Khaleej Times

Dubai’s buoyant hotel industry sustained its upturn in the first six months of 2012 with a 10 per cent surge in hotel guests compared to the corresponding period in 2011. Dubai’s hotels and hotel apartments played hosts to 5,027,223 guests in the first half of this year, the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing in Dubai has said.

The world’s tallest hotel, JW Marriott Marquis, is expected to open its doors to guests in December this year. Dubai is home to the world’s top three tallest structures — the world’s tallest building, Burj Khalifa; the world’s tallest residential building, Princes Tower; and, soon, the world’s tallest hotel, JW Marriott Marquis.

Hundreds braved heat of 40°C to queue 24 hours early outside Emaar's offices for the chance to invest in a new development. By far most were labourers paid by property agents and brokerages to stand in the heat on behalf of buyers desperate not to miss out on Emaar's new off-plan project, The Address The BLVD, in Downtown Dubai.

Emaar Properties on Sunday announced to build a new hotel in Downtown area and that will be the second tallest property in the high-end area, according to chief executive officer for retail Arif Amiri. Amiri did not disclose value of the project and even declined to give the sale price. “We will announce the price at public launch on September 22,” he told reporters at a news conference.

A new mosque covering an area of 40,000 square feet is being built in Downtown Dubai, near The Old Town development. The mosque will be set in an immaculately landscaped area that will complement the design elegance of The Old Town. The mosque will be designed to reflect the rich traditional architectural heritage while serving as a haven of peace and serenity and is set to become a modern day cultural landmark for Dubai.

Emaar Hospitality Group, the hospitality and leisure subsidiary of global property developer Emaar Properties, has acquired the management of Al Manzil and Qamardeen hotels, two key hospitality assets of Emaar, located in Downtown Dubai. The two hotels were earlier managed by Southern Sun Hotel Group.

His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has issued Regulation No. 2 of 2012 to add some land to areas where non-UAE nationals may own real estate properties in the emirate of Dubai.

Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, has been picked by the GCC Civil Defence General Managers as an ideal example for high rise structures in terms of fire protection systems and safety measures taken in emergency cases. The civil defence managers team, which concluded its 23rd meeting in the UAE, agreed to circulate the fire protection system installed in Burj Khalifa to the member states

It is the tallest building and tallest free-standing structure in the world, has the highest number of storeys (in addition to the 160 habitable floors, it has 46 maintenance levels in the spire and two parking levels in the basement making it 206 floors in total) and highest outdoor observation deck in the world and has an elevator with the longest travel distance.

Design Days Dubai, the Middle East and South Asia’s first fair dedicated to collectible and limited edition design, will take place in Dubai next month. Held in partnership with the Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) from March 18-21, 2012 in Downtown Dubai, the fair is a forward-thinking concept that presents exclusive and limited edition furniture, objects and works by international designers.