The Ascott Limited (Ascott) celebrates the opening of its eighth property in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) with the launch of Citadines Abha, in partnership with Almutlaq Real Estate Investment Co. The 140-unit apart’hotel marks the sixth regional opening for the group this year, as it forges ahead with its tenacious expansion plans for the Middle East, Africa and Turkey. Citadines Abha takes Ascott’s operational footprint to 1,062 keys in KSA, and 2,391 across the region. Nestled 7,450 feet above sea level in the mountainous district of Abha, the property overlooks the majestic Asir Mountains and provides residents and visitors with the perfect recluse from bustling city-life. It offers easy access to Abha’s vibrant leisure excursions, including shopping malls, restaurants, and entertainment hubs in close proximity, and is located just 6 kms away from the Abha Regional Airport. Aesthetically designed to optimise living spaces, Citadines Abha encapsulates the ideal adventurous and relaxing experience. With subtle hues of mustard yellow and inspiring modern Arabesque patterns, each apartment is equipped with spacious living spaces, stylish dining areas, sophisticated kitchenettes and scenic floor-to-ceiling windows. Featuring a variety of elegant apartments which cater to the needs of every traveller, the stellar property offers chic studio apartments for the adventure seekers and solo explorers; while business travellers can book their stay in the premium one-bedroom apartments; parallelly, family and friends can relax and unwind during their stay in the lavish two-bedroom apartments. The urban property is also home to world-class amenities, including a swimming pool, gymnasium, resident’s lounge, restaurant, meeting rooms and a business centre. Mr. Vincent Miccolis, Ascott’s Managing Director for the Middle East, Africa, Turkey and India, says: “Saudi Arabia continues to …

The capital city of Germany, Berlin, is set to benefit from enhanced connectivity to over 150 destinations, courtesy of the World’s Best Airline, Qatar Airways. Following the increase in services from daily flights to initially 10 and further rising to 11 weekly flights from Berlin Brandenberg Airport, German passengers can enjoy flights on the state of the art Boeing 787 aircraft, to global business cities including Mumbai, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo plus leisure destinations including Bali, Maldives, Seychelles and South Africa. Qatar Airways has been steadfast in its support of Germany with flights from three airports in the country – Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich – as it maintained services to 2 cities and helped bring almost 25,000 passengers safely home to Germany in the early days of the pandemic. In a further demonstration of its strong cooperation with Berlin, the airline was chosen to operate the first flight to arrive at the new Southern Runway at Brandenberg Airport on 4 November, 2020. Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: “We have continuously supported the German market to ensure stronger connectivity to our passengers, allowing them to have one stop services to so many global destinations. We have made huge efforts to provide options to our passengers in Germany and by increasing our Berlin schedule to 11 flights per week, we now operate 46 flights per week to Doha from our three gateways. “Our passengers in Germany benefit enormously from having not just a world class product from the only Skytrax Five Star Airline in Europe and the Middle East, but a greater choice of destinations, all connected through Hamad International Airport, recently voted the World’s …

RezLive.com hosted two networking events, firstly in Muscat, followed by Bahrain which was attended by leading local travel agents and tour operators. The purpose of the event was to thank the local travel industry for its consistent support and to inform travel partners about the additional benefits of working with RezLive.com. Real business discussions, a flow of knowledge and information, and a few feedbacks and suggestions took place throughout the session. Jaal Shah (Group Managing Director – Travel Designer Group), firstly expressed his gratitude to the local travel partners for the resounding support they have received from the respective local markets. He also stressed the significance of maintaining and bolstering the strong foundation they share with RezLive.com. Last but not least, he added, we at RezLive.com (A Product of Travel Designer Group) recognise the value of our travel partners and work tirelessly to provide them with cutting-edge services that will simplify their tasks. Zaheer Jeddy, Deputy Regional Manager, updated the travel partners with innovative offerings from RezLive.com and at the same time oriented them about An Exclusive Loyalty program i.e “rezREWARDS”, which was appraised by the local travel partners and they look forward to continuing their support and business cooperation to RezLive.com (Preferred B2B Global Travel Wholesaler).      

