Emirates has announced it will scale up its A380 operations with the iconic double-decker returning to Glasgow (26 March 2023), Nice (1 June 2023) and Birmingham (1 July 2023). The airline has also announced it will resume its second daily service to Stansted starting from 1 May 2023, utilising its wide-body Boeing 777-300ER aircraft fitted with its renowned ‘Game Changer’ First Class product. With the return of the second daily flight to Stansted, Emirates will ramp up  its operations to London with 11 daily flights, including six times daily to London Heathrow and three times daily to Gatwick. The airline continues to expand its global network and increase capacity in line with growing travel demand. Emirates currently deploys its flagship A380 to 40 destinations worldwide. By the end of this summer, the popular aircraft will be serving almost 50 destinations, restoring close to 90% of the airline’s pre-pandemic A380 network. Emirates is the largest operator of Airbus A380, with more than 80 aircraft currently in active service. The airline first launched A380 operations to Birmingham in 2016; Nice in 2017; and Glasgow in 2019. The first Emirates A380 to be completely refurbished under the airline’s US$ 2 billion retrofit program was deployed earlier this month on the Dubai-London Heathrow service featuring the Premium Economy cabin, and Emirates’ latest cabin interiors including lighter colour palettes in First and Business Class. The airline also plans to ramp up its four-class A380 operations featuring Premium Economy cabins to more than 35 destinations across 20 countries by March 2024. The Emirates A380 is loved by customers for its spacious and comfortable cabins, quietness, and unique on-board features such as the Onboard Lounge and First …

Saudi Arabia registered more international arrivals than any other Arab nation during the first nine months of 2022, as government officials target 100 million annual visitors by the end of this decade. Owing to these unprecedented numbers, the Kingdom’s burgeoning tourism sector will represent a key focus at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2023, which will take place at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) from 1-4 May. This year’s Saudi Summit will take place on the Global Stage and focus on the importance of the Kingdom in reshaping the regional travel and tourism landscape now that mega projects are well under way. In addition to the summit, ATM 2023 will feature a host of Saudi exhibitors, including Saudi Arabian Airlines (SAUDIA), flynas, Makkah Clock Royal Tower, Asma Hospitality Company, Eye of Riyadh, Itrip, Dur Hospitality, Sadana Real Estate Co, Saudi Amad for Airport Services & Transport Support and many more. Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market, said: “The ATM 2023 Saudi Summit will offer an ideal forum in which travel professionals and policymakers from across the Middle East and beyond can explore opportunities and challenges within the Kingdom’s ever-growing tourism sector. “From upcoming giga-developments such as NEOM and the Red Sea Project to how the Kingdom’s latest visa reforms are bolstering its travel sector, we expect Saudi Arabia to represent a major drawcard during the upcoming edition of ATM,” Curtis added. Figures released by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) show that Saudi Arabia attracted more than 18 million inbound visits in the first three quarters of 2022, followed by the United Arab Emirates (14.8 million tourists) and Morocco (11 million tourists), which ranked second and third in …

Under the patronage of Prime Minister H.E. Dr. Bisher Khasawneh, H.E. Sheikh Khalifa Bin Mohammed Bin Khalid Al Nahyan, UAE Ambassador to Jordan, and H.E. Tawfiq Kreishan Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Local Administration in Jordan, inaugurated the first and only cruise terminal in Aqaba, coinciding with the arrival of the cruise vessel MSC Splendida carrying more than 2,000 visitors to Jordan. The new Aqaba Cruise Terminal marks the launch of the first of five strategic mega-projects planned between AD Ports Group – the global facilitator of logistics, industry and trade – and Aqaba Development Corporation to advance the coastal city’s tourism, logistics and transport sectors. H.E. Sheikh Khalifa Bin Mohammed Bin Khalid Al Nahyan and H.E. Kreishan took a tour and were briefed by Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, Managing Director and Group CEO of AD Ports Group, on the facility’s wide array of amenities and services that cater to the needs and expectations of international tourists visiting the Kingdom. The inauguration was attended by H.E. Eng. Nayef Fayez, Chief Commissioner of ASEZA; H.E. Hussein Safadi, CEO of Aqaba Development Corporation; and several senior officials from both sides. Under the agreement with Aqaba Development Corporation, AD Ports Group will develop, manage and operate the Aqaba Cruise Terminal, a world-class facility for international cruise passengers looking to visit Jordan, specifically Aqaba, Petra and Wadi Rum. Over 50 vessels are scheduled to dock at the Aqaba Cruise Terminal over the next four months, bringing tens of thousands of visitors to the popular winter-sun destination. H.E. Sheikh Khalifa Bin Mohammed Bin Khalid Al Nahyan, UAE Ambassador to Jordan, said: “The Aqaba Cruise Terminal is the result of the active cooperation and …

