Abu Dhabi all set for the green lights

Jen Gerson and Kareem Shaheen

• Last Updated: October 23. 2009 1:31AM UAE / October 22. 2009 9:31PM GMT

ABU DHABI // Today, the digital clock overlooking the Corniche that is counting down the days left before the Formula One Grand Prix will show “9”, having started at 100.

Nine days to go until the race itself on November 1 and just one week until the cars and their drivers take to the Yas Marina Circuit for the first time, for Friday’s opening practice sessions.

Across the city, the pennants are hung, the hotel rooms are booked and artfully decorated F1 cars are dotted around town.

It seems all of Abu Dhabi is awaiting the arrival of tens of thousands of tourists for the Grand Prix, an event that will project Abu Dhabi on to the television screens of 600 million race fans worldwide.

Hotels in the capital have been preparing for the event since the dates were announced in June last year.

The Emirates Palace’s 394 rooms were fully booked by last August after the Abu Dhabi Government reserved the entire hotel for dignitaries and officials, according to Hazem Harfoush, the assistant director of sales and marketing.

While the exact arrival time of the Government’s guests is unknown, the hotel has begun gearing up, with an exhibition of 12 vintage Ferraris on display in the vast lobby. Already, fans are regularly seen taking photos of the vehicles.

“The eyes of the world will be on Abu Dhabi on Sunday,” said one visitor, Colin Calderhead, as he snapped the iconic machines.

“I’ll probably watch the race on the big screen on the beach,” he added.

The public beach along the Corniche will also be the site of Yasalam, a series of Grand Prix themed events and concerts, including a performance by the American hip-hop producer Timbaland, on October 30. The US rock band Kings of Leon play on Yas Island the next day, after the F1 qualifying sessions, and Aerosmith will close the race weekend with a concert next to the F1 circuit.

The arrival of F1 was a “unique” opportunity for the country’s hospitality industry, said Mr Harfoush. “It’s a big boost towards achieving great results, whether in hotels or hotel apartments. Any hospitality location here will benefit from this.

“I think it will put Abu Dhabi and the UAE back on the map. Many of the people coming here are expecting Arabic hospitality, which is known to be generous, and Abu Dhabi and the UAE will be even more generous.”

Formula One will be stimulating more than just the economy; the local art community will also benefit.

The Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority yesterday announced Saadiyat Island’s inaugural exhibition: a collection of classic cars that have received a pop-art treatment from local and foreign artists. In addition, the exhibition will feature a dozen classic cars that showcase the history of the country. They include some of the old Ford trucks used by the first oil-seeking expatriates.

Meanwhile, Le Royal Meridien hotel will host the renowned German F1 artist Armin Flossdorf from October 28 to 31. The lobby of the hotel will also hold an exhibition of his paintings.

The recently deposed F1 champion Lewis Hamilton‘s McLaren team will stay at the Abu Dhabi Hilton, said Hany Mokhtar, the hotel’s director of business development.

The hotel is also hosting the prestigious Amber Lounge party next Saturday, where F1 drivers, officials and wealthier fans will mingle. The party has already been held at such auspicious F1 Grand Prix as Monaco, Singapore and Barcelona this year.

“[F1] is great for the UAE in general and Abu Dhabi in particular, as it is the third most watched sporting event after the World Cup and the Olympics,” said Mr Mokhtar.

“They will see Abu Dhabi and what Abu Dhabi can deliver,” he added.

Seven hotels are opening on Yas Island in time for the expected arrival of fans, said Ahmed Hussein, the ADTA’s deputy director general of tourism operations . He said the city was well prepared for the influx of F1 visitors. “I think Abu Dhabi can handle more than [the expected] 50,000 people. But it’s the right number for an inaugural event.” As well as next week’s F1 event being beneficial to hotels and the arts, car rental companies have reported a significant increase in bookings for the race weekend.

“We have purchased an extra 250 cars to keep up with the rush,” said GP Singh, the business development manager at one city car rental company. “We are receiving a large number of advanced bookings online mostly for premium and mid-range cars,” he said. “Business is doing very well indeed.” To help ease traffic flow as thousands of fans jet in, special arrangements have been made with Abu Dhabi International Airport to allow more vehicles than usual to enter the airport environs to pick up and drop off visitors.

Although Abu Dhabi has held major concerts and sporting events in the past, “this is completely different. The infrastructure needs, support needs, visitor stays and amenities, it’s completely different,” said Mr Hussein. One thing that will be the same, though, is the thrill felt by the thousands of F1 fans in the grandstands and the millions glued to their television sets when, at 1pm next Sunday, the lights at the Yas Marina Circuit turn green and, in the words of the veteran former BBC F1 commentator Murray Walker, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is “go, go, go!”

jgerson@thenational.ae

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