UDrive, a Dubai-based pay-as-you-go rental service launched the ‘UDrive for free’ campaign, offering residents and visitors to Dubai free membership for one month as well as a complimentary one hour free drive, that is inclusive of parking and fuel costs. With UDrive, commuters can drive a car from anywhere to everywhere in the city, at any time and only PAY as you drive. As one of Dubai’s mobility programs with maximum flexibility, UDrive offers its members an opportunity to spontaneously rent vehicles anytime and anywhere without having to specify place of return or time in advance. Hasib Khan, Managing Director and Founder, UDrive, commented, “Car sharing has evolved into sustainable mobility with potential for strong growth worldwide. We believe that Dubai’s Smart Vision, the transient nature of life and the prevailing costs of car ownership makes car sharing an excellent mobility solution. For those who don’t want to commit to ownership, or don’t have the need for everyday car accessibility, UDrive makes the perfect option, whilst being also a reliable connector to the public transport. We are pleased to be the first public car sharing provider in the Middle East and to be a part of Dubai’s Smart Vision.” UDrive cars can be booked and paid for via an app, offering Dubai’s most convenient and affordable car rental options for residents and visitors. Vehicles can be rented at a location nearest to the drivers via the UDrive app or can be reserved for fifteen minutes at no extra costs. The cars reserved can be opened using the UDrive app and will need to be activated using the pin provided on the device located in the glove box. This keyless access …

Sharjah International Airport registered a 10 percent year-on-year increase in passengers, handling 11 million passengers from January to December 2016. The airport passed the 10 million passenger mark for the first time in 2015, showing 5.5 percent growth. Since then, the airport has continued to show strong growth. Airport passengers increased 12 percent during the first quarter of 2016, 11 percent during Q2 and 13 percent during Q3, reaching one million passengers per month for the first time in August 2016. Aircraft movements at Sharjah International Airport increased by 6 percent to 75,900 scheduled and non-scheduled movements in 2016 compared with 71,426 in 2015. Sharjah International Airport’s growth has been driven by its strategic location, the success of Sharjah’s in-bound tourism industry and the expansion of Sharjah-headquartered Air Arabia. The airport’s ideal location, close to Sharjah city, Dubai city and the main highways connecting the country’s seven emirates, has made it a convenient hub for both business and leisure travelers.Whilst Air Arabia hasn’t yet announced overall figures for 2016, the airline served over 2.27 million passengers during the first nine months of 2016, a 14 percent increase compared to the 2 million passengers during the same period of 2015. The airline currently operates a fleet of 46 Airbus A320 aircraft offering flights to over 120 destinations in 33 countries from five hubs across the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Europe.

Flynas, Saudi Arabia’s leading low-cost carrier, has signed an agreement with Airbus for 60 A320neo family aircraft. In addition to the 60 aircraft, Flynas has converted 20 A320ceo from a previous order to A320neo bringing the airline’s total firm order to 80 A320neo. The deliveries are scheduled to take place during 2018-2026. The agreement was announced in Riyadh in the presence of Ayed Al Jeaid, Chairman, NAS Holding, Bander Al Mohanna, Chief Executive Officer, NAS Holding Group and Fouad Attar, Managing Director, Airbus Middle East. Flynas, an all Airbus operator, currently has 26 A320ceo in service. Ayed Al Jeaid, Chairman, NAS Holding Group said, “Flynas has come a long way to establish itself as a highly reputed airline in Saudi Arabia. With the introduction of the new aircraft technology, we are confident of our ability to provide best services to our customers. We also look forward to being the first airline in the Kingdom to be successfully listed on the Saudi Stock exchange, which will offer equity ownership to the public and be a part of a great journey.”

