Arab state is sprouting new hotels everywhere

Dubai is possibly the fastest growing city on earth, with 50 percent of the world’s largest construction cranes working on projects worth more than $100 billion. The United Arab Emirates city has the world’s third largest economy, attracting more than six million travelers last year, with the number of tourists projected to reach 15 million by 2010.

As a result, hotels are proliferating at a rapid rate. Here are some five-star hotel projects that were recently completed and others in the works:

In Dubai Festival City, a four-square-kilometer city within a city, the InterContinental Convention Centre opened in September 2007, as did the 430-room InterContinental Hotel and 318-room Crowne Plaza. In December 2007, the 293-room Westin Dubai Seyahi Beach is expected to open. In January 2008, Starwood expects to cut the ribbon on the W Dubai Festival City. Coming in 2009/2010: the 375-room Four Seasons Hotel/Dubai Festival City.

Other hotels that opened late this year: the 248-room Raffles Dubai, 15 minutes from Dubai International Airport; and the 203-room Millennium Towers Hotel Dubai, next to the Mall of the Emirates.