Midweek Catch-up with The Chedi Al Bait’s Fabio Marigliano

This week we went on a driving adventure through the middle east with The Chedi Al Bait’s general manager, and by that, we mean he mentioned it briefly to us in an email.

What’s your main goal for this year?

On the professional front, I look forward to re-establish our connection with our guests and partners – let them know that we’re here and we’re ready to welcome them back home (Al Bait literally translates as The Home in Arabic).

Personally, I want to continue living a healthier lifestyle and focus on spending more time with the family.

What’s your favourite thing about working in the travel industry?

The travel industry is very eclectic and dynamic – it is fast-paced and it changes all the time. You get to meet so many different personalities and that’s what makes it so much more interesting, unlike most industries where it can get a little stagnant/still.

How do you like to spend your free time?

Being a hotelier, whatever free time that I have, I try to relax and wind down as much as I can, and spend all the time with my family.

Have you managed to do any travelling since restrictions began to ease (domestic or international)?

While I was not able to travel home to Europe, I managed to stay within the Middle East region and discover a lot of new places. I ventured from the north to the south of Qatar and even drove all the way to the Saudi border.

Now that I’m living in Sharjah, I’m hoping to discover the other emirates and, hopefully, one day drive all the way to Oman as well.

What’s your favourite travel company, besides the one you work for?

I can’t think of a particularly favourite one. To me, the best one is the one that makes the most sense during a trip – as long as I get to appreciate my time together with the family during the stay, I think that makes it my favourite.

If you could invite three famous guests (dead or alive) to a dinner party, who would you choose?

Probably the hardest question to answer, there are just too many famous guests for me to decide on just three.

I’d rather have a cocktail party where I can invite everyone and mingle and connect than just a dinner party for four.

What’s something positive you’ve witnessed or experienced since the global pandemic hit?

You start to discover who your true friends are and it then allows you to take stock of who you should be keeping close company with.

What’s your advice for others in the travel industry on coping with the global pandemic?

Stay cool and don’t stress too much! I know the pandemic is a very stressful situation to be stuck in but the overwhelming stress of it all is connected to what is happening and it is happening to every one of us. So, I think we just need to focus on ourselves and what is important.

What book and/or TV show can you not get enough of lately?

Friends, without a doubt!

Do you have any travel goals for 2022?

After so many years, I would want to go back to Europe, Germany in particular. I have my home there, and it’s nice to be able to spend time with the rest of the family after so long.

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Fabio Marigliano General Hotel Management GHM hotel Hotelier interview midweek catch-up midweek interview profile The Chedi Al Bait The Chedi Al Bait