Hotelier has golden year at the Ritz-Carlton Istanbul

 

 

Istanbul (Dunya) – Although  new, foreign hotels are popping up in the city every month, increasing competition among international hotels, things are looking bright for Massimiliano (Max) Zanardi, 41, the Italian general manager of the Ritz-Carlton Istanbul.

 

Business is booming. The 244-room luxury hotel is almost fully booked.

 

"In the past two years, Istanbul has become the world's number one travel destination, and it will continue to grow as a tourism venue" said the youthful Mr. Zanardi in fluent Turkish. "All major international hotel groups want a presence in the city."

 

He said the number of visitors to Istanbul is also increasing.

 

"We are operating at nearly full capacity. We welcome the competition. Istanbul deserves more hotels," he emphasized during an interview.

 

Located in the 34-story Suzer Plaza, one of Istanbul's tallest buildings, the Ritz-Carlton has perhaps the best views among the city's hotels. The lobby lounge and restaurant overlook Inonu Stadium, the mouth of the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara with ferryboats scurrying between transiting passenger liners and oil tankers. 

 

The Chevy Chase, Maryland-based Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company operates 14 floors of the site as the hotel under a management agreement with the Suzer Holding, a large Turkish conglomerate with interests in real estate development, tourism and restaurant management. The Suzer group owns the building. 

 

A subsidiary of Marriott International, an American hotel group, the 

Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company runs 79 luxury hotels in the world's leading cities.

 

The multi-level Suzer Plaza was constructed on the side of a hill on the European side of the city near Taksim Square. The northwestern entrance brings visitors immediately to the hotel's reception area and lobby, the lounge and restaurant area, which have a spectacular view of the city. 

 

The southeastern entrance of the Suzer Plaza, six floors down from the lobby include a shopping arcade, cinemas, special eateries and fast food restaurants. Private business offices and residences are located in upper floors of Suzer Plaza, popularly known as ‘Gok Kafes,' or Sky Cage, because of its reddish glass-steel dome.

 

No stranger

 

Mr. Zanardi, who became general manager of the hotel in September 2011, is no newcomer to Turkey.

 

A graduate of the Hotel School in Parma, Italy, he worked in Turkey from 1995 to 2003, including a stint with the Club Mediterranean as bar manager, four years as director of the Vakko Cafes chain, working closely with businessman Cem Hakko. For two years, he served as operations director of La Famiglia Getti Restaurant in Istanbul. 

 

He became deputy general manager responsible for the food and beverages department of the Ritz-Carleton Istanbul in 2001, the year the hotel opened.  

 

From 2004 to 2006, he was deputy general manager of the Ritz-Carlton's the Penha Longa Hotel&Golf Resort Sintra, in Portugal. From 2006 to 2008, he served the group's Hotel Arts Barcelona, in Spain. He was general manager of the Ritz-Carlton Powerscourt, in Ireland 2009 to 2011.

 

Mr. Zanardi is a colorful personality. He speaks six languages fluently and is a motorcycle buff, having won two Endura Turkey Championships, involving riding motorcycles under extreme conditions.

 

Upper income guests

 

Synonymous with high quality standards and luxury, the hotel is favored by high income families from the U.S. and the Gulf countries, though it attracts visitors from around the globe.

 

"Visitors stay with us to explore the city. The Ritz-Carlton Istanbul is centrally located. All major tourism sites are nearby," Mr. Zanardi stressed.

 

Foreign companies like hold meetings at the hotel, but because of space limitations, the Ritz-Carlton Istanbul isn't a venue of major international conferences and conventions.

 

"We don't want to become a tourism factory. We don't want to dilute our brand," Mr. Zanardi explained.

 

As the hotel is located next to Inonu Stadium, home of the Besiktas football team, European soccer fans prefer staying at the hotel to attend UEFA matches between their home teams and Besiktas, one of Turkey's best teams and several times league champion and cup winner.

 

Although many famous personalities, including athletes, movie stars and politicians and socialites stay at the hotel, the Ritz-Carlton's personnel keep identities of all guests anonymous to allow clients to have a good vacation unbroken by a hoard of journalists.

 

Under Mr. Zanardi, the hotel has opened the terrace Bleu Lounge, which serves as a grill as an informal restaurant and cafe. Its second floor terrace and outdoor spa is also being renewed.