Dr. Amine Elias Moukarzel

President
Golden Tulip MENA/Louvre Hotels Group

Founder / Owner of Flamingo Hospitality Management and Consulting DMCC and a partner with Louvre Hotels Group for the MENA region, having increased the portfolio to reach the No. 1 single brand in the region complemented by Louvre Hotels Group being the 2nd largest hospitality group in Europe and the 2nd largest worldwide. A veteran hotelier with his experience in the hospitality industry for more than four decades. At present Amine Moukarzel is the President of Golden Tulip MENA/Louvre Hotels Group operating and franchising over 60 hotels in the MENA region, Georgia, Pakistan. He is the author of the book “Bites and Pieces” and author of several articles and reports on tourism, hospitality management, franchising and management of hotels having contributed to the development and career growth of several hospitality leaders for many years. Graduated from a hotel school in hospitality management in 1975 in Lebanon. He pursued his studies in America with Holiday Inn University in Memphis and later with Cornell University, Ithaca New York. From Holiday Inn he graduated in 1988 and from Cornell in 1979- 1982. He received his Ph.D. from Kennedy Western California University in 1996. He has led Holiday Inn Hotels in the Middle East in the operation, development and training for 9 years. (1981 - 1989). He led the real estate and hospitality projects of Emirates Property Investment Company (EPICO), the owning company of the hospitality group of Al Fahim Group with their real estate projects in the United Kingdom, the United States of America and the United Arab Emirates, with a portfolio of US$ 1.5 Billion (1989 - 1997). In 1998 he formed Flamingo Hotel Management Co. and started operating and franchising hotels of various brands starting with Ramada and Renaissance in 1998 and moved to Golden Tulip Hotels, Suites & Resorts and Preferred Hotel Group, top international hotels with Flamingo Hotel Management Co. as the President & CEO. He formed the Curriculum of the Masters Program for Hospitality Management at USEK University in Beirut and lectured at the university's hospitality operations as well as gave several lectures at various universities. At present he is an Advisory Board Member of Hospitality and Tourism Management at the Lebanese American University (L.A.U). Amine is a former member of Hamra – Beirut Owners Association. He has held the position of Vice President of the Touristic Owners Establishment Association in Beirut and was later an advisor to the Committee. He has held several key positions and continued to serve lecturing in tourism and hospitality, exhibitions, congresses, symposiums and trade shows. He has also been a lecturer at HORECA Beirut, Lebanon, Jordan for 8 years. Also he has lectured for many years at the ASCAME Medaweek Barcelona. A veteran lecturer of major trade shows in the Middle East and Europe from London to Antwerp, Brussels, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Doha, Lebanon, Madrid and Syria, having specialized always in tourism and hospitality management. AWARDS & ACHIEVEMENTS  Recipient of Hospitality award at HORECA 2009 the number one hospitality show in the Levant and Middle East for his contribution to hospitality and tourism industry  Named top 10 Hotelier in Holiday Inn history worldwide  Awarded as the top 10 Hotelier in the Middle East  Also was selected in the top 20 hotelier in the Arab Magazine  Advisory Board Member of the Arabian Hotel Investment Conference (AHIC) and speaker / panelist on various trade shows in the region (AWTTE, etc.)  Ex Board Member of Abdul Mohsen Al Hokair Group for Tourism and Development  Ex Vice President of Mediterranean Hotels and Restaurant Association  Ex Vice President of Middle East of International Hotels and Restaurant Association  Ranked as top 6 in Hotelier Middle East in 2017  Listed in the Meet 100 influential Lebanese figures around the world  Member of Chaine des Rotisseurs  Social Economic Awards (National Figure) for franchising and branding hotels in the MENA region, organized by First Protocol  Awarded by the Tatweej Academy  Advisory Board Member of Hospitality and Tourism Management at the Lebanese American University (L.A.U)