Dubai, UAE: The first of two Nakheel hotels at Ibn Battuta Mall in Dubai was thrown open to the public on October 9, 2016, as part of the developer’s AED three billion hospitality expansion programme, the company said in an announcement.

According to the announcement, the 372-room hotel, managed by Premier Inn Hotels, was inaugurated by Ali Rashid Lootah, Chairman of Nakheel, and Adam Nicholls, Managing Director of Premier Inn Hotels. The hotel, the announcement said, is the second in a diverse range of 14 Dubai hotels by Nakheel and one of two at the Ibn Battuta Mall, which is currently undergoing an AED 700 million expansion. Nakheel’s first hotel, at Dragon Mart, opened earlier this year, the announcement informed.

Premier Inn Dubai Ibn Battuta, the announcement said, is directly connected to the mall and the Ibn Battuta Metro station. Hotel facilities, the announcement revealed, include an all-day restaurant, Costa coffee shop, swimming pool, gym and business centre with meeting and conference rooms, and guests can also enjoy free, 24-hour Wi-Fi access.

“Our huge hotel expansion is rapidly gathering pace, and I am delighted to declare Premier Inn Dubai Ibn Battuta officially open and ready for business,” said Lootah. “This is one of 14 projects in our hotel pipeline that will bring more than 5,200 new hotel rooms to Dubai by 2020, which in turn will contribute significantly to realising the Government’s tourism vision. I am delighted to partner with Premier Inn – a globally-renowned operator with a solid track record – for our first hotel at Ibn Battuta, and immensely proud of the teams who have worked to deliver it on schedule.”

Nicholls added: “Our new home at Ibn Battuta represents Premier Inn LLC’s seventh location in the UAE. We expect this hotel to become a popular destination for residents in and around the local community as well as the first choice for business travel and families visiting Dubai.”