Wego and Indonesia Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy collaborate to revive tourism to Bali. The all-time favorite destination, Bali, is welcoming tourists in the new norm. Bali is a country of diverse landforms. It has been one of the top honeymoon destinations or holiday spots. Bali has everything for adventure enthusiasts and the solo traveler in search of tranquility, ranging from waterfalls to nightclubs to treks. Through Wego’s vast user base in MENA, Indonesia Tourism Board will be able to promote its destination and Bali specifically to drive more bookings. To revive tourism post covid, Indonesia has launched an exhibition with the theme “It’s time for Bali”. To welcome tourists to the country, Bali offers Visa on arrival to 72 countries. Countries from the middle east like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait have also been added to this list. Alongside, other nationalities’ visitors must apply for the B211A Visit Visa for 60 days. The primary purpose of easing travel to Indonesia is to encourage tourism and attract foreign exchange into the country. Mamoun Hmedan, Chief Commercial Officer and Managing Director, Middle East, North Africa (MENA) and India of Wego, said: “We are expanding our partnerships to cover more destinations and offer our users more choice. Indonesia and particularly Bali is a hot spot for many travellers, especially from the MENA region. We look forward to working with the Indonesia Tourism Board to bring more travellers to the country.” According to a recent study, Indonesia is set to welcome over 900,000 tourists by the end of this quarter. The government is helping curb the spread of covid-19 spread by keeping the highest vaccination rates in Bali and …

Etihad Guest, loyalty programme of Etihad Airways in partnership with Mashreq, has launched a points transfer programme for members to benefit from. Members can now convert Mashreq Salaam Points into Etihad Guest Miles with a conversion ratio of 22 Salaam Points for every 1 Etihad Guest Mile. Etihad Guest members can simply visit the authorised Mashreq Mobile app to convert Salaam points into Etihad Guest Miles. Members who transfer Salaam Points to Etihad Guest before 20 July 2022 can enjoy 20% extra Bonus Miles as an introductory offer. Kim Hardaker, Vice President Loyalty & Partnerships, Etihad Airways, said: “We’re excited to partner with Mashreq Bank so our Etihad Guest members can now transfer Salaam Points into our programme. The collaboration is designed to both encourage new customers and allow existing loyalty members to reap more benefits from partnering with two strong local brands. Members benefit by accelerating towards their next reward, whether they choose to redeem on flights with Etihad Airways and our 20 partner airlines, upgrades and so much more.” Etihad’s loyalty programme has relaxed its mileage expiration policy. Mashreq card holders can now benefit from miles that will only expire after 18 months of inactivity, and can be kept active by buying, earning, redeeming, or transferring miles. Kartik Taneja, Head of Payments at Mashreq, said: “As the travel industry continues to chart a positive course of recovery, we are delighted to introduce instant redemption of Salaam Points for the award-winning Etihad Guest Miles loyalty program, where the conversion can be completed swiftly and seamlessly via our Mashreq Mobile app. Our vision to become the region’s most progressive bank, enabling innovative possibilities, involves helping our customers take instant journeys …

Qatar Airways will be increasing its Doha – Melbourne flights from the current once-daily schedule to double-daily flights from 1 October with the support of the Victorian Government. The airline and the Victorian Government signed a strategic agreement to increase connectivity to Melbourne to further boost trade and tourism. Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: “Melbourne is the original home for Qatar Airways in Australia, and we are excited to enhance our operations there, as a testament to both strong demand and our deep commitment to Australia. We look forward to welcoming more passengers to experience our five-star hospitality, as travel to and from Melbourne to many cities worldwide via our Doha hub in Qatar. The launch of the additional daily flight to Melbourne ahead of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ will allow more football fans travel to attend their respective matches.” Minister for Industry Support and Recovery, Ben Carroll, said: “Backing international aviation supports our economy and we will continue to work with airlines like Qatar Airways to establish and expand routes into Melbourne to boost local jobs.” Melbourne Airport Chief Executive Officer, Lorie Argus, said: “There is huge demand for international travel out of Melbourne, and these extra services couldn’t come at a better time with the soccer World Cup kicking off in November. It’s exciting to see airlines like Qatar Airways adding more capacity into Melbourne, given they are a global airline and could send their aircraft anywhere it’s a huge vote of confidence in our city. Qatar Airways is already a favourite with passengers heading to the Middle East or Europe, and given their partnerships with both Virgin Australia …

Emirates and Air Canada announced the signing of a strategic partnership agreement that will create more options for customers when travelling on the carriers’ networks while also enhancing the customer experience throughout the journey. Emirates and Air Canada intend to establish a codeshare relationship later in 2022 that will offer enhanced consumer travel choices for Air Canada customers to travel to the United Arab Emirates and to destinations beyond Dubai. Emirates customers will also enjoy an enhanced travel experience when travelling to Toronto or to key destinations across the Air Canada network. Customers will have the ability to book connecting travel between both airlines’ networks with the ease of a single ticket, seamless connectivity at the carriers’ respective global hubs and baggage transfers to their final destinations. Sir Tim Clark, President Emirates Airline said: “This is a significant partnership that will enable our customers access to even more destinations in Canada and the Americas, via our Toronto and US gateways. It also opens up many new route combinations for travelers across Emirates’ and Air Canada’s extensive networks in the Americas, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. We are pleased to partner with Air Canada, one of North America’s most established airlines and Canada’s flag carrier and we look forward to jointly progressing on various areas to provide even better customer flight choices and experiences.” “As we continue pursuing our strategy of expanding our global reach in response to growing opportunities in VFR markets (Visit Friends and Relatives) that serve Canada’s large multicultural communities, we are very pleased to form a strategic partnership with Emirates, a highly respected flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates with a hub in the vibrant …

