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Dubai: The Hotel Show, the region's showcase for hotels and resorts, is to introduce a dedicated leisure element at next year's show, designed to exploit the growing demand from both city and beach properties for top-line sports and spa facilities.
The spa industry in the Middle East & North Africa region (MENA) is estimated to generate $631 million annually from around 824 facilities.
The UAE leads the way with 212 spa facilities generating almost $268 million annually, with a growth rate of 34 per cent a year, according to research by SRI International and Intelligent Spas' recent Spa Benchmark Report.
The survey also stated that spa facilities in hotels dominated the MENA region, representing 60 per cent of total spa industry revenues, which contrasted sharply with the US, Europe and Asia Pacific.
In those regions where independent/private salons are more prevalent, hotel spas only account for 25 per cent of total spa revenue.
According to show director Maggie Moore, leisure is serious business for hotels these days, but management is less likely to be experienced in the operations of spa and sports facilities than their core room and food and beverage business.
"Sixty per cent of total spa revenue is generated through hotels in the Middle East, so hotel management will be eager to capitalise on the profit potential of spas. With increasing demands from both men and women, corporate and leisure, they can no longer be viewed as loss leaders or an exotic part of 'guest services'," she said.
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