Jumeirah Group, the Dubai-based luxury hotel company and member of Dubai Holding, has appointed Stefan Bollhalder as managing director, Madinat Jumeirah. Bollhalder will oversee the group's flagship Arabian resort, which last year welcomed more than 590,000 guests. His new position starts immediately and he will report directly to Doris Greif, senior vice president, MEASA.
Bollhalder brings more than 30 years of experience in luxury hospitality to Jumeirah. He gained expertise during a long international career working in Switzerland, New Zealand, Brunei, Indonesia, Germany, Nepal, Azerbaijan, China, Hong Kong and France. Bollhalder trained as a chef with Swiss hotel Pontresina before taking on a number of management roles with Hyatt International, including general manager positions in Kathmandu, Baku and Hamburg.
From there, Bollhalder moved on to work with Shangri-La Group and acted as general manager for a number of properties in Asia and Europe. He joins Jumeirah Group from the Shangri-La Hotel, Paris, where he was general manager and area manager for Europe.
According to a written release, Bollhalder said, "This is my first role in Dubai and I’m very much looking forward to living and working in this exciting city, and being part of the Jumeirah family. Madinat Jumeirah is a sophisticated resort with broad appeal that offers a wide range of guest experiences."
A Swiss native, Bollhalder speaks German, English, French and Malay and has a number of professional qualifications from leading hospitality and business institutions including Cornell University.
Madinat Jumeirah boasts two grand boutique hotels, Jumeirah Al Qasr and Jumeirah Mina A'Salam, accommodations in 29 traditional summer houses in Jumeirah Dar Al Massyaf and the newly opened Jumeirah Al Naseem.