The largest nationwide festival in the Kingdom of Bahrain, Shop Bahrain unveiled its’ Calendar of Events for the much-awaited festival during a press conference held at the Capital Club. The third-edition of the Bahrain Shopping Festival, ‘Shop Bahrain’, is a unique 30-day celebration of Bahrain’s hospitality and tourism offering for the entire family and boasts a wide range of events and unbeatable promotions for residents and visitors. The festival will mirror the Kingdom’s position as an accessible family destination, renowned for its close proximity to the Gulf countries with easy access through the King Fahad Causeway and the Bahrain International Airport. The Festival will offer an incredibly diverse range of retail experiences. The Festival, co-organized by the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA) and Tamkeen, is held in cooperation with the partners from the public and private sector such as Batelco, Gulf Air, and YK Al Moayyed & Sons. Organizers also held a Gulf-wide roadshow spanning the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar in order to promote the festival. Shop Bahrain will feature a ‘Festival City’, located in Bahrain Bay, and will boast a number of activities for the entire family including games, food stalls along with live entertainment and performances. Shop Bahrain will also include a fun-filled schedule of entertaining activities at the participating shopping malls and hotels. Shoppers will be enrolled in the Festival’s loyalty system when purchasing directly from any participating outlet and partner allowing them to win a wide range of prizes including one of the 12 cars and over 25,000 valuable prizes. The four weekly raffle draws will take place at the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism headquarters.

Ekar, an hourly car rental company, in partnership with the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), has launched with 100 car share vehicles across the emirate of Dubai. Offering absolute driving accessibility, half of the Ekar fleet is designated around the Dubai Metro stations (Metro Cars) whilst the other half within popular areas of the city (City Cars) including, JLT, Dubai Silicon Oasis, The Green Community and Academic City among others. Ekars can be booked for a minimum of 10 minutes each day to a maximum of six hours. Once the journey is complete, the vehicle can be dropped off either to the same spot or another designated Ekar station in the city for only an additional cost of AED6. All Ekars also come equipped with Bluetooth connectivity and MP3 so you can groove on the move.

Al Jawaher Reception and Convention Centre (JRCC) attracted more than 120,000 visitors and guests in 2016. This brings the total number of visitors who participated in some of the most prestigious and high-level events, organised and hosted by the Centre to 388,420 visitors, since they opened their doors in early 2013. Dotted with an array of the exclusive in-house events services and world-class catering, JRCC was home to more than 300 events in 2016, bringing the total tally to more than 1,000 events since its inception – 25 per cent of which were characterized by government conferences, business forums and exhibitions. The remaining 75% were taken up by unique and memorable social events. JRCC forecasts a 10% growth in events organised in 2017, thanks to its high-quality services and a dedicated team of professionals contributing directly to the emirate’s events industry.  Hanan Al Mahmoud, Director, JRCC, said, “Since its inception, JRCC has worked in line with the vision of Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, Wife of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah and Chairperson of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs, to offer an outstanding destination that contributes to attracting major local and international events, as well as to strengthening Sharjah’s phenomenal growth in the MICE industry. JRCC will soon be four-years-old, and looking back, we feel a sense of immense satisfaction and pride in having delivered the outstanding quality of catering and hospitality services to each and every event we have hosted.”

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has appointed a golf ambassador to promote the country as a leading golf destination. With over 260 world class golf courses in the country, TAT hopes to attract more golfers from the Middle East to enjoy their different courses. Thongchai Jaidee, a professional Thailand golfer ranked at number 54 will be the brand ambassador for the next year. During this period of time he will work very closely with the tourism board of Thailand in order to attract more “golfing visitors” to the destination. Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya, Deputy Governor for Marketing Communications TAT stated, “The brand ambassador partnership with Thongchai Jaidee will help achieve a key strategic objective to better link tourism and sports and increase the number of long staying, high spending visitors from the Middle East and Europe. Thailand has over 260 world class golf courses nationwide, with superb facilities and services including experienced, friendly caddies, wonderful accommodation and excellent side activities, such as shopping and spa treatments. Thailand also holds many international golf tournaments every year including Honda LPGA Thailand 2017 will be hosted on February 23 to 26, 2017 at Siam Country Club Pattaya Old Course which attract a large number of professional players and spectators.”

