Bahrain state of emergency affects flights while hotel industry struggles

The King of Bahrain has declared a state of emergency following an escalation in protests near the country's capital, Manama.

In a statement tonight the national carrier Gulf Air said that In view of the current situation both in the Kingdom of Bahrain and regionally, some of its flights have been rescheduled.

"Passengers are requested to call our World Wide Contact Centre at 17335777 to confirm their flight status before proceeding to the airport. Our sincere apologies for the inconvenience this may cause and thanks for your understanding," the statement said.

Governments around the world are advising their citizens not to travel to Bahrain.

The state of emergency has been set for three months and follows a call for up to 1,000 troops from Saudi Arabia and the UAE to assist in protecting vital assets in the country that have been under threat from protesters.

Bahrain's tourism and hotel industry is suffering.

Postponement of this year's Formula One race has already cost the Gulf Hotels Group around $15 million and the continuing political unrest in the kingdom has seen the hotel suffer a massive fall in business, according to the company's chairman Farouk Almoayyed.

"The political unrest is hitting us very badly and we are losing money every day," he said after his company's annual general meeting yesterday. "But Bahrain and its reputation is far more important than any temporary loss of business.

"If this unrest lasts for a long time it could result in long-term problems and it could be difficult to rebuild people's confidence in the kingdom."

Chief executive officer Aqeel Raees said that occupancy rates at the hotel were down some 75 per cent on a year ago and that they were now looking at rates of between 20pc to 30pc.

"This is a massive problem across the hotel and catering business with some hotels running at 10 percent of their level of business from last year," he said.