Yas Hotel gets new operator with a royal twist

Viceroy Hotels, the US company partially owned by Mubadala, has been chosen to operate the Yas Hotel.

The US-based Viceroy Hotel Group has been named to operate the Yas Hotel, the resort at the centre of Abu Dhabi's Formula One race course.

The Yas hotel will be the first property outside North America for Viceroy, which is 50 per cent owned by Mubudala, the investment arm of the Abu Dhabi government.

Viceroy is slotted to operate a 250-room hotel, the Viceroy Abu Dhabi, planned for Sowwah Island, the new financial district developed by Mubadala.

The 499-room Yas Hotel has been operated by Aldar Hotels and Hospitality, the subsidiary of the property's developer, Aldar Properties, since it opened in 2009.

"The appointment is a positive decision and good news for all parties involved," said Chiheb Ben Mahmoud, head of the hotel advisory in MENA for Jones Lang LaSalle. "It was about time for the Yas Hotel to benefit from the support and momentum that a strong branding can bring."

Aldar retained control of the Yas property in January, when the Abu Dhabi Government bought Dh10.9 billion of the company's infrastructure assets on Yas Island, Dh5.5bn of residential units and land, and issued a Dh2.8bn convertible bond.

Viceroy specialises in a small roster of high-end properties. The company currently operates hotels in Santa Monica and Palm Springs, Calif.; Snowmass, Colorado; Miami, Florida; and on Anguilla in the Caribbean.

Viceroy is slotted to operate a 250-room hotel, the Viceroy Abu Dhabi, planned for Sowwah Island, the new financial district developed by Mubadala.

The company is also developing projects in Beverly Hills and the Maldives, where it is building a 6.8 hectare resort in partnership with Mubudala.