The year kicked off with the largest tourism networking event Fitur which brought together 131 countries with over 120,000 professionals and about 90,000 visitors. It was held  under three themes of the main events revolving around “Tourism, Culture and Heritage”, “Urban Tourism” and the challenges facing the sector following the recovery and the major projects of Turespaña. Daniel Rosado Director Spain Tourism GCC shared, “Most of the Arab countries exhibited their tourist attractions at FITUR, but it is worth highlighting the wide variety of opportunities offered by both the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia.  Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in the framework of their Vision 2030, has started to take historic steps such as the e-visa. For its part, the UAE exhibited at FITUR the boost it has given to the tourism sector over the last five years. In relation to international participation, the strongest growth is recorded in Asia-Pacific (163%), Africa (88%) and the Middle East (60%).” Balaji Ramgopal, COO of Al Arif Sons travel reiterated, “Greetings from Madrid! I am thankful to the UAE Spain Tourism team for the support extended in my trip to attend FITUR event 2023. Our company Al Arif Sons Travel is one of the agencies specialized in curating luxury leisure holidays for UAE national families. At FITUR I was very happy to witness such a mega event after the pandemic. There were more than 7 large pavilions with various destinations representing with exhibiting large stands, flooded with exhibitors and buyers. South American destinations were in big focus due to Spanish speaking Travellers. However, there were big exhibits of Asian and European countries as well. It was a great opportunity to meet some …

Wizz Air  announced resumption of its direct flights to Istanbul, Antalya and Dalaman. The routes will commence as of March 2023 connecting Türkiye with Hungary, Romania, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.  Wizz Air returns to Istanbul after 7 years, and adds four point to point services to Budapest, London Gatwick, London Luton, and Iasi, the earliest flight departing in March already. With these services the airline will be the first ultra-low cost carrier flying from Istanbul airport, providing over 400,000 high quality, but low fare seats to cities around Europe. Wizz Air’s industry leading low emissions and highly sustainable operations will support Istanbul Airport to reach its sustainability goals by operating the modern and sustainable Airbus A321neo aircraft. Besides the new all year round routes to Istanbul, WIZZ launches seasonal point to point services to the Turkish seaside, Dalaman and Antalya, supporting the ramp up of local tourism. Over 300,000 passengers from Abu Dhabi, Bucharest, Budapest, Cluj, Debrecen and London will be able to enjoy the airline’s low fares and high quality direct connections to these amazing resorts. Together with today’s announcement Wizz Air will operate flights to four Turkish airports, providing over 800,000 low-fare seats in 2023. Evelin Jeckel,  Network Officer of Wizz Air, said: “We’re excited to be finally returning to Istanbul with our point to point services and strengthening our presence in Türkiye with the new connections to Dalaman and Antalya, while bringing sustainable, low-cost aviation to Istanbul and to the pearls of the Turkish seaside. We can’t wait to welcome our passengers back onboard our brand-new Airbus A321neo aircraft, as they travel on their long-awaited new routes connecting Türkiye with some of the …

Last weekend, Singapore Airlines and Singapore Tourism Board hosted 126 travel trade partners from the UAE for a special desert safari as their first trade engagement for the year. Travel trade partners were able to enjoy from dune bashing, sand boarding, riding the camel and other memorable experiences amidst being with so many partners whom some met after many years. The event was graced by Consul General of the Republic of Singapore in Dubai Raziff Aljunied. Addressing the trade partners HE Consul General, “first of all I would like to thank all of you for the support that you have rendered to us and for accepting the invitation to attend today’s event put together by Singapore Airlines and Singapore Tourism Board. I would also like to inform that now Singapore is fully open and we are ready for business, it was a trying time for us with covid, but now we are coming back with a vengeance and you can also capitalise with revenge travel as we say, so continue to have Singapore as the top of the mind destination for your travellers.” “It is a pleasure to be back for a trade engagement activity which is of a very unique kind, this is the first time that we are conducting a desert safari trade engagement activity for the past six years, I have never done a trade engagement activity in such a setting. First of all a big thank you to all of you for bringing travellers from the UAE to Singapore. In 2022, Singapore opened in April for international vaccinated travellers without quarantine. So overall in 2022, we have received 6.3million visitors which is above our forecast.” Ashwin …

Emirates has taken yet another significant step in the resumption of its Australia capacity by increasing its service to two major cities – Sydney and Melbourne. The airline will also restart services to Christchurch, New Zealand via Sydney, offering a new path for Australians across the trans-Tasman route. From 26 March, Melbourne will increase from two to three daily services between Emirates’ Dubai hub via Singapore, with a third direct service to also begin to Sydney from 1 May. The service increase follows the airline’s recent announcement around double daily flights to Brisbane, starting from 1 June. The huge boost comes amidst another busy period for air travel and as the airline continues to reaffirm its ongoing commitment to growing its services to and from Australia. The two services will operate on a three-class Boeing-777 300ER offering passengers Economy, Business and First Class seats. By mid-year, Emirates will be operating 63 weekly services to Australia with the capacity to transport more than 55,000 passengers per week to and from its major cities. Melbourne and Sydney will be restored to flying at pre-pandemic levels, a significant milestone in the airline’s reinstatement of Australia services. The uplift in capacity supports the revival of tourism by providing travellers with even more access to and from Australia, as well as bolstering trade and business opportunities with the large 22-tonne freight capacity offered by the Boeing 777-300ER. The newly restored third Dubai-Melbourne service means Emirates is providing a new connectivity option between Singapore and Melbourne to serve strong demand between both cities, as well as offering customers its signature, differentiated product and service experience. The Christchurch service via Sydney, beginning 26 March, will offer the …

