Global real estate developer Crowngate International makes a foray into the hospitality business with its highly anticipated $50 million project, the 225-key AVANI Resort on Al Marjan Island, Ras Al Khaimah. Set to be fully operational in Q3 2019, the AVANI managed resort will address the rapidly increasing demand for hotels in the affordable luxury category and is the first 4-star project on aspiring tourist haven Al Marjan Island. The launch ceremony was on held on location on May 21, 2017, and was attended by Abdullah Rashed Al Abdooli, Managing Director of Al Marjan Island LLC, and Haitham Mattar, CEO of Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority. The resort will rise from an impressive beach-front plot on View Island – seen as the heart of the man-made Al Marjan Island, an archipelago which extends 4.5 kilometres into the sea and is a key area of growth. With white sandy beaches as well as spectacular views of the neighboring islands and the Ras Al Khaimah coastline, the resort is set to appeal to local, regional and international leisure travelers. In addition to premium facilities such as two pools, spa, gym, and kids’ club, the resort will host upscale all day dining and poolside restaurants, and offer meeting and event spaces with a 200-people capacity. Recently, Crowngate International also announced that MINOR Hotels will manage the property under their luxury AVANI brand.

Al Rajhi Aviation Company, a leading travel company in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has signed an agreement with leading technology provider to global travel and tourism industry, Sabre Corporation, to expand its operation, deliver seamless travel experience and deploy their corporate travel strategy. Under this agreement, Al Rajhi Aviation gains access to Sabre’s broad portfolio of technology solutions, including its industry-leading Sabre Red Workspace agency solution; Sabre Red App Centre, the world’s first B2B online travel app marketplace, and the latest mobile, data analytics, personalisation and automation capabilities in addition to Sabre’s franchise solutions and the leading corporate travel solution- GetThere. Using these technology, Al Rajhi Aviation Company will be able to achieve their vision to delivering world class travel services to their customers. “The Saudi traveller is a high adopter of latest technology and expect an uncompromised level of service that is customized specially for him and can be accessed through the devices he uses,” said Daniel Naoumovitch, CEO, Sabre Travel Network Middle East. “Al Rajhi Aviation Company realizes the importance of deploying advanced technology to delivering personalized experience to the tech-savvy travelers and achieve travel excellence. We are proud to work with Al Rajhi Aviation Company to deploy new online, mobile, franchise and personalization solutions that will attain high level of satisfaction and customer’s loyalty. We are committed to support their expansion strategy and growth with latest technology and talented team to deliver products and solutions that meet their diverse customer needs and support their business goals.”

Centara Hotels & Resorts, Thailand-based hotel operator continues to expand internationally with the opening of a four-star, 152-room hotel in Muscat, its fifth hotel outside Thailand and first of three planned for the Middle East. The Centara Muscat Hotel is ideally located in the Omani capital’s bustling Ghala Heights business district, close to the convention centre, Royal Opera House, and the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque. It is conveniently midway between the airport and historical district, about 15 minutes from each. The hotel is a modern new building featuring three restaurants, a spa, and a rooftop pool and terrace with views out over the Gulf of Oman. Its premium lounge, banquet and meeting facilities, complimentary Wi-Fi, plus proximity to Muscat’s shopping and historical sites, are designed to serve both business and leisure travellers. Centara is known for combining appealing Thai qualities, such as graceful service and pampering spa treatments, with expertly-prepared Thai and international cuisine. The new Muscat hotel follows this blueprint. Akdeniz, an authentic Turkish restaurant, features fine coffees, Middle Eastern snacks and mezzes, plus meats and fresh fish seared on a traditional Ocakbasi grill. Tip-tara restaurant serves Thai dishes and international choices, while The Roof offers a relaxed venue for barbeques and private events. Centara’s signature SPA Cenvaree offers a variety of therapies and treatments, plus Thai herbal spa products.  The rooftop pool is complemented by a children’s pool and fitness centre.  The hotel’s 237-square-metre banquet hall is large enough to accommodate cocktail receptions of 280 people. Three smaller venues include a boardroom which can be adjusted to fit a range of  uses. Another conference room, along with the pleasant rooftop terrace, can accommodate up to 80 people – …

