Abu Dhabi's Rocco hotel is another step from millionaire to billionaire

Amid a raft of hotel openings in Abu Dhabi Rupert Wright takes times to visit the new Rocco Forte hotel and meets the man behind the name.

Sir Rocco Forte who has opened his first hotel in the Middle East in Abu Dhabi.

Among all the marvellous 40th anniversary celebrations in Abu Dhabi this week, there was also a "Forte" party.

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The launch of Sir Rocco Forte's first hotel in the Middle East saw a glittering crowd waltz into its ballroom. It may not boast the best location on the mainland - sandwiched as it is between Airport Road, a KFC and a Carrefour - but it's very pleasant once you get inside, and it's conveniently located close to both the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque and Abu Dhabi International Airport.

Sir Rocco was in fine form. He is a rugged man in his 60s, with a fine beard, who runs in marathons, competes in triathlons and even occasionally finds time to navigate his way around the Old Course at Sunningdale Golf Club in England.

The Forte family has had operations in the region before, but they were lost after an acrimonious takeover battle that saw Sir Rocco pushed out. He was about 40 then, and walked away with £28 million (Dh161.4m). Rather than retiring to the backgammon board and the golf club, he persuaded his family to invest in a new company and set about creating another Forte business.

The family now have 13 luxury hotels in London, Rome and Berlin among other places, with four new properties due to open in the next three years, including ones in Jeddah, Marrakech and Cairo.

With his tanned complexion and beard, he jokes he is often mistaken for a person of Middle East origin, rather than Italian.

"Rome is the most profitable, followed by London," he said. "Berlin is more of a challenge. It will be tough [in Abu Dhabi] because there is a lot of competition. But that's healthy."

I didn't manage a full inspection of the property, but I'm told it will boast a Brown's tea room, based on those at his popular London hotel, lots of bars and restaurants, and Noche, a Latin American-inspired lounge with South American music - no doubt sambas and tangos. Noche will open early this month. It also has what Sir Rocco calls the "finest spa in Abu Dhabi", complete with indoor and outdoor swimming pools. Sir Rocco told me he has more than quadrupled the family's initial stake. So is it enough? "No," he said. "My wife thinks she married a billionaire."

His sister, Olga Polizzi, helped decorate the rooms and public spaces. The business is very much a family affair. His father Charles Forte set up his first milk bar on Regent Street in London in 1935 when he was 26. He built this into an impressive group, including the Cafe Royal and the Happy Eater chain.

As the launch party wore on, Charles's son showed impressive stamina, leaving us to mingle with the crowd. Next morning at 7.30 I returned to pick up my car that had been valet parked. As I waited with the ticket there was a sudden flurry of activity. Out came a swarthy-looking gentleman who shook hands with all the staff, waved to me, and got into the back of a swish, white BMW. Doubtless he was off to the airport to head to his next hotel.