M&C Signs Sharia-Compliant Hotel in Muscat

Millennium & Copthorne has signed an agreement with Shaza Muscat Company (SMC) to manage and operate a Sharia-compliant five-star property, the Muscat Grand Millennium Hotel.

Muscat Grand Millennium Hotel is scheduled to open in 2014 and will be M&C’s second hotel in Oman. The first , the Millennium Resort Mussanah, opened in February 2011.

Mr Kwek Leng Beng, Chairman of M&C said, “There is great potential in Oman. With increasing interest in the region, Muscat has seen strong growth in their tourism numbers. The Muscat Grand Millennium hotel will cater to this growing industry and will further strengthen M&C’s foothold in the Middle East.”

With a planned footprint of 56,162 sqm, the family and business hotel will include 324 rooms and suites set in an Arabic and global design.

The hotel will comprise a ballroom with capacity for up to 1,000 guests in addition to a large pre-function room, VIP rooms and Majlis.

In addition, it will have eight dedicated board rooms and meeting rooms for corporate events and two full sized swimming pools.

Located 16 km from both the Muscat International Airport and the Central Business District, the hotel is connected to the Muscat Grand Mall by a sky bridge.

On being a Sharia-compliant hotel where alcohol will not be served, Abdul Rahman Awadh Barham, a board member of SMC, said, “This is not downgrading the hotel by any means, rather it is upgrading it to a better lifestyle.”