Spread over an impressive blend of beach and wildlife fauna, the Anantara Hotels & Resorts welcomed to its portfolio the Anantara Al Yamm Villas, located in Abu Dhabi’s Sir Bani Yas Island.
The Anantara Al Yamm Villa Resort consists of 30 villas, 16 of which are located on the beach overlooking the dazzling Arabian Sea and another 14 overlooking a tranquil lagoon rich with high mangroves, offering guests views of the elegant white and pink flamingos that favour this verdant sanctuary, and the sea beyond. They include 21 one-bedroom villas, 7 one-bedroom pool villas and 2 two-bedroom Anantara pool villas with individual plunge pools.Dillip Rajakarier, CEO Minor Hotel Group, which owns the Anantara brand of hotels, said: “Anantara has seen a very busy start to the year with the opening of a flagship resort in China and announcements of our first properties in Dubai and Qatar. We are especially excited about our continued expansion in the Middle East region, which is a key area of focus both for Anantara and other brands within Minor Hotel Group.”The opening of Anantara Al Yamm Villas is the first of two new developments to be planned for the expansion of the island, with Anantara Al Sahel Villas slated to open in end 2013. Anantara Al Sahel Villas will also feature 30 one and two-bedroom villas and will be situated amongst the island’s wildlife in the Arabian Wildlife Park, with a range of facilities including an outdoor plunge pool, lounge and bar, and all day dining restaurant, Savannah Grill, offering Eastern and South African cuisine. In addition to the opening of these unique villa retreats, the island is undergoing further development with the launch of the Desert Islands Conference Centre and the Desert Islands WaterSports Centre launched earlier this year.Michael Marshall, SVP commercial operations for Minor Hotel Group said: “The Middle East and GCC are a real strategic focus for Minor Hotel Group’s expansion plans. In April we added Oaks Abu Dhabi to our portfolio, the second Oaks in the UAE, and this year we will further open the Anantara Dubai Palm Jumeirah Resort & Spa – our first property in Dubai and the Al Sahel Villas. These will be closely followed by Anantara Doha Island Resort & Spa early in 2014, which represents a new country for us and will bring us to a total of nine properties in the region.”The 293-room Anantara Dubai Palm Jumeirah Resort & Spa will feature 33,000 sq ft of lagoon pools, private beach, six dining and entertainment venues, the Anantara Spa with 12 treatment rooms, a fitness studio and two tennis courts. The 141-room Anantara Doha Island Resort & Spa, currently under development on a 13 hectare island just off the coast of Doha, will be accessible by speedboat from the city’s downtown area and from The Pearl. There will be an extensive range of facilities available to guests, including four restaurants and bars, four swimming pools and an Anantara Spa. The island will have a marina accommodating up to 50 boats.“2012 closed very strongly for the Minor Hotel Group. In fact it was one of our best year to date, partly thanks to a full year of uninterrupted business in our home market of Thailand with no natural disasters and no political issues. The good news is that 2013 has started just as strongly, if not more so – both in Asia and in the Middle East. We are certainly optimistic that 2013 will be a strong year overall across all our markets.”“Our development team is actively looking at other opportunities in the region and GCC, which includes other Emirates within the UAE and Saudi Arabia. We also have the Anantara Salalah in Oman under development scheduled to open in late 2014,” added Marshall.Natasha Rhymes assistant director of PR and Communications for the Minor Hotel Group added, “Besides the aggressive growth plans for Anantara, we are also looking to expand our branded serviced apartments, Oaks and the upscale city hotel brand, Avani – both of which come under the Minor portfolio, as well within the UAE and the Middle East region. “We hope to have 50 Anantara’s in operations and under development and 150 projects in total for the Minor Hotel Group by the end of 2015. Currently, we are at 87 – breaking up to 21 properties of Anantara, two of Avani (both in Sri Lanka) and 42 properties of Oaks (35 in Australia, two in the UAE and one in Thailand).”As well as this region, the group has also been expanding within Asia. Early this year in February, the Anantara Xishuangbanna Resort & Spa, located in the south of Yunnan Province, was opened featuring 80 deluxe rooms and 23 pool villas. The Anantara Emei Resort & Spa located at the base of Mount E-Mei, a Unesco World Heritage Site and one of the holiest places in China, is under development and expected to open by the end of this year. Anantara Hoi An Resort, the second Anantara in Vietnam joined the portfolio last month. The resort is French colonial in style and is situated in Hoi An, a Unesco World Heritage Site along the Thu Bon River, a short walk from the historic town centre and features 93 guest rooms housed in two and three-storey townhouses with garden and river views. Anantara Phuket Layan Resort & Spa is currently under development on Layan Beach on Phuket’s North West coast. The resort will feature 77 pool villas and suites across nine room types, with the lead in Premier Junior Suites starting at 56 square metres and the spectacular Anantara Villa an impressive 485 sq m. The resort will also be home to a Wedding Chapel, making it an ideal wedding venue. This resort is scheduled to open in December this year. By Shilpa Chandran