Key leaders in the business events sector and stakeholders from across Dubai shared their experiences of restarting exhibitions, trade shows and conferences over the last six months at the Dubai Global Events Re-Opening Forum organised on 18 March, as the global industry looks to follow the city’s lead and recapture momentum. Held against the backdrop of the Museum of The Future, the Forum featured leaders from Dubai Tourism, Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), Dubai Airports, Emirates, dmg events and Accor. UFI, The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, and the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) supported the event, with their global membership primed to benefit from the knowledge shared. His Excellency Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General of Dubai Tourism and Dubai World Trade Centre Authority, said: “Driven by the city’s strong, decisive leadership and prudent handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dubai was not only able to reopen for international tourism ahead of its peers, but also restart the business events sector that plays a vital role in economic and knowledge development locally, regionally and globally. Working with stakeholders across the public and private sectors, we were able to create a framework that clearly demonstrated it was possible to both prioritise the health and safety of all participants and delegates, while at the same time provide platforms for showcasing new products and innovation, networking, professional development and knowledge sharing. We look forward to building on this over the coming months with more major business events on the calendar, as we accelerate towards the hosting of Expo 2020 Dubai. We also welcome the opportunity to collaborate with other destinations and stakeholders internationally to ensure the global industry is able to restart …

Qatar Airways is resuming its service to Mykonos, Greece for the summer season as the islands welcome visitors once again. The airline is planning to operate three flights a week using a modern A320 aircraft featuring 12 seats in Business Class and 120 seats in Economy Class. The news has been welcomed by Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, who said, “We first started flying to Mykonos in May 2018 and the route proved very popular with our customers. Due to the global pandemic, we had to suspend services last summer so we are really delighted to be returning to help support Greece’s efforts to restart tourism. We know the authorities in Greece are taking precautions to ensure public safety and visitors will be required to adhere to public health measures put in place in view of the pandemic. Equally we will be maintaining our own very high standards. Qatar Airways was the first global airline in the world to achieve the prestigious 5-Star COVID-19 Airline Safety Rating by Skytrax. We look forward to continuing to provide the safest possible experience for travellers across the world, and expanding upon our role in assisting the recovery of the commercial aviation industry.” Harry Theoharis, Greek Minister for Tourism said, “I am proud to welcome Qatar Airways back to Mykonos. It is very pleasing for us to have our luxury destination included in the planning of the airline’s new summer programme. In this difficult time this development comes when all of our efforts have been put into the safe opening of Greek tourism. ‘All you want is Greece’ is our new motto and with this, we invite friends …

We are just a few days away from the biggest show of the first quarter of 2021, the renowned Gulf Travel Show will kick off on 31st March and 1st April from 10 am to 6 pm. Partners from across the globe are ready to showcase their many offerings to the Middle East agents for two whole days. Nour Zayati, Sales Manager, Grand Hyatt Dubai shares their reason to participate and expectations from the event. “At GTS 2021 we will be showcasing our property. The Grand Hyatt Dubai is the only City    Resort in the UAE. Renovated 682 luxury rooms including 38 suites, Grand Resort Facilities including extensive landscaped gardens, 4 swimming pools and 2 tennis courts. 13 F&B  bars and restaurants with various cuisine from around the world. It is important for us to participate in GTS 2021 in order to establish new strong relationships with various TO, TA  in our neighboring countries and around the world. We will be able to create awareness and display our property to a fast-growing market. Building various win-win partnerships with other travel experts.”

Gulf Travel Show unveils its second edition on 31st March and 1st April 2021 with Tourism Malaysia as the diamond partner with some of their key partners in their very own pavilion. Many hotels and resorts have partnered at the Gulf Travel Show 2021. Alexander Suski – Commercial and Business Development Director  – ISHRAQ Dubai LLC shared their vies about the participation at the Gulf Travel Show. “Ishraq Hospitality in Dubai is part of Mohamed & Obaid AlMulla Group of Companies, and both owns and operates its own portfolio of properties.   We are showcasing a portfolio of 7 hotels under the IHG franchise including our uplifted Holiday Inn Express brand, the upcoming Crown Plaza Jumeirah that will open 1st of May and the newly opened Staybridge Suites and Holiday Inn Dubai Maktoum Airport ready for the upcoming Expo 2020. Our reason to participate this year is to connect with existing and new travel trade partners and also future partners and investors to expand our Holiday Inn Express brand for which we have a master development agreement for UAE, Oman, Jordan, Egypt and Bahrain. Our current hotels have prime locations in Dubai. This year we are reopening Holiday Inn Express in Airport, DIC, Jumeirah and Business Bay and upgrading them to 3 star whilst also incorporating new features and attractions like a sports bar or new coffee lounges.” Successfully concluded in 2020 with 40 plus exhibitors, 6000 one-to-one meetings, and 2,500 visitors from 59 countries which included travel agents, tour operators, tourism boards, airlines, hotels, travel management companies and international agencies encouraged the emergence of a second edition. Travel is in the DNA of the Middle Eastern travellers, the moment the …

