JEDDAH — The Hotel Show Saudi Arabia 2019, the 7th edition of the Kingdom’s premier food and hospitality trade event, returns to Jeddah at the Jeddah Centre for Forums and Events once again for three days from April 21– 23, with a range of features, CPD seminars as well as loads of networking opportunities with industry peers.

The Hotel Show, also a platform to highlight the latest innovation in foods portfolio, provides participants the opportunity to interact with the industry to identify their needs and wants, and share the latest local and international trends and insights.

Gary Williams, The Hotel Show Saudi Arabia’s event director, stressed the importance of the event and how it is helping to develop the industry.

“With tourists’ arrivals in the Kingdom growing year on year, hoteliers and restaurateurs understand the need to keep investing and researching to keep up with the increased levels of competition and to better serve their clients.”

And he couldn’t be more right. Travel bookings in the Kingdom are considered the largest in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) — worth more than $25 billion each year — so while other sectors’ growth might be decreasing, the hospitality industry›s growth shows no sign of slowing with 64,000 hotel rooms and 187 hotel projects forecast to be added to current supply.

The show, a foremost business-to-business exhibition for hotel and hospitality trade professionals in the Kingdom, provides a 360-degree view of the hospitality industry with 100’s of global brands from all across the world showcasing products across interiors, lighting and design, fitness, technology and security, hygiene, kitchen and laundry equipment, HORECA (Hotels, Restaurants & Catering), F&B and more.

Exhibitors from China, Egypt, Oman, Pakistan, Turkey, Portugal, India, France, United Arab Emirates, United States, Slovenia and more will be participating in this year’s premier hospitality event.

With emphasis on the unique needs of visitors to Saudi Arabia, the show will illustrate how the hotels, cafes, gyms and restaurants are responding to their requirements.

The event is visited by over 6,500 sector professionals — from GMs, owners and operators, through to procurement managers, designers and the all-important architects, housekeepers, executive chefs, revenue managers and engineers working in the hospitality industry.

Many reputable global brands and new entrants to the hospitality sector are expected to have a presence in one of the most important markets in the region, with new hotels opening in the different regions of the Kingdom.

Following new legislation and government reforms making the Kingdom more accessible than ever, Saudi Arabia represents the largest development opportunities in the hospitality industry in the Middle East.

The tourism sector has been earmarked by the government as a key driver for growth in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 economic diversification strategy, with major initiatives to stimulate the travel and tourism industry.

In addition to hotel construction, major infrastructure projects and ease and affordability of tourist visas are set to have a big impact on the growth of the Kingdom’s hospitality sector, which is gearing up to enhance their guest experience through high quality service.

The government is also investing significantly in large-scale leisure, culture and entertainment projects, adding to massive opportunity for hospitality development, targeting a wider range of travelers this year, including domestic and international business and leisure tourists, in addition to the continued focus on the holy cities driven by religious tourism.

The event will also see various live kitchens being set up across the show floor with a competitive spirit between rival hotel teams

Following its success, the 3rd edition of the Inter-Hotel Culinary Competition will return with more hotels battling against each other by putting forward their top chefs to showcase exemplary cooking styles, creativity and share culinary expertise in a live kitchen environment.

Endorsed by Worldchefs, the Saudi Arabian Chefs’ Association, Saudi Arabian Chefs Table Circle and Official Tableware Sponsor, RAK PORCELAIN, the competition will witness its most competitive line-up to date — with 15 kitchens from some of the Kingdom’s leading hotels cooking up a storm in a bid to be crowned champion.

Chefs from Radisson Blu, Somewhere Hotel, Movenpick, Oberoi, Assila, Makarem Ajyad, Intercontinental, Four Seasons, Hyatt, and Le Meridien Towers Makkah and more will be competing against each other.

The Inter-Hotel Culinary Competition is an interactive platform that attracts the Kingdom›s top chefs to compete against each other and to be judged by international judges, including Chef Thomas Gugle rand Chef Yasser Jad and more. — SG