Travelport and Indian hotel chain Treebo Hotels have announced a partnership, the inaugural GDS deal for the hotel chain. Headquartered in Bangalore, Treebo Hotels operate across over 34 Indian cities. Under the debut agreement, Treebo Hotels will join over 650,000 unique hotel properties available through Travelport’s Travel Commerce Platform and its distributor in India, ITQ. Enabling Indian and International corporate travelers and travel agencies in over 180 countries, to have real-time access to the chain’s full property inventory. Travelport-connected agencies across the globe will now be able to take advantage of Travelport Smartpoint to search, view and make booking decisions based on travel choice information beyond just rate and availability. Sidharth Gupta, Co-Founder of Treebo Hotels said, “We are delighted for striking our inaugural GDS partnership with Travelport and its recognized distributor in India, ITQ. We are confident that this collaboration will empower Travelport-connected agents to choose quality accommodation from across Treebo properties in India during their business visits across major cities and will significantly support our business expand its presence across the globe.” Niklas Andreen, Vice President and Managing Director, Global Hospitality Commerce at Travelport commented: “We are excited to partner with Treebo Hotels, one of India’s key hotel suppliers and our collaboration with Treebo Hotels will help further establish their position within India’s budget accommodation space. Their wide variety of destinations, accommodation types and price ranges greatly enriches Travelport’s unrivalled choice of global travel content; providing agents and partner companies with countless opportunities to check availability of inventory and make bookings.”

This year has been carefully planned out by the Dubai Tourism authority to enhance the retail tourism sector with super sales that run for short periods of time attracting the GCC tourists and residents alike. Retail therapy starts early this summer in Dubai with the 3-day Super Sale, a new citywide retail initiative that will offer shoppers the opportunity to pick up amazing deals across a range of merchandise at participating outlets from May 18-20. Organised by the Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE), an agency of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism), the 3-day Super Sale will offer shoppers incredible discounts of between 30 – 90 % on selected items at retailers across the city.  Saeed Mohammad Measam Al Falasi, Executive Director, Retail and Strategic Alliances, DFRE, said: “The 3-Day Super Sale initiative is part of our robust strategy revolving around the Retail Calendar to further boost the emirate’s retail sector with regular promotional periods that benefit both retailers and shoppers. Running promotions that offer retailers numerous options to boost sales during this time of the year will further enhance the emirate’s appeal as a year-round shopping hub, and helps us build on Dubai’s strong position as only the second city after London to host the most number of retail brands. The timing is perfect for shoppers, coming early in the summer and just a few days before the start of the month of Ramadan, followed by the Eid holiday period. We expect to re-energise the retail sector at this event, as large number of shoppers are bound to avail themselves of three days of huge savings.” According to a report by the Dubai Chamber of …

Al Tayyar Travel Group and Amadeus have signed a new partnership agreement. The extended deal significantly boosts the strategic co-operation between the two parties and reaffirms Al Tayyar Travel Group’s commitment to expand their online business. To achieve this, Al Tayyar Travel Group will take advantage of Amadeus cutting-edge technology and cost customized solutions such as the Premium Online Support, 24/7 contact with Amadeus experts, ATC Shopper Online, Booking and offline quality control check, etc. The agreement extension up to 2020 will expand the two parties’ collaboration from the local to the MENA level. Commenting on the agreement, Abdullah Bin Nasser Al-Dawood, Managing Director and CEO, Al Tayyar Travel Group, said: “Al Tayyar Travel Group has been leading the travel and tourism industry in the region by offering quality services. We are excited to perform the new online strategy with one of the pioneering entity in the field: Amadeus. This strategy aimed at enhancing our business and providing travelers with enjoyable lifetime experiences.” Antoine Medawar, Vice President, Amadeus MENA, said: “We are happy to extend our contract with Al Tayyar Travel Group as it further enriches our firm partnership.  Al Tayyar Travel Group is a thriving company that is committed to service excellence. As Amadeus takes its strategic partnership with Al Tayyar to the regional level, the corporate travel sector in the MENA region will benefit from the expertise of two leading players in the travel domain. Amadeus works with Al Tayyar to explore new ways to fulfill the customer needs and offer them exciting new opportunities.”

Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia), the national carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is entering into an agreement with Expedia Affiliate Network (EAN) in the launch of Saudia Holidays to offer tailored, world-class travel packages to the airline’s passengers. Saudia, which carried more than 29 million passengers last year, and has a network of 86 domestic and international destinations, is launching Saudia Holidays to provide exceptional value and choice across the Kingdom and internationally. Through its agreement with EAN, Saudia Holidays will offer travellers access to more than 260,000 quality hotel accommodations in over 29,000 destinations, including Makkah, Jeddah, Riyadh, Dubai, London, Paris and New York. It will access EAN’s full range of preferential rates and deals, creating competitive pricing for Saudia Holidays’ customers.  EAN was selected because of its worldwide accommodation portfolio, its dynamic packaging strengths and the flexibility of its technology, which includes the ability for travelers to pay for a hotel reservation at the time of booking or upon arrival. Also key was EAN’s ability to offer a fully outsourced, turnkey solution in collaboration with Bahrain-based travel technology and services specialist TCIG. Together, the businesses’ responsibilities include building and maintaining the Saudia Holidays ecommerce website; the fulfilment of air, hotel and vehicle reservations; the operation of customer call centres; and the delivery of outstanding service to all Saudia Holidays customers.f

According to Dubai Municipality’s Director General Hussain Lootah, the massive 150 metre-high, 193 metre-long Dubai Frame project is expected to open in October 2017. Although construction started at the end of 2013, it was only recently that UAE residents saw the iconic landmark get covered in gold cladding. Once the project is completed in five months, visitors can access the Dubai Frame near Star Gate in Zabeel Park. It consists of two towers connected by a 100 square metre bridge. It was initially reported that Dubai’s newest landmark was due to open in 2015 but the Dh160 million project was pushed back to end of 2016, before its launch date was once again rescheduled. According to a statement issued by Dubai Municipality, the Frame will have interior spaces on the ground floor (the horizontal rib bottom of the frame) for exhibitions, which will display details of old Dubai in pictures and show how the city evolved since the sixties and how it is now. The ground floor ends at the main panoramic elevator, which goes up through the rib of the Frame to get to the top floor. At the top, visitors will have a bird’s-eye view of old Dubai as they look towards Al Karama, Umm Hurair, Bur Dubai and Deira, and as they turn around, will see the high-rise towers and development projects of new Dubai in contrast. The project is expected to attract 2 million visitors a year and will join the long list of internationally recognised landmarks, such as the world’s tallest tower Burj Khalifa and the seven-star hotel Burj Al Arab. Source: Gulf News

Leading global business aviation company Deer Jet, presented the world’s first 787 ‘Dream Jet’, with its Middle East debut, making a stopover at Doha International Airport. The ‘flying’ visit is part of a series of showcases across the globe in Deer Jet’s “Dreams Encounter the World” tour of key international charter destinations. Established 22 years ago as the very first business jet operator in China, Deer Jet has been dedicated to serving the global premium business travel market, including Middle East royal families since 2013. Deer Jet is set to serve the market across the GCC and wider Middle East region, with buyers from Qatar, the UAE and Saudi Arabia expected to be key markets for the company. According to research by industry expert Hardy Sohanpal, in collaboration with Wealth-X and WingXAdvance, the Middle East has over 5,975 UHNW individuals (defined as having at least $30 million in assets) with a combined net worth of US$995 billion, further underscoring the company’s decision to target the region. Frank Fang, Vice President, Deer Jet, said, “We are delighted to bring this unique aircraft to Doha. Its showcases the signature service of Deer Jet which is inspired by the values of performance, elegance and distinction. With the 787 Dream Jet, we are proud to serve discerning business and leisure travellers in the Middle East and we recognise this market as one of the largest in the world for premium travel. Our goal is to provide the best flying experience for our customers and make travel an art.”

Huawei and Hamad International Airport (HIA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), formalising a strategic partnership to enable the airport’s digital transformation. The objective is to accelerate digital transformation at Hamad International Airport and to share the solutions with the community for wider benefit of the air transport industry. The MoU between HIA and Huawei provides a broad framework for collaboration between for co-creation of innovative concepts, prototypes and solutions using cutting-edge technologies, particularly in the areas of IoT and autonomous machines, to address real business challenges and opportunities. Through this cooperation, HIA aims to improve the passenger experience, enhance security and communication, and increase operational efficiency. Commenting on the cooperation with Huawei, Eng. Badr Mohammed Al Meer, Chief Operating Officer at HIA said: “Innovative technology will continue to drive digital transformation at Hamad International Airport. Through this strategic alliance with Huawei, which also provides access to its eco-system of niche partners, we aim to accelerate our journey and to demonstrate our commitment to the industry by sharing viable concepts and solutions that may be developed through this partnership”. Xilin Yuan, President of the Transportation Sector of Huawei’s Enterprise Business Group, commented: “It is a great pleasure for Huawei to collaborate with Hamad International Airport to enable a Smart Airport that can meet the future demands of passenger flows as well as the needs of digital-savvy customers. By placing digital transformation at the heart of its commercial strategy, HIA will deliver a user-centric connected experience to continue delighting its customers.”