Marriott International, Inc. signed an agreement with Al Saedan Group, a leading real estate company in the Middle East, to open three hotels across Saudi Arabia. The multi-project agreement includes the country and territory’s first Renaissance Hotel, the world’s largest Aloft Hotel and a Courtyard by Marriott in the Holy City of Makkah. All three properties are projected to open by 2025. “We are pleased to build on our fantastic relationship with Al Saedan Group and further expand our portfolio across Saudi Arabia with these milestone signings,” said Satya Anand, President for Europe, Middle East & Africa, Marriott International. “These agreements underscore Marriott International’s commitment to supporting the growth of the Kingdom’s tourism sector and reinforces the continued demand we are seeing for our portfolio of brands across the country.” “As a company, we are focused on developing projects that support the growth and development of the Kingdom,” said Sultan Al Khudair, CEO of Al Saedan Group. “We are excited to collaborate with Marriott International to open two new properties in the Holy City which will be ideal destinations for those visiting for Umrah and Haj, and to debut Renaissance Hotels in the country. These three new agreements were signed in line with our commitment to bring the highest standards of quality and design to our assets and to provide a premium experience to our guests.”v

Miral announced that Yas Island is on track to become a fully contactless destination through the adoption of FacePass.  This cutting-edge contactless technology is part of Miral’s digital transformation strategy for Yas Island.  Rolled out in phases across the island, it will streamline guest experiences using facial recognition, with Yas Theme Parks leading the way as the first theme parks in the region to adopt FacePass. Mohamed Abdalla Al Zaabi, CEO of Miral commented, “We are thrilled to be pioneering the adoption of the FacePass technology within the regional leisure and entertainment industry, and delivering on our promise of creating a world-class wall-less destination using the latest technology.  Yas theme parks will be the first in the region to implement complete contactless access and payment solutions. This cutting-edge functionality is in line with our digital transformation strategy, and a testament to achieving our vision of positioning Yas Island as a top global destination for entertainment, leisure and business.”

A new e-learning platform for future Swiss public transport experts was launched recently. Heidi and Peter take trade specialists on a virtual learning journey through Swiss public transport. In the process, agents can broaden their knowledge in an entertaining way and ac- quire essential public transport know-how to support their clients professionally and competently. Everything is quick and easy: the fascinating world of train, bus and boat is always at your fingertips. As multipliers central to the Swiss Travel System AG (STS AG), the worldwide network of trade specialists plays an important role. Trade experts are in direct contact with clients and sell the Swiss Travel System around the globe. The new Swiss Travel System Excellence Program imparts up-to-date knowledge and thereby enables agents to support their clients in a confident and competent manner. Maurus Lauber, CEO of STS AG, affirms: “We are convinced that this attractive platform will help trade specialists to sell even more travels by train bus and boat in Switzerland.” The Swiss Travel System Excellence Program is the only e-learning program worldwide to cover the entire public transport system of a country. In the individual courses, participants learn everything about the characteristics of the Swiss Travel System – from tickets and passes to premium panoramic trains to luggage transport. Thanks to the modular structure, learners choose for themselves which content they would like to explore in more detail. And it can be done in a very short time: on average, a module takes only about six minutes to complete. Learners are accompanied on this journey by Heidi and Peter, two animated characters personifying two important Swiss qualities: reliability and enthusiasm. The innovative program is available in …

