Bahrain's hotel and tourism sector has virtually written off most of this year in terms of any real business, it has been declared.

However, a top hotelier said they were looking at a possible 'grand revival' after the end of September after Eid and the likely return of the Gulf Air Formula One Grand Prix later in the year.

'This year has been practically lost with the situation developing so far,' said Gulf Hotels Group operations director Abdul Nabi Amini.

'The peak season for the industry up to this month has been lost already with business suffering severely due to the unrest.

'The summer months, traditionally a lean period, have now started and this will be followed by Ramadan and Eid, so the earliest we are looking towards a revival is September.'

He said things had already started to look up in the last few weeks.

'We are hoping the situation will get better so we can have a grand return to business,' said Amini.

He was speaking during a Press conference at the K Hotel, Juffair, to announce its formal opening today. Also present were Yousuf Bin Ahmed Kanoo Group managing director Khalid Kanoo, company commercial group director Faisal Kanoo and hotel general manager Neman Abdallah.

Khalid Kanoo said he was sure Bahrain's resilience would see the industry emerge stronger.

'We have all collectively suffered, but it is time for us to get together and work our way out of this crisis,' he said.

Rooms occupancy at all of Bahrain's hotels has suffered considerably over the last few months though those in the Juffair area are better off than the other areas, said Khalid Kanoo.

'The positive actions of the government, coupled with the private sector playing its part, I see no reason why we should not witness a very strong growth,' he said. 'Even in this difficult situation, we are positive we will see a lot more people coming into Bahrain.'-TradeArabia News Service