One of Paris’ most distinct hotels, the Le Royal Monceau – Raffles Paris, has introduced a wave of Islamic and Arabic features to attract the increasingly influential wealthy Arab traveller.
Owned by GCC company Katara Hospitality, the hotel, which was awarded official Palace Distinction last year, is appealing to well-off Muslims to escape the Gulf’s searing summer heat by creating Ramadan-friendly suites and menus.
This year Ramadan again coincides with the peak of summer, when many Gulf residents go away.
The Le Royal Monceau has created an entirely halal Iftar menu as well as special suhoor and breakfast menus to cater to the Islamic traditions of only consuming food and drink between sunset and sunrise.
It has also added Arabic TV channels to all rooms and guests can request Qurans, Kiblas, prayer mats and prayer schedules at the main mosques in Paris, as well as ask for majlis, a traditional seating area, to be set-up in their suite.
Le Royal Monceau general manager Ömer Acar told Arabian Business the GCC is now one of the hotel’s top three markets and it had made many adaptions to increase its share.
“Nobody can ignore it; they’re a very important traveller,” Acar said.
“Paris has been one of the GCC’s top destinations for years and we’d like to get our market share in that business. It’s very, very important to have.
“When we have GCC clients, their rooms are prepared according to their religious needs. It comes with a Quran, pray mat, oriental mezze throughout the day, we arrange the mini bars accordingly so we’ll offer more variety of non-alcoholic drinks and remove the alcohol.
“My team is very well trained to understand the [Islamic] needs. The difference is, coming to a hotel and not feeling like you have to ask for a pray mat or locate Makkah; the hotel is providing that service for you.”
The Le Royal Monceau has been famous for its celebrity guest list, including General Eisenhower, Walt Disney, King Farouk of Egypt, the Aga Khan, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Robert de Niro, Lou Reed, Jennifer Lopez, Gwyneth Paltrow, Sofia Coppola and Dustin Hoffman.
Acar said royalty, state dignitaries and company owners from the GCC were now also among the elite guests.
Opened in 1928, the hotel was last year awarded France’s top hotel accreditation, ‘Palace Distinction’, which is one step higher than five stars and is only accorded to six hotels.
It was redeveloped in 2011 under the direction of renowned French designer, Philippe Starck and includes two Michelin-star restaurants, the longest swimming pool in Paris and pastries by Pierre Herme, known as the ‘Picasso of Pastry’.
The hotel also is popular for its weekend brunches, a pastime also common in the Gulf.
Acar said guests were now also booking the hotel’s 99-seat private cinema for exclusive screenings of World Cup matches in June and July.
“We believe this hotel is created for a market especially focused on the GCC because when, for example, you purchase a car, especially in [the GCC], people like to have their car with full accessories. They have screens on the back seats but they may not even have children. They have lots of buttons and choices but they may not use half of them,” he said.
“It’s a certain prestige. At Le Royal Monceau, we’re offering all those accessories that none of our competitors can offer at a single hotel.”
The hotel also was previously owned by Qatar’s Barwa Real Estate, which bought it in 2007 for an undisclosed amount.