General Manager of the Dusit Thani LakeView

Your rich biography is full of success; can you tell us more about it?
There was little doubt that Ahmed El Hady was heading for a career in the hotels and hospitality industry – even as a five year-old. “I first tasted travel as a young boy with my family, going to Europe and in particular London. I loved the atmosphere of hotels and the excitement of watching people. I had an eye for detail even then and used to note differences in facilities between hotels. I loved the chance to see and study different peoples and cultures,” and he had the opportunity to make more comparisons after a visit to Beijing. The dreams of a young boy developed into a career in the hospitality industry and now Ahmed El Hady is General Manager of one of the city’s most spectacular hotels, the Dusit Thani LakeView, in El Tesseen Street, New Cairo.

You have risen through the ranks of the hospitality industry since starting out as a room clerk at Mena House Oberoi in 1992. How will this experience help you in your new role as general manager?
My experience in Mena House Oberoi gave me a wide insight to the inn’s and out’s of the operational aspect to a hotel. I gained a wide range of experience in the two main hotel hubs. My operational experience helped me to fully understand what it really takes to efficiently run a hotel. Also, my experience in the front office helped with to easily interact with different people from different cultures, which lead me to easily understand their needs. The hospitality industry is always fluctuating so you need to be flexible, interactive with a careful eye to details to meet the guest’s high expectations.

How has the Egyptian tourism industry changed in these 20 years? What trends have you noticed?
Yes, I would definitely say that the Egyptian tourism industry has changed dramatically during the past 20 years: the symbolic threshold of 10 million visitors was crossed in 2007, and in 2008 the numbers amounted to 12.8 million. Not only has Egypt asserted its place as a global tourism destination, but between the last ten years the number of visitors grew by 76%, which is substantially faster than the world average (50%).The boom in the numbers of visitors goes hand in hand with the rapid expansion of the hotel industry. The rapid development of Egypt’s hotel industry is first and foremost related to the opening of the sector to multinational private investment, hotel chains, after decades of tight public control. Each multinational chain has introduced new concepts and wide range of new/different cultures.

What strategies has Dusit Thani employed to counter the downturn in tourism post January 25?
Since the uprising of the 25th January revolution Dusit Thani has continuously concentrated its marketing & sales activities to match and meet the expectations of our local market. Dusit has worked extensively to build and promote the hotel brand to acquire a large number of local customers, by promoting all the hotel facilities across the country.

What is your vision for Dusit Thani going forward?
Our vision to moving forward is to deliver an exceptional hospitality experience that reflects the unique artistry and culture of Thailand and deliver the standards of perfection, innovation and excellence. We are currently working to promote our Spa products to become one of the biggest spas in Egypt and Middle East. We also have an intensive development plan for all our F&B outlets.

What are your predictions for the state of Egyptian tourism going forward? How should the industry encourage tourists to return?
The hospitality industry will remain as it is unless; we have a safer environment along and political stability, to encourage the tour operators and travelers to come back to Egypt, whether for business or pleasure. I hope to see this happen over the next 12 months. The industry needs to encourage tourists to return by promoting Egypt through road shows & international conferences, fairs.

What are your plans for promoting a strong educational program in the hospitality industry?
Dusit currently has a wide range of on job trainings schemes for all hotel & tourism students for all the local universities. We are currently evaluating the possibility for opening a Dusit College branch here in Egypt. Dusit also, offers its utmost support and encouragement to all the local universities by offering jobs, attending conferences, fairs and attending lectures to increase the awareness of excellent hospitality practices. I am also looking forward to seeing Multinational hotel chains encouraging the presence of more Egyptian GM’S & Vice presidents.

How does your hotel promote the environment and give back to the community?
Dusit Thani has recently formed a Green community, who are doing their utmost best to spread the awareness on the importance of going green and caring for the environment as well as the community. Our biggest green campaign is recycling, which in my opinion is one the most important aspect to saving the environment. We have also started using gas in the hotel rather than depending on electricity. The community has numerous projects on their agenda, which I sincerely hope will be a big success.

What is your favorite traditional Egyptian food and where (outside your hotel) do you like to go for an enjoyable meal? At your hotel, what is your favorite meal?
In my opinion, nothing beats the good old tradition Egyptian cuisine; Fattah at home with the family is my all time favorite Egyptian dish. However, I have recently become very fond of the Thai cuisine they have some exquisite dishes too. If you could recommend just one thing an Egyptian

should see or do in Egypt, what would it be?
Nile Cruising.