The second webinar in the tri-series Rediscover Spain featured the vibrant city breaks in Spain. Starting off the webinar Daniel Rosado -Director, Spain Tourism GCC followed by Patrick Torrent – Executive director of the Catalan Tourist Board, Marta Aldana, International Promotion at Barcelona Tourism, Javier Amichis – Regional Manager, Middle East & Asia Pacific -Travel Trade & Connectivity, Madrid Destination and Namratha Rose -Manager – Marketing & Trade Relations – Spain Tourism GCC. Every speaker stated about the many initiatives taken during the time of the pandemic and how they continue to keep their guard on, being part of the European Union, every approval needs to come from them hence the speakers stated that as tourism board officials they receive regular updates from the European Union through their government and they keep everyone updated. It was one full hour of rediscovering from the most breathtaking environment to another. The first video of Catalonia started off which showcased the beauty of the destination coupled with its rich heritage, arts and crafts, architectural wonders, gastronomical cuisine, sailing, and the wonderful outdoors with its many adventurous expeditions waiting to be explored. Patrick Torrent – Executive director of the Catalan Tourist Board did a comprehensive presentation of the whole region paying attention to describing from the north to south and the northwest that comprise Catalunya.  From Girona, Tarragona and Costa Daurada, Lleida. He went on to explain that this year is a very important year for Catalunya as the Sports Tourism Congress will take place in October 2021 organised by UNWTO and Catalan Tourism. Marta Aldana, International Promotion at Barcelona Tourism shared that there are 115 hotels open with 75.9& the cultural facilities in …

Visit Qatar, an initiative of the Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC), aims to boost their tourism industry with the launch of a new digital experience. The website shares Qatar’s rich cultural tapestry, experiences and adventures in an inviting online journey. As Qatar continues its preparations for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, the highly responsive and mobile-first website will become a vital tool in realising an ambitious goal: tripling the number of visits and doubling tourism revenue by 2030. Behind the scenes, the new marketing technology platform is one of the first in the world to use Adobe Experience Manager as a cloud service, highlighting Qatar National Tourism Council’s digital leadership and innovation in the region. “The shared ambition and positive energy of this project are inspiring,” said Murat Ertugrul, VP MEA at Emakina. “Visit Qatar’s ambition to position the nation as a hub to discover – where cultural authenticity meets modernity – is something to behold. Ensuring the best possible end-to-end experience for visitors to Qatar was at the heart of this particular project – and now that QNTC has full control over their new Adobe platform, they can maximize its functionalities in complete autonomy. We are looking forward to continuing this dynamic collaboration, contributing to the ambitious Qatar National Tourism Council Transformation Journey roadmap.” Darren Light, Head of MEA for Adobe Experience Cloud adds, “The new Visit Qatar website perfectly leverages Adobe AEM’s power for front and backend development. Although the COVID-19 pandemic forced all experts to work from a distance, the fluidity and the efficiency of their teamwork were remarkable. And we can all be proud of the engaging state-of-the-art result.” Berthold Trenkel, COO of Qatar National …

TIME Hotels will be opening its first two hotels in Egypt later this year – the five-star TIME Coral Resort Nuweiba in the Red Sea resort of Nuweiba and the four-star TIME Marina Hotel & Conference Centre near Al Alamein on the Mediterranean coast, which is being hailed as Egypt’s second capital. During a recent visit to check on the progress of the hotels, Mohamed Awadalla, CEO, TIME hotels commented, “Work is proceeding well at our TIME Marina Hotel and that property should be ready to open in August. As for the TIME Coral Resort, that hotel is already open and operating, so it is only a case of re-branding the hotel and opening under our management this summer. “These hotels are our first in Egypt and will broaden our footprint from the Gulf to the Mediterranean, with 16 properties situated in UAE, Doha, Saudi Arabia, and now Egypt, with a further five in the pipeline.” “This hotel is ideally placed to service the enormous number of corporate companies that are basing their operations here, some new, some relocating from Cairo, as well as an increasing amount of general commercial activity. The city will eventually be built across 50,000 acres in three stages, stretching for 60km away from the coast, attracting an estimated three million residents,” added Awadalla. “This beautiful resort hotel is perfect for those looking for complete relaxation in unspoilt and tranquil surroundings. We believe it has tremendous potential for the leisure market. It is only 90 minutes’ drive from the international airport at Sharm El Sheikh and only 70-100km from Taba International Airport and Eilat (Ramon International Airport). Plans are already afoot to develop the area sympathetically, …