Slightly late, Taj Dubai All Set to Open in Burj Khalifa’s shadow

Sourish Bhattacharyya

THE Taj Group’s second hotel in Dubai is all set to open in that rapidly mushrooming part of the emirate dominated by the world’s tallest structure, Burj Khalifa, and now better known as the Business Bay.
Taj Dubai will be the second Indian hotel to open in the city-state since June 2013, when The Oberoi, a 252-key property with a 31-story office block and the hugely popular Iris bar, announced its arrival in the same neighbourhood, offering the best views of the Burj Khalifa. It is also in this zone that the twin towers of the JW Marriott Marquis, the world’s tallest hotel boasting of 1,600-plus rooms and 13 F&B locations, loom into Dubai’s ever-changing skyline. Another neighbour of the hotel is The Dubai Mall, famous for its 1,200 stores, an Olympic-size skating rink and the world’s largest in-mall aquarium.
A 296-room hotel, Taj Dubai opens with The Chambers, marking the uber-exclusive club’s first international foray, and seven F&B destinations. These include the all-day restaurant Tesoro, which has a distinguishing glass-and-metal conservatory with an olive tree, and will serve Peruvian cuisine in the evenings. The Elegant Elephant recreates the neighbourhood gastro pub atmosphere with its vintage-style decorations made from repurposed wooded drinks crates. And Bombay Brasserie, the London restaurant and celebrity magnet that the Taj Group has been running since 1982, will bring its brand of Indian fine-dining to Dubai after Taj Cape Town.
The newest Taj worldwide, and the second in Dubai after the Taj Palace Hotel in Deira, is headed by Jason Harding, who was with the Armani Hotel at the Burj Khalifa till last year. In an interview with ArabianBusiness.com, Harding said the Taj Group was in talks with investors for potential hotel developments at the Palms (Jumeirah), Jumeirah Lakes and Sheikh Zayed Road. The Taj Group, Harding said, is also eyeing growth outside Dubai ’ notably in Abu Dhabi, Oman, Ras Al Khaimah and Qatar.
Harding also hinted that the Taj Group will enter these markets not only with its marquee brand, but also its Taj Exotica (resorts) and Vivanta (four star-plus) lines. Interestingly, The Oberoi is also expanding its Middle Eastern footprint by first opening in Marrakesh (Morocco) in 2016 and then in Ajman’s Al Zorah development on the eastern coastline of the United Arab Emirates, where it proposes to open a 100-room resort on the 12-km waterfront by 2018. With the two Indian rivals in the hospitality space eyeing the Middle East for aggressive expansion, it may well happen that when you land in Dubai for the World Expo in 2020, you may get to enjoy the luxury of checking in at one of a slew of homegrown hotels.

Sourish Bhattacharyya is Consulting Editor, BW Hotelier.-