Recognising and applauding the tourism tigers of the Middle East, DDP presented the first-ever Arabian Travel Awards on July 4, 2017, at the JW Marriott Hotel Dubai in Deira. Over 150 notable personalities of the Middle East travel and tourism sector were present to honour and acknowledge the achievements of their brightest gems. Dr Tanushree Pandey, Gladrags Mrs India, along with SanJeet, Mentor, Arabian Travel Awards, and Sumeera Bahl, Director, Durga Das Publications, handed out the awards to the winners. Due recognition was given to each sector in the industry through 48 categories of awards. Welcoming the guests, SanJeet, said, “With Arabian Travel Awards, we aim at identifying and encouraging talent of all kinds in the tourism sector. Owing to these stars, the graph of the Middle East tourism industry has touched remarkable heights. It is our pleasure to honour them for their achievements. This initiative will help encourage more talent to develop and take this vibrant industry to a much higher level.”

Celebrating the hard work of the key stalwarts in the travel, tourism and hospitality industries in the Middle East, Durga Das Publications today presents the maiden Arabian Travel Awards at JW Marriott Hotel Dubai in Deira. There will be four types of awards: Personal Awards, Business Awards, Trending Awards and Partner Awards. The sub-categories will include awards for Best Business Hotel, Best Family Friendly Hotel, Best City Hotel, Best Green Hotel, Best Leisure Hotel, Best Destination Management Company, Best Hotel Apartments, Best B2B Travel Portal, Best Luxury Hotel and the likes. The Arabian Travel Awards are following a systematic method of internet-based voting. These awards are supported by Tourism Breaking News Middle East, TravelTV.news, TravTalk Middle East and TravTalk India who are premier media partners for extensive coverage.

Sheraton Cairo has reopened after an extensive renovation process, with contemporary interiors, refreshed public spaces and revitalized and new dining venues. The hotel’s 326 fully renovated rooms and suites feature a harmonious blend of modern designs, along with a warm palette offering unmatched comfort and the Sheraton Signature Sleep Experience. Sheraton Club rooms offer exclusive access to the Sheraton® Club Lounge, a private space located on the 26th floor, offering a spectacular view of the city and where guests can enjoy complimentary breakfast, drinks and snacks. Leisure facilities include an extensive fitness centre with cutting edge equipment available 24 hours a day for in-house guests, a luxurious pool and a fully equipped wellness centre. There are also six distinctive restaurants and bars that create an enriching culinary voyage. Over its 1400 sq. m. of dedicated and unparalleled meeting space, Sheraton Cairo Hotel & Casino also features a lavishly appointed ballroom, 13 meeting rooms and a fully equipped business centre, all with state-of-the-art facilities and seamless connectivity through high-speed Wi-Fi.

With a continuous increase in the number of tourists from the Middle East seeking wellness experience on their holidays, Mandarin Oriental Bodrum Turkey has introduced a holistic wellness experience on the Turkish Riviera this summer for its guests. The property will be hosting strength and conditioning coach, Ruben Tabares, and Shaolin Kung Fu Master, Master Hu, who would be having personalized wellness and nutrition programmes for each of the guests. Tabares specializes in developing every client’s athletic ability along with providing the tools necessary to make a lifestyle change based on individual growth and purpose. Guests can choose from a range of thoughtfully designed and effective programmes created by Tabares. Each programme commences with an initial physical assessment followed by an intensive workout plan, nutritional consultation and personalized wellness massages.

Emirates recently launched a new daily service from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon. Badr Abbas, Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations Far East, was on board the inaugural flight on 1st July. Upon arrival, the aircraft was greeted in Phnom Penh by a traditional water cannon salute. Going per the local times, flights to Phnom Penh will depart daily from Dubai International Airport at 09:15 local time and arrive at Yangon at 17:25. It will then depart from Yangon at 18:55 and arrive at Phnom Penh International Airport at 21:25. On the return segment, flight EK389 will leave Phnom Penh at 23:10 and arrive at Yangon at 00:40. It will then set off for Dubai‎ at 02:10, arriving there at 05:40.

With a traditional water salute, Dubai Airports recently welcomed Badr Airlines’ inaugural flight from the capital city of Sudan, Khartoum, to Dubai International Airport Terminal 2. Badr Airlines has launched three weekly flights between Khartoum and Dubai, enhancing convenience as well as choice for the thousands of passengers travelling between the two destinations. Besides chartered VIP flights and humanitarian aid missions, Badr Airlines, formerly known as Sarit Airlines, also provides air services for passenger and cargo.

From June to September 2017, flydubai will be providing services to Batumi in Georgia, Qabala in Azerbaijan and Tivat in Montenegro, increasing its network to 93 destinations in 44 countries. Since 2015, flydubai has added 18 new destinations to its network, showing a remarkable rate of growth. “At flydubai, we remain committed to providing our passengers with a variety of destinations to travel to, especially during the summer season,” said Ghaith Al Ghaith, Chief Executive Officer, flydubai. “The decision to launch our seasonal routes to complement our existing network is a direct response to customer feedback and we hope our passengers enjoy what these hidden gems have to offer,” he added.

This summer, to adjust the growing number of holiday makers on their flights, Etihad has increased the frequency of their flights as well as the capacity of their vessels flying between Abu Dhabi and their key markets, such as Amman, Beirut, Cairo, Casablanca and Rabat. There will be a fourth new daily flight to Damman, second new daily flight to Amman, four new flights a week to Beirut with the introduction of Boeing 787, a fifth flight to Cairo, one extra flight to Rabat and an aircraft upgrade to Airbus A340 for Casablanca.

Air Arabia has increased services to Armenia’s Yerevan to four times a week as it is fast proving to be a popular holiday destination for GCC families, especially Indian citizens living in the Gulf, thanks to the latest visa-on-arrival policy that the country implemented earlier this year. Yerevan appeals to a wide spectrum of holiday goers, from thrill seeking adventurers to those looking for more family-orientated trips. Flying to Yerevan from Sharjah, Air Arabia, the Middle East and North Africa’s first and largest low-cost carrier, commenced operations to Armenia in 2013. The journey time is approximately three hours and the route is being served by an Airbus A320.

Millennium Airport Hotel Dubai sent a team on a special sales mission to China for the 2017 Dubai China Roadshow organised by The Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM). They visited Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu and Guangzhou to explore the various colours of China and locate opportunities to extend their hotel business. Dubai is witnessing unprecedented demand from Chinese visitors. China is among the Top 5 source markets for Dubai. Elaborating on the success of the mission, Binu Varghese, Director of Sale and Marketing, Millennium Airport Hotel Dubai, said, “China is a growing market for us and holds strong potential. This year’s roadshow was hugely successful and gave us the opportunity to meet over 300 buyers from four key cities. FIT market development was a key focus for us along with continuous promotion of group business. In addition to highlighting our various offerings to buyers through one-on-one table talk, we got fantastic networking opportunities with local travel industry opinion leaders.”