Darraq: Elegant Living

Only a handful of companies are licensed under the Arriyadh Development Authority (ADA) to own real estate in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter. DUR Hospitality, formally known as SHARACO, is one of the DQ’s largest investors.  Established in 1976, and headquartered in the DQ, DUR has an impressive portfolio of over 20 properties including the Riyadh Marriot Hotel and the Diplomat Courtyard by Marriott. DUR Hospitality employs more than 1700 individuals and holds 2.3 billion SAR assets under management across the Kingdom.

The Darraq project, one of DUR’s recent developments, consists of 400 residential units across the Diplomatic Quarter. Darraq is a combination two Arabic words “Dar Raqyah”, which means the elegant house. Darraq is all about elegant housing and elevated services and facilities.

Both villas and apartments comprise the Darraq community. There are two types of furnished apartments: 2-bedroom and 3-bedroom. The villas size range from 3-bedroom to 6-bedroom. Darraqs villas are distributed in three areas with the majority in Alfaw residential area spanning from roundabouts 4 and 5, some in Lina residential area between roundabouts 11 and 10, and the remainder in Taiba residential area situated between roundabouts 8 and 9.

Mr. Sultan Al Otaibi, DUR’s Vice President of Property and Assets, makes the distinguishing point, “We weren’t planning to build a compound as much as we aimed to build a community”. From the 5 star-service before and after the lease to 24-7-maintenance, Darraq addresses the key interests of the residents. Moreover, Mr. Al Otaibi explains that tenants are asked about their preferences pre-leasing so that they may customize and adapt the villa or the fully-furnished apartments.

This highly coveted Darraq community is in demand, with phases one and two of the development completely leased-out. This doesn’t come as much surprise considering the units prime location, chic design, and quality construction.

Darraq’s Smart Home System is also one of the units key distinguishing features. The system allows the customer to rationalize energy consumption by controlling lighting, air conditioners, surveillance cameras, and fire detections via a control panel or a mobile phone.

To meet the elevated expectations of residents, Darraq units are built upon the latest international architecture specifications that implement environmental protection systems. For example, Darraq uses Trane’s air conditioners with clean refrigerant system (R410). Darraq also installs modern thermal and acoustic insulation and the central heaters from A.O. Smith.

The future of the DQ is only getting brighter according to Mr. Al Otaibi, “DQ will have its first international 5-star hotel with the coming Riyadh Marriott Hotel, a fully-serviced hotel standing on a 25,000 m? land, designed by one of the most prestigious companies and inspired by the geological layers of Wadi Hanifa. The hotel is comprised of 80 hotel rooms and 140 5-star, luxurious executive apartments, in addition to a main restaurant, a banquet hall with a capacity of 400 guests, a fitness center, and a parking lot with a capacity of 215 cars”.

DUR Hospitality continues to be on the forefront of some of the most desired and impressive developments in the Kingdom. With the high standards and long standing tradition of DUR, it’s no wonder that the Darraq units are among the most exclusive and sought after in Al Safarat.  The savvy design and high quality craftsmanship of Darraq is just what Riyadh residents are seeking.