Al Jawaher Reception and Convention Centre (JRCC) has announced that it is open for business again after weathering the unprecedented challenges presented by 2020, utilising the down time for maintenance and refurbishment work that has served to enhance its world-class amenities.  “JRCC plays an important role in supporting the social and economic development of the emirate through the various activities it hosts. Ensuing the lockdowns in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, we took the opportunity to undertake maintenance and refurbishment work in our venues including in the eastern central and eastern regions, Dibba Al Hisn and Khofakkan, as we envisioned offering services that lived up to the best health and safety standards upon re-opening our doors to the public. JRCC is now fully equipped and host safe events, and we are ready to deliver on the expectations of our clients whose satisfaction, safety and wellbeing remain our top priority,” said Hanan Al Mahmoud, CEO of JRCC. Speaking about the institution’s achievements, Al Mahmoud emphasised, “Over the past year, we all have faced unprecedented challenges across the board. But thanks to the unfailing trust and support of our customers and partners and backed by the dedication of our talented employees, we have not only stayed afloat, but actually moved forward.” “We aim to seize opportunities and maintain robust growth in the long run by hosting key national and international events, and offer best-in-class catering services that will contribute to boosting Sharjah’s position as a leading destination for conferences and business tourism. In line with these goals.”

Emirates announced that on the directives by the governments of the State of Kuwait and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, temporary restrictions are in place as follows: for State of Kuwait – Emirates will not accept non‑Kuwaiti national passengers on flights from Dubai to Kuwait, from 7 to 20 February 2021. Customers holding tickets with Kuwait as a final destination will not be accepted for travel at their point of origin. Exemptions are first‑degree relatives of Kuwaitis, domestic workers travelling with Kuwaiti sponsors, and domestic workers registered on Belsalamah platform. For Kingdom of Saudi Arabia – Emirates will not accept non‑Saudi national passengers on flights from Dubai to Saudi Arabia, until further notice. Customers holding tickets with final destinations in Saudi Arabia will not be accepted for travel at their point of origin. Exemptions are Diplomatic passport holders and Health Practitioners and their families. They regret the inconvenience caused, and affected customers should contact their booking agent or Emirates call centre for rebooking options. To receive update notifications, customers are requested to ensure their contact details are correct by visiting Manage Your Booking.

Concluding the first edition of the Gulf Travel Show 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, the second edition go GTS 2021 kicks off on March 31 and April 1, 2021. Talk to us and make your connections stand out! Contact  – crisna@ddppl.com +971 55 470 4200; sonia.butalia@ddppl.com +91 96503 1177; nikhil.jeet@ddppl.com Join in with local and international industry leaders, attract viewers with their insightful and engaging panel discussions and be a part of the hosted buyer programme along with the leader board motivated buyers to have meetings till the late hour at the Gulf Travel Show. GTS with its proprietary exhibition software will help you recover, rebuild and reimagine relationships and products. Our first edition which concluded with great success was an affirmation of the need of the hour for the travel fraternity to ensure they maintain their connections and proactively search for new connections and/or partners that will help them grow their business help grow their brand and build long-term profitable business connections. Experience a platform which depicts that of a real live event, with our state of the art technology. As you enter the event, you will be transported to the venue with a very easy to manage menu that enabled you to really enjoy the event without any hassle. The hosted buyers will have the opportunity to earn points while visiting each booth and increase chances of making connections and at the end will be incentivized.

