Middle Eastern hotel chain Rotana is to open 10 properties every 12 months for the next four years, according to its executive vice president and chief operating officer, Imad Elias.
Speaking to ABTN at the ITB travel exihibition in Berlin, Eliad said the company was also on a charm offensive to attract more business from the UK market.
He said business travel guests from the UK had been growing in numbers in the last year and that Rotana was well positioned to increase its market share as the global economy limps out of recession.
"We have not been affected by the recession in terms of occupancy, though we have seen rates drop in some markets," he said.
"But the Rotana brand has become increasingly popular with the UK market, and we have seen a significant rise in the number of corporate travellers signing up for our loyalty scheme (Rotana Exclusive Club). Our sales teams will be stepping up their work with the trade to assure this trend continues.
"So we are in a good position coming out of the downturn and are confident that the UK market will play an important role in the success of our new hotels which will open in the coming years.
"As long as the company is able to manage growth in an efficient way, then there is the scope to take up further properties"
Eliad said the company was targetting a portfolio of 70 hotels by 2014.
A 5-star property in Erbil, northern Iraq, is scheduled to open later this year, while the company is also to expand into Bahrain, Baghdad, Jordan, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
Eliad said hotels in Lebanon and Syria had been hugely profitable in the last year, but its Dubai property had suffered a severe drop in room rates while maintaining reasonable occupancy.
He admitted the company had "no plans as yet" to expand outside of the Arab world, but suggested that a global expansion may be on the cards if the business is floated in five years time.