At the 10th Arab-China Business Conference in Riyadh, Fahd Hamidaddin, Saudi Tourism Authority CEO shared that the collaborative events to reinforce the strong bonds between China and Saudi, has unveiled untapped opportunities, propelling business growth. “We have multiple visa offerings for Chinese travelers, all offered online. Today we have a 50,000-seat capacity direct from Guangzhou, we are also expecting to operate from Beijing in August – another direct route – and SAUDIA has signed a digital transformation agreement with Accenture. Accenture is expecting to offer an additional 32 digital services on their system and today we have 26 agreements in place with online Chinese travel agencies. However, when you reach the destination, you want authenticity. That’s why we say digitize the expected and humanize the unexpected. While we are digitizing the services that provide seamless experiences and journeys, we need to remain true to Arabia, uniquely Saudi and authentically local in every destination visitors go to in Saudi.”  

Massar Solutions (Massar) based in the United Arab Emirates, opened its first office in Saudi Arabia. This strategic move marks a significant milestone in Massar’s ongoing expansion across the Middle East, as it aims to become the largest vehicle leasing and mobility group in the region. With its deep expertise in mobility solutions, Massar Solutions has established itself as a trusted partner for businesses and individuals seeking reliable and efficient automotive services. The decision to expand into Riyadh aligns perfectly with Massar’s vision of providing comprehensive vehicle leasing, rental, passenger transport, logistics, and automotive technologies to corporate, government, and consumer markets throughout the Middle East. Massar is thrilled to reveal that it has already secured its first strategic customer account for vehicle leasing in Saudi Arabia, partnering with a large well-known entity. This collaboration demonstrates the diverse range of industries that can benefit from Massar’s flexible and tailored mobility solutions. Richard Sikkel, CEO of Massar Solutions, expressed his enthusiasm for the company’s expansion strategy, saying, “We are extremely proud to establish our presence in Riyadh, a city known for its vibrant business environment and dynamic market. This step solidifies Massar’s commitment to providing cutting-edge mobility services to the Middle Eastern region. By leveraging our significant market experience, we are poised to introduce leading solutions that will revolutionize the way individuals and businesses approach mobility in the Kingdom.” Mr. Eric van Vliet, Managing Director of Saudi Arabia, commented, “The opening of our office in Saudi Arabia represents a significant milestone for Massar Solutions in the Middle East. We are excited to bring our extensive range of mobility solutions to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and we look forward to partnering with …

Air Arabia announced the launch of their newest City Check-in facility in Muweilah, opposite Al Madinah Shopping Centre in Sharjah. Aiming at providing passengers with enhanced convenience and flexibility in their travel experience, the city check-in service will allow travellers to drop off their bags and collect their boarding pass at a location near them across the Emirates. This service is designed to simplify the pre-flight process, save time and avoid queues at the airport allowing passengers to proceed directly to their flight upon arrival at the airport. The Muweilah facility operates daily from 10 am to 10 pm. Passengers have the convenience of checking in and dropping off their luggage within 24 hours up until 8 hours prior to flight departure. Similar to airport amenities, passengers can also access services such as purchasing additional baggage allowance, selecting preferred seats, or making changes to their flight arrangements. Passengers flying from Sharjah International Airport can visit any of the 6 City Check-in facilities located in Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah, Ajman and Al Ain. Air Arabia remains dedicated to delivering exceptional customer service and innovative solutions to its passengers. The launch of the new City Check-In facility aligns with the airline’s commitment to provide affordable and value-added offerings that cater to the evolving needs of its customers.

