The Louvre museum* isn’t the only Parisian export to land in Abu Dhabi. There's also an outpost of La Sorbonne University in town. And now, one of the finest hotels in France is cloning itself, prepping to bring its famous savoir-faire to the United Arab Emirates in 2013. We’re dying to know: Will Le Bristol also export its Michelin-starred restaurant and Fashion High Tea to Abu Dhabi? (The palace hotel actually sets up a catwalk through the bar so that tea-takers can admire the latest runway fashions while sipping signature tea blends and nibbling pastries.)
The Oetker Hotel Collection, which also owns the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc on the French Riviera, is working with H.E. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mubarek al-Nahyan on the new hotel project. Slated for 2013, Le Bristol Abu Dhabi will have a beach, marina, spa and destination restaurants in addition to its 250 guest rooms-- starting at 40 square meters in size.
*Designed by Pritzer Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel, the Louvre Abu Dhabi is also expected to open in 2013. It will be locatd on Saadiyat Island (“Isle of Happiness” in Arabic) alongside the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi by Frank Ghery, the Zayed National Museum by Norman Foster, and a performing arts center by Zaha Hadid. Talk about an A-list roster of starchitects!
Image of the Louvre Abu Dhabi via Los Angeles Times