15below has partnered with Etihad Airways to upgrade the airline’s communication system to address the ever-changing travel requirements caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The 15below platform links directly to Etihad’s reservations system, allowing the airline to automatically communicate with its passengers using personalised, real-time data from the booking. With all the information they need on hand, customers are promised a smooth, stress-free travel experience without unnecessary delays, queues, and human interaction at the airport. Talking about the partnership, 15below’s CEO Nicholas Key said, “A lack of relevant information has always been a huge contributor to the stress that many associate with travel, so at a time when the rules are constantly changing, effective communication is absolutely key to passenger wellness. The work that we have done with Etihad gives the passenger much greater control, promoting a smooth, risk-free travel experience where currently there is more to think about than ever before.” Frank Meyer, Chief Digital Officer, Etihad Aviation Group said, “Etihad is a global player in driving digital transformation within the aviation industry. As travel restrictions ease, it’s our responsibility to pursue innovative solutions that will enhance the travel experience for our guests. Ensuring wellness is part of the redefined customer journey has become an integral part of our business and our partnership with 15below has been instrumental in making this a reality.” Research by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) shows that 72% of travellers want to be kept up to date on their mobile device throughout their journey and three in five want real-time updates during disruption. Acknowledging that a passenger’s experience starts during the booking process and ends when they arrive at their destination, Etihad’s partnership with …

XQuarry Off-Road & Adventure Park located around Al Faya Mountain in Mleiha desert in Sharjah opened on February 5, 2021 offering off-roading thrill, obstacle races, hikes and remote- control cars, guaranteeing unbeatable fun, action and adventure. XQuarry Adventure Park, UAE’s first Off-Road and Adventure Park caters to off-roaders and adventure -seekers with almost 15km of tracks, 20 custom- build off-roading obstacles, a dedicated obstacle running course, mountain bike trails, a remote-control car area as well as hiking trails. Spread across approximately a million square metres of an old cement quarry, XQuarry offers a range of adventurous and fun activities for people of all ages and fitness levels, featuring Off -Roading, Obstacle Running, Mountain Biking, Hiking and Remote-Controlled Cars. XQuarry Adventure Park provides the opportunity for all to escape the ordinary, explore thrilling and challenging activities and immerse themselves in a fun-filled day amidst magnificent desert scenario. The focus of the park is to provide outdoor training and education for people to learn and master their skills to act safe and responsible in the outdoors. The XQuarry Off-Road and Adventure Park has been created in close co-operation and strategic partnership with Mleiha and Sharjah Investment and Development Authority – Shurooq (Sharjah Government). Ahmed Obaid Al Qaseer, Chief Operating Officer, Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) said, “The new adventure park, being first of its kind in the UAE, will provide a set of completely different experiences for off-roading enthusiasts and adventure lovers and will give more reasons to explore Sharjah’s central region.” Saoud Al Kaabi, Director and Partner, XQuarry Off-Road and Adventure Park said, “I love the silence and tranquility of the desert and mountains especially after busy days on film …

Radisson Hotel Group has started moving towards normality with a host of expansion and opening announcements over the past months. From the first Radisson RED in the region to making history with the appointment of the world’s first female Saudi General Manager in the hospitality industry, Radisson Hotel Group looks back on a year of mixed emotions and many great achievements. Looking back at 2020, Radisson Hotel Group has announced more than 40 new hotel signings across EMEA, five of which comprising 1,500 keys fall within the Middle East region. With that in mind, Radisson Hotel Group is confident that travel will continue to rebound, and more capital will be invested in the industry from both the private and public sectors. While customer preferences, financial markets, and real estate dynamics may evolve, the group continues to put their owners and guests at the heart of its initiatives. While many hotel groups have put their development plans on hold, Radisson Hotel Group and its shareholders have remained committed towards their ambitions. The group remains focused on its  mission to be recognized as one of the top three hotel brands in the world and the brand of choice for owners, guests, and talent. The recently announced signings re-affirm the group’s commitment to its owners, employees, guests, and partners and further strengthens its global scale of over 1,100 hotels in operation and another 300 in the pipeline. Elie Milky, Vice President Business Development Middle East, Cyprus, Greece and Pakistan said, “Moving forward we aim to continue expanding our brand architecture covering all product types and hospitality models as we strengthen our presence across the Middle East, primarily through conversions. We have a very …

