THE finishing touches are being made to a groundbreaking multi-million dinar hotel-club concept its visionaries believe will change the hospitality landscape in the Gulf region.
Nestling in the heart of Manama’s Diplomatic District, overlooking the island’s beautiful coastal landscape, and rising brightly into the blue sky is … The Domain.
The Domain Bahrain bills itself as a ‘relevant concept for our time’, a 36-storey hotel that inhabits a socially-charged member’s club. Managing director Patrick de Groot describes it as a ‘building just waiting for stories’. “The social element is so ingrained in everything we have created we cannot wait for the doors to open,” he said.
When GulfWeekly visited last week electricians were busy fixing light fittings into a ceiling, plush leather sofas were covered in heavy plastic and moving between floors took place in a service lift under radio control as Mr de Groot proudly showed off the completed and almost finished aspects of the property.
After months of speculation, plans are afoot for a soft opening to coincide with Eid Al Fitr in early August with a substantial number of its suites and rooms, as well as three social spaces, including a grill room, a South of France restaurant, and, Txoko, a Basque Lounge.
“After the summer, on September 15, we expect to open the rest of The Domain Bahrain to the public,” added Mr de Groot.
“Additional restaurants, bars and lounges will complement our Social Club aspect. By then we will also provide meeting and conference rooms, as well as Vie – our in-house spa and wellness centre.
“A ‘grand opening’ is being worked on as we speak, and we expect to host this event in October.”
The team members behind the project, such as the MD and his Dutch compatriot Rogier van Zeventer, director of sales and marketing, are international hoteliers with decades of experience, who were seeking to expand on the traditional hospitality model.
Mr de Groot insists that The Domain will be extraordinary. “People are at the heart of our concept,” he said. “How they work, how they live, how they enjoy life and express their individuality. That goes for our members, guests and colleagues.
“We have to adapt ourselves to their lives and not the other way round.”
The Domain slogan is ‘Stay Work Play’ because the team believes that in today’s world so much media, entertainment, technology, style and sociability is integrated into work.
The emphasis on social spaces is highlighted by the quirky, reverse-mix of the hotel-club’s dining and entertainment outlets heavily outweighing the rooms and suites offering.
However, the boutique property will still house 63 luxury suites and 68 rooms – all graced with wall-sized windows and spectacular views over the city and the blue Arabian Gulf.
One grand offering is likely to take the label as the most expensive hotel suite in the region. These days it costs around $2,000 (BD750) to spend a night in the Burj Al Arab’s Royal Suite. A few years ago when the hotel opened, before Dubai and the global economy crashed, a night there would cost as much as $27,000 (around BD10,000).
The Domain will have a distinctly grown-up vibe and one of its nine restaurants is likely to hold a Friday brunch for adults only.
Members will find the venue both ‘dynamic and familiar’, the Domain team promises.
Guests can come in for the day, have a workout, a haircut, breakfast, conduct some meetings, enjoy a room for rest/relaxation/privacy, have a business lunch, work with support staff to issue a contract, have a swim, a massage, aperitifs, dinner and then return home without even having to carry any luggage.
The infinity pool has a retractable roof for sun-worshippers and overlooks the sea and city from its perch atop the 36th floor.
Membership at The Domain, starting at BD500, will come with perks including three overnight stays, preferential rates on rooms, suites, meals, catered events and retail, as well as opt-ins for spa and health club benefits.
But the true benefit of club membership, The Domain’s management boast, is inclusion in a host of events throughout the year – social functions, insider invites to previews, quirky off-site events, business networking gatherings and opportunities to connect with like-minded people from the region regularly.
There are no points to be collected, and the aim is for it to be a totally integrated and participatory club, ‘rich with surprise and spontaneity’. Domain ambassadors will be selected from the region’s abundant pool of tastemakers, business leaders and cultural influencers.
This collective of entrepreneurs, professionals and socialites will form a peer network that will work closely with The Domain team and be free to host their own salons or events. “They are interesting, accessible and put a human face to a very human brand,” said Mr de Groot.
Claiming a world first – The Conversation – a social media platform will allow Domain residents and members to ‘speak’ to each other, a kind of Facebook for insiders, so they can meet up and make business or social connections.
The Domain will also sidestep the traditional hotel lobby for an entrance lobby where each guest is greeted by a Domain manager, who will quickly usher them up to their room to check them in and introduce them to their butler.
Rooms and suites are all serviced by floor butlers, who handle everything once the guest is checked in. Guests will even have the chance to customise many aspects of their stay through a proprietary phone app linked to the property’s website, called Master of Your Domain, before or during their stay.
Top-tier members and suite guests also have access to Domain Privé, a private lounge on the 36th floor, which offers a selection of breakfast items, lunch and snacks throughout the day, personal assistance and secretarial services.
The Domain will also be home to a spa and health and fitness centre spread over two floors.
On the 11th floor a beauty lounge offers a Resident Spa, Day Spa and Quick Spa, with total body detox programmes, pre- or post-cosmetic surgery therapies and stress-alleviating remedies.
The 12th floor houses three tech-enabled boardrooms, three meeting rooms and a pre-function foyer with a capacity of up to 110 guests for dinner.
Other facilities include eight floors of valet-only parking.
FAMCO W.L.L. is the owning company of The Domain Bahrain and it has declined to reveal the amount of money invested. It is the pilot project for its Chic & Unique Hotels Group.
The brand and concept of The Domain has been developed by the management team and Bahrain-based boutique design firm House of Infinity.
Mr de Groot, a former director of development for Dubai-based luxury hotel operator Jumeirah Group, said: “The building that houses The Domain Bahrain happened to be furthest along in its development and perfectly-matched The Domain requirements, in terms of both size and location.
“Developing a club and hotel concept and hotel brand from scratch is quite an extraordinary opportunity. It is truly borne out of the passion of an amazing group of innovative hoteliers and a good dose of boredom with the products on the market.
“Furthermore, contrary to some opinion, we believe that Bahrain is ready for a new, exciting hotel and social club product.”
