Pike, with a high quality of life not least because of the lower levels of traffic and easy access to other emirates.
“It’s a mixed-use community with residences, villas, apartments and a shopping mall, it is growing fast and it is a great place to set up a hotel apartments business with an eye on the future,” he says.
“We have already seen many businesses locating away from the centre of Dubai, we have seen people coming to live in Silicon Oasis because of the convenience of being only 20-25 minutes from Dubai Mall or the proximity to Media City, which is only 30-35 minutes away.”
It is not just avoiding the traffic jams that one associates with the centre of Dubai that appeals to those bound for Dubai Silicon Oasis, many have turned to the area for the high standard of local schools that makes settling down there all the more appealing for families.
“I think it is only going to grow and grow,” says Pike.
“There is high-quality housing around here as well, you don’t need to go into town, it is perfect, it works very well.”
One of the main selling points of the property has been the convenience for people who do not want the hassle that comes with renting your own property in Dubai.
“People have the option to go out and rent an apartment, sign the ejari, provide deposits and everything that entails,” says Pike.
“As hotel apartments we take all that headache away, you sign an agreement with us but that is as far as it goes, you don’t have to worry about DEWA bills because it is all-inclusive.”
With the internet being included in the cost of the apartments, as well as any maintenance issues being covered, all under bill, it is easy to see why Pike describes his property as appealing to those who want “an apartment without the headaches”.
“It will also appeal to those who need somewhere to stay while they get used to Dubai and have to wait for their Emirates ID to clear or other legalities,” he says.
“We are the perfect opportunity to resolve that bridging period if you can’t move into apartment or villa until all those legalities are resolved.”
It is not hard to see the appeal of a property that does not require you go through the whole process of registering with various government departments and paying huge deposits.
“We basically don’t ask for that. There are no real big down payments, we represent a great opportunity to not have to stump up big amounts of money up front,” he says.
“You could almost call it plug and play, you just move in, everything is done for you.”
Pike is clearly onto something as, since opening, the property has continued to make an operating profit – not something that every new hotel can say in these difficult times for the economy.
“The great thing is we are attracting all different types of business because of the different types of accommodation we offer,” he says.
“We have studios that all have kitchenettes and we have full-blown kitchens in the apartments which have proven great for individual business travelers on short stays, and they are also popular for Arabic families who are travelling.”
It is a sign of the 211-room property’s charm that it appeals to such a wide range of guests.
“It is great for long-stay business people if they don’t want to go out dining each night they can cook themselves,” he says.
Another advantage of the Silicon Oasis location, Pike explains, is the number of students who are attracted to the property.
“Academic City is another area delivering business for us. Students are offered special weekend rents, there are a number of students who stay with us who work during the week and only study at the weekends,” he says.
“Teachers who are relocating is another opportunity, it is a real mix of different people from relocating families, business people on long stays, GCC families on leisure – we can really appeal to a wider spectrum because we are hotel apartments.”
What is all the more remarkable about the property’s success is the quick turnaround in becoming operational after Pike joined the team in July.
“From 2 July until opening on 19 December is, especially in this part of the world, such a quick turnaround,” he says.
“In the first three months I had recruited all of the management team, which came on board in late September. There were so many things that had to dovetail together and we worked closely with the developers of the property to ensure that we addressed any issues that came up.”
It has not gone unnoticed by the industry that Carlson Rezidor recently changed its name to the Radisson Hotel Group and, Pike says, one of the first areas of business for the rebranded chain was to develop more hotel apartments.
“We saw as a company the increase in demand for hotel apartments – the company is very much putting things under the microscope at the moment.
“This hotel has already become something of a role model though – we are having a lot of colleagues coming over from Europe and the US to look at our interpretation of hotel apartments and it is only going to become more and more relevant moving forward.”