‎Qatar Executive (QE), the private jet charter division of the Qatar Airways Group, experienced significant year-over-year (YOY) growth in flight arrivals and departures at their exclusive Premium Terminal FBO during the completion of a historic FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™. Qatar Executive’s FBO, located at Doha International Airport (DIA), saw a record-first YOY increase of 595 per cent for arrivals and 574 per cent for departures between November and December in 2022. Between 18-19 December, after the FIFA World Cup Qatar™ Final, 296 jets departed from DIA. In the lead up to the first FIFA World Cup™ in the Middle East, QE renovated the existing terminal in Doha, revitalising the FBO and thus offering customers a seamless journey both on the ground and on-board. This included upgrading their F&B and baggage handling services, training additional staff members and renovating on-site facilities. Qatar Executive also deployed the latest Wi-Fi and streaming capabilities both within the terminal and onboard their fleet, providing football fans great connectivity to stream the World Cup matches uninterrupted. Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: “Qatar Executive’s operations grew significantly during the World Cup period, demonstrating the division’s robust FBO services, while offering the most advanced flying solutions to valued customers. Qatar Executive’s continuous growth trajectory reflects the trust of our clients and is also a testament to our commitment to innovation and excellence.” In addition, Qatar Executive added 3 more Gulfstream G650ER, with the aircraft type making up 15 of their 19 strong fleet resulting in a 25 per cent growth. This makes QE the world’s largest owner and single commercial operator of the G650ER. The Gulfstream G650ER features a state-of-the-art …

SAUDIA Group is continuing to implement its operational plan for 2023 by boosting its international presence and market share by increase its seating capacity by 40% on high-demand destinations. The ambitious plan aims to expand SAUDIA’s network, connect international visitors with the Kingdom, and strengthen Saudi’s tourism, Hajj, and Umrah sectors. The plan also includes an increase in domestic flights and seating capacity. SAUDIA has allocated over 25.3m seats for international flights in 2023 across almost 90,000 flights, up 40% from 2022. Similarly, seating capacity on domestic flights for 2023 has been increased by about half a million seats to reach over 17.8m seats, with the total number of domestic flights exceeding 102,100. The update to the company’s flight schedule and operations are designed to meet growing customer demand and further increase convenience in flight schedules throughout the year, and in particular during demand-peak seasons. Captain Ibrahim Koshy, CEO of SAUDIA, said: “We plan to build on SAUDIA’s operational success of last year with a strategic plan that further enhances SAUDIA’s reputation for meeting our guests’ needs and delivering performance excellence. Since the beginning of the new year, we have seen steadily increasing demand on already-popular routes. By expanding capacity and enhancing flight schedules SAUDIA is able to offer increased flexibility to customers and better manage its operational requirements in light of the significant challenges facing the aviation industry.” SAUDIA’s operational plan also features a number of new additions to its fleet. New Boeing B787 Dreamliner aircraft, with 24 business class seats and 333 economy class seats, will join SAUDIA’s fleet in 2023, along with the latest Airbus A321NX aircraft, that offer 20 business class seats and 168 economy class …

At a special gathering hosted by Singapore tourism board and Singapore Airlines recently it was shared by GB Srithar – Regional Director, India, Middle East & South Asia – Singapore Tourism Board that international visitor numbers had exceeded their own forecast. Srithar shared, “I’m happy to say that Singapore tourism board remains engaged in this market.  Singapore international visitor numbers reached 6.3 million in 2022, which is 33% of 2019, exceeding our own forecast of last year, which was between 4 to 6million. So at 6.3 million we have exceeded out own forecast. Tourism receipts estimated to have reached 13.8 to 14.3 billion dollars which is above 50 to 52% of 2019 TR. Looking at Middle East market, overall GCC, we welcomed 79,630 which is about 61% of 2019’s IVA and UAE specifically we welcomed 42,970 which is about 35% of 2019 IVA so those are the numbers and the peak months have been July and August last year which registered very strong visitor arrivals and the average length of stay was about 3 to 5 days. In terms of importance of the market, UAE is our number one source market in the region.” He further reiterated, “We continue to welcome visitors from the Middle East, the good thing is that Singapore is very much open, it is quarantine free and you can come to the country and moving around in various places like in Dubai is the same as before. My key overarching message is that Singapore is not only welcoming leisure travellers, as Singapore continues to be a family holiday destination, the Middle East travellers when they come to Singapore learn that its very easy to enjoy in …