El Jadida: Hotel Capacity Expanding
27 August 2009
Read by 2079 persons
• Two hotel projects and about ten guesthouses in the Portuguese City
• Marhaba hotel project still undergoing land clearing
The hotel industry in the Doukkala capital isn't booming yet. Considering its potential, the region's hotel capacity is still quite small compared to major tourist cities in the Kingdom.
Currently, the city has the Ibis and El Morabitine hotels (three stars), the Provence, Royal, and Oscar (two stars), Andalous and El Khansa (one star), and about twenty other unclassified hotels. These units offer a total of 660 classified beds and 400 unclassified beds. Add to that the 250 spaces at the city's campsite and a few guesthouses offering around forty beds.
Some hotel projects are nearing completion. French investors have taken over the Marhaba (or Marah) hotel, which had been closed for years (see L'Economiste). The site covers nearly 5 hectares of beachfront property. Plans include a high-end hotel with 16 suites (43 beds), 11 traditional houses (100 beds), 30 douiria (240 beds), and 32 douiriates (128 beds). Two panoramic restaurants, a spa, a conference room, and a clubhouse are also planned. The project, with an estimated investment of 280 million DH, will eventually create about 100 direct jobs, says Noureddine Sridi, tourism delegate. Unfortunately, the developers are still facing land clearing issues. The regularization process is underway, and construction should begin soon.
While the Marhaba hotel is being revived, the same cannot be said for the Doukkala hotel, located directly opposite. It has been closed due to mismanagement for over 6 years. It's also located in a tourist area covering nearly 4 hectares. The hotel was sold to a Saudi operator (Abou Al Jadail) during privatization. Investors have expressed interest in taking over the establishment, but without success. The municipality is slow to initiate expropriation proceedings, as required by law, due to non-compliance with the terms of the Ministry of Finance and Privatization's specifications.
Two private developers plan to build two new 2- and 3-star hotels. The first is planned on the Marrakech road for 20 million DH. The second hotel will be built on Avenue des Nations Unies next to the hotel school for approximately 30 million DH. According to the specifications, this latter project will guarantee around 100 permanent jobs.
The Portuguese City, a World Heritage site, attracts many foreign investors. Currently, ten guesthouse projects are undergoing renovation or classification within the historic city (most investors are French, Swiss, or German).
Published August 18, 2008
Posted online August 19, 2008
L’Economiste
• Marhaba hotel project still undergoing land clearing
The hotel industry in the Doukkala capital isn't booming yet. Considering its potential, the region's hotel capacity is still quite small compared to major tourist cities in the Kingdom.
Currently, the city has the Ibis and El Morabitine hotels (three stars), the Provence, Royal, and Oscar (two stars), Andalous and El Khansa (one star), and about twenty other unclassified hotels. These units offer a total of 660 classified beds and 400 unclassified beds. Add to that the 250 spaces at the city's campsite and a few guesthouses offering around forty beds.
Some hotel projects are nearing completion. French investors have taken over the Marhaba (or Marah) hotel, which had been closed for years (see L'Economiste). The site covers nearly 5 hectares of beachfront property. Plans include a high-end hotel with 16 suites (43 beds), 11 traditional houses (100 beds), 30 douiria (240 beds), and 32 douiriates (128 beds). Two panoramic restaurants, a spa, a conference room, and a clubhouse are also planned. The project, with an estimated investment of 280 million DH, will eventually create about 100 direct jobs, says Noureddine Sridi, tourism delegate. Unfortunately, the developers are still facing land clearing issues. The regularization process is underway, and construction should begin soon.
While the Marhaba hotel is being revived, the same cannot be said for the Doukkala hotel, located directly opposite. It has been closed due to mismanagement for over 6 years. It's also located in a tourist area covering nearly 4 hectares. The hotel was sold to a Saudi operator (Abou Al Jadail) during privatization. Investors have expressed interest in taking over the establishment, but without success. The municipality is slow to initiate expropriation proceedings, as required by law, due to non-compliance with the terms of the Ministry of Finance and Privatization's specifications.
Two private developers plan to build two new 2- and 3-star hotels. The first is planned on the Marrakech road for 20 million DH. The second hotel will be built on Avenue des Nations Unies next to the hotel school for approximately 30 million DH. According to the specifications, this latter project will guarantee around 100 permanent jobs.
The Portuguese City, a World Heritage site, attracts many foreign investors. Currently, ten guesthouse projects are undergoing renovation or classification within the historic city (most investors are French, Swiss, or German).
Published August 18, 2008
Posted online August 19, 2008
L’Economiste