Minor Hotels announces the expansion of its luxury Anantara brand in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with its upcoming debut in Trojena, the unique year-round mountain destination in NEOM. Situated at the heart of NEOM, 50 kilometres from the Gulf of Aqaba coast, and with a high elevation up to 2,600 metres, Trojena will be home to the Gulf’s first outdoor ski resort, staging world-class sporting events, art exhibitions, concerts, and cultural festivals. With its central location, mountain landscape and surrounded by nature, Trojena will redefine luxury living and travel offerings as a global sanctuary of well-being. Like the rest of NEOM, Trojena will be powered by renewable energy while sustainably protecting the region’s rich cultural and environmental heritage. The new 270-key Anantara resort will offer a selection of guest rooms and suites, including some with private pools, and all with spectacular lake or mountain views. Dining options will include two specialty restaurants, an all-day dining restaurant with a show kitchen, a café and high tea lounge, in addition to a rooftop majlis café. Curating personal travel experiences for discerning travellers with a wide scope of interests, the property will be home to a multitude of facilities. These include an Anantara Spa with separate male and female wet areas and treatment rooms plus multiple hammams, a fitness centre, a spectacular infinity pool with mountain and lake views, a star gazing deck, an outdoor cinema, kids and teens clubs, and a sports and activity pavilion with a wide range of activities including padel tennis, camel and horse riding, and guided walks around the lake and mountain area. It will also be accessible via helicopter, with its own on-site helipad, while meeting …

Etihad Airways is increasing its flight frequency between Abu Dhabi and Rome from seven to 11 times per week. The four extra services will commence on 4 November 2023, providing business and leisure travellers with better access and convenience through double-daily connections between the Italian and UAE capitals on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. “We’re delighted to announce the expansion of our Rome service, which underscores our commitment to providing more flexibility and better travel options to our guests in Italy, the UAE and across our network,” said Arik De, Chief Revenue Officer at Etihad Airways. “Rome is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, and with over two millennia of history and culture, and countless attractions from the Colosseum to the Vatican City and the Roman Forum, it’s easy to see why. “With Etihad Airways increasing its Rome flight frequency, visitors from the UAE will now have even more opportunities to get a taste of la dolce vita or connect onwards to one of 45 Italian, European or Americas destinations with our codeshare partner ITA Airways. “Our second Rome service has also been timed to provide optimised local flight times for those visiting Abu Dhabi, with an evening departure and a convenient morning arrival that allows for maximised time in the capital.” Travellers can enjoy world-class service and comfort onboard Etihad’s flights between Rome and Abu Dhabi, operated on a fleet of state-of-the-art Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft with 28 seats in Business and 262 seats in Economy. With this increase in frequency, Etihad Airways is creating more opportunities for Italian travellers to explore the Emirati capital and connect on to other exciting destinations in East Asia, …

The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International Middle East (HSMAI ME) is bringing back its high-impact ROC ME Commercial Strategy Conference for its sixth annual congregation. Held on November 28 and 29, 2023, at the Conrad Dubai Hotel, this exclusive event brings together the brightest minds in the Middle East hospitality industry to provide an unrivalled platform for knowledge sharing and network building. Under the banner of Connect, Evolve and Lead, this year’s must-visit event will harness the knowledge and expertise of the region’s hospitality leaders while also shining a spotlight on the industry’s future frontrunners, inviting you to meet and mingle with the hoteliers of today and tomorrow in a dynamic and enlightening format. Attendees at this year’s conference will have the chance to hear from the top industry thought-leaders, game-changers, motivational speakers, innovators and disruptors, who will take to the stage to host informative and inspirational talks. Dedicated sessions will focus on collaboration and innovation, including how to ensure Marketing, Sales & Revenue Management relationships work hand-in-hand. Attendees will also discover the latest tools and metrics to help implement their strategies, and have the chance to measure their current strategies to ensure they align with global benchmarks and ever-evolving market trends. Over the course of the two days, participants will have the opportunity broaden their network by engaging with exceptional leaders and hoteliers, HSMAI ROC Middle East’s Advisory Board members, General Managers, Marketers, Operations, Sales, and Revenue Management teams. As the only Commercial Strategy Conference for the industry in the Middle East, the ROC ME Commercial Strategy Conference leads the way for education, insights, connections, and inspiration – with curated events created by hoteliers for hoteliers. HSMAI Middle …

