The verdict in three sentences
A corporate website in English, French and Arabic for a 5-hotel group in Dubai is budgeted in 2026 at AED 140,000 to AED 300,000 (ex VAT), with RTL Arabic adding 20 to 30 % to development cost. The business stake is direct booking: each room night sold on the site costs 3 to 5 % in fees against 15 to 18 % OTA commission. The requirements must lock in RTL handling, hreflang, the booking engine connector and content governance across all three languages.
Budget line by line
The marketing director has to present a detailed, language-by-language budget to the general manager. Here are 2026 orders of magnitude for a group of 4 to 6 properties.
| Item | 2026 budget (AED, ex VAT) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| UX and design of group and hotel templates | 25,000 to 50,000 | One group template and one hotel template, reused |
| Multilingual CMS development | 55,000 to 110,000 | 60 to 120 pages per language |
| Arabic RTL adaptation | 15,000 to 35,000 | 20 to 30 % of development |
| Professional translation | 18,000 to 40,000 | AED 0.30 to 0.55 per word, 25,000 to 35,000 words |
| Booking engine connector | 10,000 to 22,000 | Widget, language and currency parameters, conversion tracking |
| International SEO and hreflang | 6,000 to 12,000 | Tags, per-language sitemaps, Search Console |
| Photo and video of the 5 hotels | 12,000 to 30,000 | 2 to 3 shooting days |
Translation is often underestimated: 30,000 words at AED 0.45 represent AED 13,500 per target language, AED 27,000 for French and Arabic.
Technical requirements for Arabic RTL
Arabic is not just translated text. The layout mirrors and every component must be tested.
| Requirement | What to write in the requirements | Acceptance test |
|---|---|---|
| Text direction | dir="rtl" attribute on the Arabic version, logical CSS properties | Menus, forms and carousels mirrored |
| Typography | Dedicated Arabic typeface (Noto Kufi, Cairo or equivalent) | Readability at 14 px on mobile |
| Numbers and dates | Explicit choice between Western and Eastern Arabic numerals | Consistent prices and dates in the engine |
| URLs and hreflang | /en/, /fr/, /ar/ with reciprocal hreflang tags | Error-free validation in Search Console |
| Mixed content | Hotel names and brands in Latin script inside Arabic text | No misplaced punctuation |
| Booking engine | Arabic version of the widget or documented fallback | Full Arabic journey through to payment |
If the booking engine does not support Arabic, the requirements must say so and plan a clear message before switching to English.
Content governance across three languages
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- Source language: English is the master language; any change triggers a translation alert for French and Arabic.
- Roles: one editor per hotel, one group marketing approver, one native Arabic reviewer.
- Publishing delay: 72 hours maximum between the English version and both translations for promotional offers.
- Rates: no price entered by hand, everything comes from the booking engine to avoid gaps between languages.
- Training: 2 days for editors, including half a day on Arabic input.
Mini case study
Omar, marketing director of a 5-hotel group in Dubai, sells 42,000 room nights a year at an average rate of AED 650, 70 % of them through OTAs at 17 % commission. If the new site lifts direct booking from 20 % to 28 %, 3,360 room nights leave the OTAs. At AED 650, the net commission gain (17 % minus 4 % direct fees) reaches 3,360 × 650 × 13 %, about AED 283,900 a year. With a project at AED 220,000, payback comes in under 10 months.
FAQ
Do we really need Arabic for a hotel group in Dubai? Yes if you target GCC and regional guests, who often account for 20 to 35 % of room nights. A polished Arabic version also builds trust with local corporates for the meetings segment.
Why does Arabic cost 20 to 30 % more? Every component must be mirrored and tested: menus, sliders, forms, directional icons. On AED 90,000 of development, that is AED 18,000 to AED 27,000.
Can we use machine translation? For a first internal draft, yes, but not for publication. A native review costs AED 0.12 to AED 0.20 per word and avoids costly errors in rate conditions.
Which booking engine should we connect? The requirements should name the engine already in use and require conversion tracking per language. Its fees usually range from 3 % to 5 % of the booked amount.
How long does a trilingual site take? Allow 14 to 18 weeks, including 3 to 4 weeks of translation and RTL testing in parallel with development.
Let's scope your project. Send us the number of hotels, target languages and your booking engine, and we will price a trilingual site with its direct-booking scenario. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