HotelREZ Hotels & Resorts has completed the migration of its member hotels to Sabre’s SynXis Central Reservations and device responsive booking engine, securing its ability to provide HotelREZ customers with access to Sabre’s technology. Sabre’s broad portfolio of hospitality solutions empowers hoteliers to create and deliver a unique and differentiating guest experience based on their specific brand. “Our customers rely on us to provide them with access to the very best technology available in the marketplace so that we are able to focus on driving incremental revenue for their hotels, through our network of travel agency partnerships and our global sales and marketing initiatives,” said Mark Lewis, CEO and founder of HotelREZ. “We chose Sabre for their innovative technology, product development roadmap and commitment to helping our independent hotel members succeed, both now and in the future.” By implementing Sabre’s technology solutions, HotelREZ will help its member hotels take advantage of connections to new channels and expand beyond its already strong presence in EMEA and accelerate growth further into geographical markets such as the Americas and China, where Sabre has strong channel connections.  In addition, HotelREZ customers will have access to Sabre’s newest device responsive booking engine, which offers some of the most innovative approaches to merchandising and customer experience in the hospitality market.  

Aiana Hotels & Resorts, a global hotel management company, continues to strengthen its position within the Middle East region with the appointment of Arshad Sayed as the Regional Director of Sales for the GCC. In line with the upcoming launch of their first property in Saudi Arabia – Aiana Makkah, this new appointment solidifies Aiana’s commitment to create a globally respected hospitality brand that represents the best of Indian hospitality through exemplary service, design and operating concepts. Aiana Hotels & Resorts’ regional sales office will be based in the Jumeirah Lake Towers vicinity, one of Dubai’s largest free zone areas.  Amruda Nair, Joint Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Aiana Hotels & Resorts said, “Driven by experience and passion, Arshad brings a terrific blend of business and analytical skills that will ensure the solid growth of the Aiana brand across the GCC. With three properties opening in the next year in the GCC there is no doubt that he will work closely with our strategic leadership team and be a key player in establishing AIANA Hotels & Resorts as a leading hotel brand in the region fulfilling a gap in the market for experience-driven, lifestyle oriented accommodation lead by a strong Indian service ethos.”

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, H.E. Akbar Al Baker, officially opened the new and luxurious Qatar Airways Premium Lounge at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport. At more than 1000 square metres, the Qatar Airways Premium Lounge at Paris-Charles de Gaulle offers Qatar Airways First and Business Class passengers a sophisticated, modern and spacious environment in which to relax and commence their five star journey experience. The Premium Lounge features all of the qualities of a premium product from the airline, including both a brasserie and deli, two roof terraces from where passengers can see far-reaching views of Paris and the Eiffel Tower, both male and female prayer rooms, MAC computers, shower facilities, Wi-Fi and zoned seating for more than 200 guests, all of which contribute to a warm and relaxing atmosphere. At an official ribbon cutting ceremony held within the lounge itself, H.E.  Al Baker welcomed notable guests including His Excellency  Abdullah Al-Subaey, Chairman of the Qatar CivilAviation Authority, alongside Frank Goldanel, Director, Aéroports de Paris, all before hosting a luncheon in the lounge’s luxury brasserie. Commenting on the airline’s latest Premium Lounge opening, H.E. Mr. Al Baker said: “I am delighted to be here today to officially open the Qatar Airways Premium Lounge at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport, the third such lounge of its type within our growing network. This further demonstrates our commitment to France and to showcasing the very best of our product offering, whether in the lounge itself, the modern aircraft that we fly on our triple daily service to Paris, or our further expansion with the announcement that Qatar Airways will operate direct flights to Nice from 4 July this year.” H.E. Al Baker also used …