Dubai Airports is working with its key service partners to ensure that pilgrims travelling to Saudi Arabia for the upcoming Hajj pilgrimage have a smooth and seamless start to their journey at Dubai International (DXB). Saudia will be operating the first official Hajj flight from DXB Terminal 1 on June 22. As part of the steps taken by Dubai Airports to improve operational efficiency and maintain service levels from the kerb to the boarding gates during the Hajj season, dedicated counters have been allocated at check-in, passport control and security. Special departure gates have also been arranged for accommodating Hajj flights. Mohammed Al Marzouqi, Head of Hajj Committee at Dubai airport, urged all travellers to arrive at Dubai International (DXB) four hours before their scheduled flight departure to complete all travel procedures comfortably. In addition, he advised Hajj travellers to ensure the validity of all their travel documents, including passport, Emirates ID, and Hajj permit prior to arriving at the airport.   “It will get quite busy in the coming weeks as the Hajj season coincides with the summer travel peak, but the teams at DXB have completed the necessary planning and preparation to meet and exceed the expectations of our guests. We are ready to give the Hajj pilgrims a special welcome this year”, he said. While Dubai Airports is working closely with airlines, control authorities, and commercial and service partners to make the airport experience seamless, travellers can follow a few simple tips to smoothen their journey through the airport. Be aware of the latest travel regulations and ensure that you have all the necessary documents with the required validity before reaching the airport. For those travelling with …

Jordan welcomed 4.6 million tourists in 2022, close to the 4.8 million recorded in 2019, with receipts from tourism totaling US$5.8 billion for the year. UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili met with HRH Crown Prince Al Hussein to congratulate him on the “rapid and remarkable” recovery of Jordanian tourism. The Secretary-General also commended the strong support shown to tourism by the Jordanian Royal Family and the Government, including for ongoing work to diversify the sector.

“We anticipate that guests from the UAE, KSA, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman will be exploring the multiple trip potential to the UK that the new ETA offers over the course of two years for just 10 gbp. With our recent extensive renovation and extremely flexible room spaces which cater to large families and multi-generational travel, not to mention our larger-than-average suites which exist in their own boutique hotel experience – we are ready to re-welcome those GCC travellers who are looking for to make us their home away from home on multiple trips to the UK,” comments Bill Fisher, general manager, Hilton London Metropole;  the largest Hilton property in the UK (second largest worldwide). Hilton London Metropole has welcomed the UK Government announcement this week regarding a new Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme which will roll out at the end of 2023 and early 2024. The new ETA will allow multiple trips to the UK across two years for just 10GBP. “We’re delighted about the recent announcement from the UK Government regarding the new Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme for many of our key target markets in the Middle East which will come into play in early 2024; and for Qatari travellers at the end of this year. The new scheme will make it even easier for GCC travellers to visit the UK. Having recently undergone an extensive multi-million-pound revamp which was completed with the GCC traveller in mind, the central-London located property has 16 Executive King Suites,  four Octogan Suites and an incredible three-bed penthouse which offers London skyline views, all existing within a boutique hotel set up but benefiting from large scale property services such as 24/7 …

Saudi announces new instant e-visa options that from today, will facilitate UK, US, and Schengen visas holders, as well as permanent residents of UK, US, and any EU country to obtain tourist e-visas to Saudi through www.mofa.gov.sa. Saudi has previously extended regulation to provide visas on arrival to the six categories, this is just the latest step as Saudi makes it easier than ever for visitors to experience the authentic home of Arabia and contribute to Saudi’s vision of reaching 100 million visits annually by 2030.  Since opening to tourism in 2019, Saudi has become one of the fastest-growing tourism markets globally, recording 93.5 million visits in 2022. This achievement is a result of the tremendous efforts of destinations across Saudi in providing visitors with unparalleled experiences and a seamless travel journey. Saudi Tourism Authority is accelerating efforts to make it easier for visitors from across the world to travel to Saudi. Through digitization, Saudi is increasing accessibility and connectivity, providing simplified entry routes to visitors, focused on enabling all travelers to enjoy our natural and cultural diversity. The new instant e-visa is among several initiatives that Saudi has launched over the past year to improve the visitor experience. In 2022, Saudi Tourism Authority launched the Nusuk platform in collaboration with the Pilgrim Experience Program. Nusuk, Saudi’s first ever official integrated digital platform, provides pilgrims and visitors an easy-to-use planning gateway for their journeys to Makkah, Madinah, and beyond. Saudi has previously extended regulation to provide visas on arrival to holders of valid US, UK, and Schengen visas as well as permanent residents of UK, US, and any EU country and e-visa eligibility was extended to residents of the GCC.  …