Dubai Airshow 2021 will serve as a platform to showcase the role of cutting edge technologies in bolstering the recovery of the aviation, aerospace and defence industries following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on those sectors. The impact of the pandemic has accelerated the use of new technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, cybersecurity, touchless solutions, 5G, robotics, and automation. These solutions serve as a means to drive new opportunities within the industry and enhance safety, operations, productivity and profitability. As part of Dubai Airshow 2021, aerospace companies from across the world will launch and exhibit their latest technologies and innovations to promote the sector’s growth in the region and the world. The event will also include conference programmes dedicated to the topics of AI, 5G, and cybersecurity. Commenting on its partnership with VISTA at Dubai Airshow 2021, Elodie Robin-Guillerm from Gothams said, “The start-up ecosystem is thriving not just with ideas, but also with innovative startups and investors looking to help businesses scale up and expand. Dubai Airshow 2021 will be an important, in-person, platform for understanding the role of innovation, cutting-edge solutions and services for the future growth of the aerospace sectors. It will be the only live event of its kind this year and we look forward to collaborating with the wider industry to help showcase the power of technology for its future.”

Dubai International (DXB) further bolstered its connectivity to the subcontinent with the launch of the US-Bangla Airlines flights between the Bangladeshi capital city of Dhaka and Dubai. The inaugural flight from Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport arrived at DXB’s Terminal 2 at 2240 hours on Monday with 140 passengers. The airline will operate daily flights between the two destinations on a 164-seat capacity Boeing 737-800 aircraft. The Dhaka-Dubai route recorded a traffic of 850,000 passengers in 2019.

Thales has successfully delivered the phase 1 of the new Bahrain International Airport as part of this important modernization project. Built in two phases, the Bahrain International Airport expansion covers 210,000 square meters, quadrupling the size of the existing terminal and increasing its capacity to 14 million passengers a year. The project is in an important step in achieving Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030 and aims to cement Bahrain’s reputation as a leading aviation hub in the region. Through centralizing the management of Airport operations, Bahrain International Airport is guaranteed a high level of business continuity and traffic flow within the airport. This will also lead to reduced waiting times while ensuring the best possible safety conditions, improving passenger experience and increasing infrastructure performance. Thales solutions also enable the production of relevant performance indicators (KPIs) to inform decision-makers in real time and make the organization more efficient. “We have ensured that Bahrain International Airport has been equipped with the latest smart and innovative solutions. This guarantees optimum protection for passengers, staff and facilities, and meets the demand for enhanced security at the new airport by Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications and Bahrain Airport Company. Thales’s strength in innovation and digital technologies perfectly positions the group to become a preferred partner for aerospace, transportation and public security, the pillars of Bahrain’s smart city ambition,” Alain Correia, Managing Director, Thales Bahrain.

Vision-Box announces a strategic partnership with U.S.-based digital identity innovator, Airside Mobile, best known for the Mobile Passport App. The partnership offers an enhanced safe, secure, and touchless platform for all stakeholders along the travel experience involved in managing verified identity credentials, including trusted health data. With more than nine million satisfied members, Airside’s digital identity network enhances seamless travel. The Airside Digital Identity App provides a convenient single enrollment for travelers to add their credentials (e.g. passports, driving licenses, COVID lab results) to their mobile device using biometric source-verification. Travelers may choose to share their credentials according to their specified time-bound conditions at a multitude of digital and physical authentication points. Enrolled information is only stored on the traveler’s encrypted device, thereby reducing costs and liability for businesses and organizations who may have previously stored sensitive data on siloed databases. Speaking about the partnership, Jeff Lennon, VP – Strategic Sales and Global Partnerships at Vision-Box, said, “We are absolutely delighted to start the new year by announcing our strategic partnership with Airside, a very important ally for the company in expanding personalized experiences on the Orchestra platform. Airside also shares our commitment to enhancing safe passenger travel journeys, and with this partnership we will be able to deliver world class privacy-by-design solutions to our clients across the world, starting with the USA.” Jessica Patel, Chief Revenue Officer at Airside, said, “What I especially appreciate about our partnership with Vision-Box is that the traveler is at the center of the journey, where they ought to be, breezing through online and in-person check points without any long lines or crowding. Our private and secure technologies fit together naturally, providing peace-of-mind for …