#Business

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Dec 26, 2012
Raffles Hotel, Singapore Awarded “Best Hotel in Asia”, 2012

Prince Alwaleed: “This achievement is a reflection of Kingdom Holding Company’s sound investment in the hospitality sector” 

The Raffles Hotel, Singapore was awarded “Best Hotel in Asia”, by Ultratravel in 2012. HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, Chairman of Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) commented on this award by saying: “This achievement is a reflection of Kingdom Holding Company’s sound investment in the hospitality sector.” KHC holds a 35% stake in Fairmont Raffles Holdings International (FRHI) that manages Raffles Hotel, Singapore.

Raffles Hotels & Resorts was formed in 1989 to restore, redevelop and manage the world-famous Raffles Hotel. This laid the foundation for Raffles Hotels & Resorts to become a world-class international hotel management company. First milestone; After complete and careful restoration, Raffles Hotel, Singapore reopened on 16 September 1991 to international acclaim. The spacious suites boast ceiling fans, timber floors and oriental carpets with lush tropical gardens and an interesting array of restaurants, Raffles Hotel, Singapore received rave reviews from residents.

In 2011, Makkah Clock Royal Tower was Awarded the “World’s Leading Landmark Hotel” Award during a ceremony held at Katara Cultural Village, Doha for announcing the winners of the World Travel Awards 2011. An outstanding era of votes were casted globally by 213,000 travel professionals, including travel agencies, tour and tourism organizations from 160 countries. In the same year, Raffles Makkah Palace was Awarded the “Middle East’s Leading Luxury Hotel” 2011 Award at the World Travel Awards.

Furthermore in 2011, Prince Alwaleed attended the signing of Business Gate’s agreement with for Fairmont to manage a new 287-room luxury hotel and 4,000 square meter convention centre in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia scheduled to open late 2012. The project is the second Fairmont in Saudi Arabia, as the first is the Makkah Clock Royal Tower, a Fairmont Hotel.

Fairmont Raffles is an integral component of KHC’s diverse hotel portfolio. In 2010, KHC announced an US$847 Million transaction with Qatari Diar involving Fairmont Raffles Holdings International (FRHI). Under the agreements, Voyager has acquired for a combination of cash and other consideration a 40% shareholding in FRHI. In addition, QDHP has undertaken to provide FRHI with a number of future management contracts for hotels that will be branded either Fairmont, Raffles or Swissotel. In 2006, KHC and Colony completed the acquisition of Fairmont Hotels and Resorts which was combined with the Raffles Hotels Group.