Nakheel, Minor Hotels sign agreement for new AVANI hotel at Ibn Battuta Mall

Dubai-based master developer Nakheel and Thailand’s Minor Hotels have signed a management agreement for a new 372-room hotel to be constructed at the Ibn Battuta Mall.

Under the agreement, signed in Bangkok by Nakheel chairman Ali Rashid Lootah and William E Heinecke, founder, chairman & CEO of Minor International PCL, the hotel will be managed under the vibrant AVANI Hotels & Resorts brand.

The 18-storey hotel – for which a construction contract will be awarded next month – is the second Nakheel hotel at Ibn Battuta and one of 16 in the developer’s hospitality project portfolio. Adjacent to the recently-opened Ibn Battuta metro link, which is directly connected to the mall, the hotel will feature a pool, spa, gym, all day dining restaurant, coffee shop and parking.

“Today marks yet another key milestone in our commitment to enhancing and diversifying Dubai’s hotel offering by bringing new, reputable international hospitality brands to the emirate in line with the Dubai Government’s vision. We are delighted to welcome Minor and the AVANI brand to Ibn Battuta Mall, which, with over 20 million visitors a year, is one of Dubai’s leading tourist destinations,” says Lootah.

“We are very pleased to be partnering with Nakheel for the new AVANI hotel at Ibn Battuta Mall in Dubai. Having launched our upscale AVANI brand in the region last year, we are delighted to continue the brand’s expansion in the UAE with this new hotel and we are confident that the brand will prove successful in this key market,” adds Heinecke.

AVANI Ibn Battuta is the second Nakheel hotel at the mall. The first, a 372-room Premier Inn, opened last year. The hotels are part of Nakheel’s ongoing expansion at Ibn Battuta Mall, the first phase of which was completed last year with the opening of a 300,000 sq ft extension and 210 metre link to the Dubai Metro. The mall currently has 400 shops, restaurants and entertainment outlets across 1.5 million sqft of retail space, with phase two of the expansion under way.

Minor Hotels’ portfolio currently comprises more than 20,000 rooms across 156 hotels, resorts and serviced suites in 24 countries under the Anantara, AVANI, PER AQUUM, Oaks, Tivoli, Elewana, Four Seasons, Marriott, St Regis, Radisson Blu and Minor International brands.