Kempinski’s Latest Deal is a Floating Hotel With Villas That can Sail Away

Fancy that, a villa that can sail away. The first of the 12 villas in the development was sold for US$5.5 million. Photos in this article: Kempinski Hotels

“Asia is now opening up and, together with the Gulf region, will lead us out of the crisis. We think we will see recovery that is close to 2019 levels in some destinations in 2023.”

– Bernold Schroeder, group CEO, Kempinski Hotels

By Raini Hamdi, 15 December 2021

Luxury chain Kempinski Hotels ends the year with the management contract of an unconventional floating property that includes 12 villas that can sail to other anchorages.

Where else can this outlandish project be but in Dubai. The superlative city can add yet another world first when the Kempinski Floating Palace is completed in 2023.

Said to be built at a cost of AED870 million (US$237 million), the 156-room hotel will be anchored near Dubai Marina. Guests will be transferred to their room or villa by speedboat, or their own boat, as the development has a floating helipad that can accommodate 16 yachts.

The main building has gourmet restaurants, bars, a spa, pools, boutiques and banquet facilities. Larger yachts may even sail in and out of the center of the hotel.

The 12 villas, connected by pontoons, are residences that can be rented by hotel guests. At two-story, their area is about 10,333 sq ft, according to a report in local media, The National. It also reported that the first villa was sold to Dubai-based businessman Balvinder Sahani for AED20 million (US$5.5 million).

The villas redefine the word “houseboat” with an elegant design, smart home technology and panoramic windows that afford the best overwater views. They can cruise at a maximum speed of six nautical miles. Facilities include a roof terrace and infinity pool, two to four bedrooms, crew and staff rooms, and indoor/outdoor living rooms.

Built by Seagate Shipyard, they are also environment-friendly, with solar panels and technology for wastewater treatment and air filtration.

Seagate Shipyard, established in 2017 in Dubai, aims to be a pioneer of building floating facilities in the region. It is backed by sister company Giza Shipyard, Egypt’s leading company in the field since 1984.

Mohamed El Bahrawy, CEO and founder of Seagate Shipyard, said he is proud to partner with Kempinski Hotels on this project and is confident the Kempinski Floating Palace will “occupy an iconic position among floating hotels all over the world”.

Meanwhile, in an interview in Singapore in November, Kempinski group CEO Bernold Schroeder said he is looking to add 30 to 40 hotels in the next five years.

The chain currently operates 79 hotels. Its newest hotel is the Kempinski Palace Engelberg, Switzerland, which opened in June 2021. The next opening will be The David Kempinski Tel Aviv, Israel, in February 2022.

Future is Still Asia

Schroeder believes Asia is still where future growth is, aside from Africa and the Middle East.

One reason is the wealth in Asia. “We had so many Indian families who based themselves in our residences in Dubai for several months, at average rates of more than 1,000 euros (US$1,136) per night. In Bali, the domestic travelers stayed longer – there is so much wealth in Indonesia.”

China, Bali and Dubai were among markets that did well for Kempinski in the crisis, thanks to the strength of their domestic markets.

But like all chains, Kempinksi saw a few exits this year. In Asia, the Kempinski Hotel Nay Pyi Taw, in Myanmar’s capital city, was closed for good after seven years of operation. Owned by Swiss bank KBZ and Jewellery Luck, the hotel hosted former US president Barrack Obama during his Myanmar visit in 2014.

Myanmar’s political instability also saw Banyan Tree Holdings pause its joint venture with Myanmar’s Htoo Group, signed just before Covid in March 2020, to jointly develop luxury hotels in the country. Banyan Tree is monitoring and evaluating the future of the partnership.

Schroeder is as buoyant as his new floating hotel deal about 2022 prospects. “It will depend on whether the Omicron variant can be controlled with current vaccines. These ups and downs are now normal. But travel & tourism will always grow. When Covid-19 hit, people said no one would go and cruise – people are back on cruiseships. After 9/11, people said no one would fly again. After the Asian tsunami, people said no one would go to small islands like Phi Phi (Thailand). But we’ve seen how people quickly forget.”

He expects a “difficult” business in winter in Europe due to low vaccination rates in German-speaking countries while life is pretty much indoors. But he expects “much better times” globally by summer, especially in Asia, except China.

“Asia is now opening up and, together with the Gulf region, will lead us out of the crisis,” said Schroeder. “We think we will see recovery that is close to 2019 levels in some destinations in 2023.”

– Schroeder talks about how lessons from Asia helped him get through a double whammy 2021 — read the article in TTG Asia here

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