Michael Karam
Daily Star staff
LEBANON -- When Inter-Continental signed a 15-year management contract in January with Mzar 2000 ski resort, it
confidently predicted that the $60 million, 93-room mountain hotel would seamlessly switch from ski resort to summer
refuge, securing a hatful of conference bookings along the way.
Wooing the skiers was easy. Now, in the stagnant waters of the low season, Mzar Inter-Continental is finding they
have to reach a bit further than expected. The company is redoubling its marketing strategy, but it concedes that
luring away Arab holidaymakers from their usual haunts to one situated at 2,000 meters will not be easy.
“Gulf Arabs leave their holiday plans till the last minute and for once this is good news,” said Joe Abdel Massih,
sales and marketing manager for Mzar, the only ski resort in the chain’s global portfolio. “It means we’re still
in a position to take bookings.”
“Travel agents both home and abroad are selling us as a new option,” Abdel Massih said. “To be honest, we weren’t
expecting this much potential, but events in the South have given us greater confidence,” referring to the Israeli
pullback from the occupied zone.
The hotel had hoped to attract Gulf-based expatriates, a slice of the sizable Lebanese community living abroad,
as well as locals who just want a quick break.
This proved to be the case during the ski season. The hotel was full most weekends with rooms selling at top dollar.
The mid-week crowd however, failed to materialize, but Abdel Massih believes the momentum created by a successful
winter will carry over to next year’s snow season.
The summer doesn’t sell itself in the same way, he says. But the hotel’s management claim the Inter-Continental
name will give the premises added cachet in the eyes of brand-conscious Gulf tourists. Abdel Massih conceded that
those Arabs who traditionally make Lebanon their summer destination are pretty much set in their ways. That, for
instance, is the challenge created by the revival of Bhamdoun, the traditional home away from home for the free-spending
Kuwaitis in particular.
“Bhamdoun has history and is closer to Beirut. Arabs like to be close to the action,” he said. “They want it on
their doorstep. From Mzar, Jounieh is only a 40-minute drive but we recognize this as a factor that might work
against us,” he said.
Abdel Massih said he had developed a unique angle to make his hotel a successful summer destination.
“We’re adopting a Club Med approach, offering guests a program of daily activities. They can go biking, trekking
or even take quads (four-wheeled off-road motor bikes) and go exploring. We’re the only genuine resort in the country,
so we must behave like a resort.”
Mzar is also encouraging companies to bring their staff on team-building weekends. “So far the response among local
firms has been very positive,” said Abdel Massih, who added that the resort had huge potential for conference and
seminars, especially among regional companies.
Industry watchers agree, provided the marketing is slick enough. “Mzar should have no problems for two months in
summer and four months in winter,” said Fadi Rahmeh, a PR consultant specializing in the hospitality business.
“The other six months can be used for out-of-town conferences. These can be held in the morning with the afternoons
given over to recreation activities or tours in the immediate area,” he said.
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