Ammar Hilal

Accor announced the appointment of Ammar Hilal as managing director of Raffles Dubai & Sofitel Dubai The Obelisk. Joining from Fairmont Dubai, a hotel within the Accor portfolio, Hilal will oversee the daily operations of the new flagship property as well as lead the strategic direction of the iconic Raffles Dubai, pioneering the luxury hospitality scene in the city.

Hilal brings 30 years of international hospitality experience to his new role. He contributed to the success of renowned hotels within Hilton, Mandarin Oriental, Ritz-Carlton, Rosewood, One&Only and Jumeirah Group across key destinations such as Hamburg, Bangkok, Cairo, New York, Hawaii, London, Hong Kong, Mauritius, Antalya and Dubai.

Overseeing the operations of 498 rooms and suites, 97 serviced apartments, five signature dining venues featuring two celebrity chefs as well as Sofitel Spa with L’Occitane, he aims to position the recently awarded Leading New Hotel in Dubai as a front runner in the global hospitality realm while solidifying it as the second-largest Sofitel property in the world. He also looks forward to leading the Raffles Dubai legacy, which is known for offering guests unparalleled experiences. Indeed, the hotel has ranked number one out of 761 hotels in Dubai for the past six years and was among the top 10 hotels worldwide on TripAdvisor in 2020.

Hilal joined Accor in 2015 as general manager of Sofitel Dubai Downtown, where he successfully achieved the highest employee engagement score among all Sofitel hotels in the region, the highest Leading Quality Assurance score among all participating hotels in Dubai as well as being awarded several accolades by Forbes and Condé Nast Traveller. He then joined the Fairmont Dubai team in 2017, leading the 19-year-old flagship Fairmont in the region and successfully initiated the hotel’s long-anticipated refurbishment.