DUBAI: US hospitality giant Wyndham aims to extend beyond the luxury market as it eyes the midscale segment to fill a gap in Saudi Arabia’s booming hotel market. In an interview with Arab News on the sidelines of the Future Hospitality Summit in Dubai, Dimitris Manikis, president for Europe, Middle East, Eurasia, and Africa at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, emphasized that while there is a significant focus on high-end hospitality in Saudi Arabia, tapping into the economy and midscale sectors is essential to reaching the Kingdom’s target of 150 million tourists by 2030. He highlighted the success of Wyndham’s Ramada brand in the region and discussed plans to introduce more midscale offerings like Wyndham and Wyndham Garden into the Saudi market. “For us, there’s a lot of talk about luxury in Saudi. It’s all about luxury. But in order to get the 150 million tourists that the Kingdom is actually looking for, you have to start looking at the economy and budget sectors,” Manikis said. The company is already invested in Saudi Arabia, with 14 operational hotels and more on the way, highlighting its commitment to the Kingdom. He further elaborated on the importance of catering to a broader spectrum of travelers, saying: “It’s not just about the luxury in the high end. It’s about a broader spectrum of travelers, and that’s exactly what Wyndham is actually doing in Saudi.” Wyndham’s regional headquarters are in Dubai, with a satellite office in Saudi Arabia. “We have a pipeline of about seven properties as we speak. Ramada is our most popular brand and is the brand that resonates a lot with the Middle East. We’ve opened up Wyndham Garden already in the Kingdom, and obviously there are a couple of other brands that we believe have a great future,” the top official told Arab News. Formula One of hospitality Manikis compared Saudi Arabia’s progress in the hospitality sector to Formula One, drawing a parallel between innovations in the sport and how they later influence the broader automotive industry. “In Formula One, whatever you do in cars, five years later, you find the same technology in the mass production. Things that are happening in Saudi Arabia today on technology, on sustainability, on infrastructure or new concepts and ideas, you will find them in five years to be mainstream across so many different places in the world, in hospitality,” he said. For Manikis, the Kingdom’s advances are not just about expansion or visitor numbers, but about pioneering new methods that will reshape the future of hospitality. “What is happening in the Kingdom is not just about growth, and so many hotels and so many visitors or so many tourists, it’s actually about the new things that they’ve been tested in the market, that will change the future of hospitality in the next five to ten years,” he said. Manikis pointed to projects like NEOM as prime examples of innovation, where innovative advancements in energy, food sustainability, and infrastructure are being rolled out. “These are amazing things that are happening in Saudi. They get deployed in Saudi and you will find them in the next five to ten years in so many different countries in the world.” Middle Eastern Perspective Shifting his focus to the wider Middle East, Manikis highlighted the diverse approaches to hospitality in the region. “Everybody, every single country has hospitality at its core,” he said. He went on to explain: “The last five to seven years, we have seen what happens in hospitality in Qatar, in Abu Dhabi, we see what is going on near us in Ras Al-Khaimah, in Ajman, in Saudi Arabia, in Bahrain, everybody. The good news about the GCC and the Middle East in general, they have their own needs, their own focus.” Manikis showed excitement about how the hospitality industry in the Gulf Cooperation Council is transforming societies. “The good news about the GCC is that each country has its own needs, but they all recognize hospitality as a key contributor to gross domestic product,” he said. Manikis highlighted the enthusiasm of the region’s younger generation for hospitality, contrasting it with Europe, and said the passion energizes him during visits. Human Element Despite the rising influence of technology and artificial intelligence in the sector, Manikis emphasized the irreplaceable role of human interaction. He acknowledged that AI will play a supportive role, such as chatbots providing customer service, but he warned against overstating its importance. “Technology helps, but we have to be careful. If we want to bring the younger generation into hospitality, we cannot tell them their jobs will be taken over by robots in five years.” Manikis offered a glimpse into his Wyndham’s immediate future, saying: “We are signing a couple of deals in India with the developer who is actually doing a deal here in Dubai, and then we’ve got another three deals with that particular owner in India. And then we are looking on a three deal, three sides deal, two in Abu Dhabi and one in Dubai as well.”