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has revealed the Travel & Tourism sector in Saudi Arabia is expected to grow at an average of 11% annually over the next decade, making it the fastest growing Travel & Tourism in the Middle East. According to the forecast from WTTC’s latest Economic Impact Report (EIR), this annual growth, more than six times the 1.8% growth rate of the country’s overall economy, will bolster the economic recovery of the Kingdom. By 2032, the Travel & Tourism sector’s contribution to GDP could reach nearly SAR 635 billion, representing 17.1% of the total economy. The forecast also reveals Travel & Tourism employment could double over the next 10 years, creating more than 1.4 million jobs, to reach almost three million employed within the sector by 2032. The projections for both employment and the sector’s contribution to the Kingdom’s economy, surpass the ambitious goals set out by the government’s Vision 2030 strategic framework. By 2023, following two years of heartache, Saudi Arabia’s Travel & Tourism sector’s contribution to the national economy could surpass pre-pandemic levels, when it is projected to rise 2% above 2019 levels, to reach nearly SAR 297 billion. Employment in the sector could also exceed 2019 levels by 14.1%, creating more than 223,000 additional jobs, representing nearly more than 1.8 million by the end of next year. By the end of this year, the sector’s contribution to GDP is expected to grow 15.2% to nearly SAR 223 billion, amounting to 7.2% of the total economic GDP, while employment in the sector is set to grow by 16.1% to reach more than 1.5 million jobs. According to the global tourism body, the Kingdom, …

Gulf Travel Show is back with its fifth edition on 28-29 September 2022. The show promises to focus on sustainable travel and keep the spotlight on best practices in the industry. Back by popular demand, Gulf Travel Show (GTS) 5.0 is focusing on connecting industry players virtually while demonstrating its commitment to sustainability. SanJeet, Mentor, Gulf Travel Show, shared, “The fifth edition brings with it a variety of new features as we have specialised days for VIPs and networking dedicated to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. As the Kingdom looks at tourism promotions with recent opening of its borders, KSA continues to show prowess towards achieving their 2030 vision on sustainability. Our main purpose is to ensure collaboration between destinations, hotels and travel professionals, who are committed to their role in taking the next steps to promote travel. We hope that this edition will bring in all the necessary networking between industry partners and look forward to conducting a bigger and better digital event.” GTS, a digital initiative that emerged during the pandemic, provides a new way to connect with the trade. In this edition, GTS has decided that its panel discussions would focus on sustainable travel practices and showcase sustainability as its main theme. With an impressive line-up of speakers planned, the knowledge sessions are sure to keep the audience engaged. An important feature of the GTS this time is the pre-scheduled meetings. The travel show has gone a step further and introduced features dedicated to accommodate requests by the travel fraternity.

The first phase of the Diriyah Gate Development Authority’s (DGDA) master plan has been awarded platinum-level precertification for the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) accreditation by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). The USGBC’s LEED certification is a globally recognised, prestigious symbol of sustainability achievement and leadership, providing a framework for healthy, efficient and cost-saving green buildings and is the world’s most widely known sustainability certification scheme. Jerry Inzerillo, Group CEO, DGDA, commented: “I am thrilled that our efforts have been recognised by the LEED precertification as climate and nature-related considerations are at the heart of our development. With regenerative tourism and a people first development at the epicenter of our philosophy, we want to ensure that Diriyah is a shining example when it comes to sustainability standards internationally, and will result in a highly liveable, pedestrian city. Diriyah is the ultimate wellspring and source of a civilization, and our sustainable approach, rooted in a reverence of the city’s past and origins, has now been authenticated by this major accolade and proof point.” Mohamed Saad, Acting DevCo President DGDA, stated: “The significance of Diriyah’s preliminary LEED accreditation cannot be overstated and has involved input from every portion of DGDA. Thanks to this large collaborative effort, we are well on our way to demonstrating to the world that our development is comprehensively sustainable at every level.” LEED certification can be achieved at different levels: the building, neighbourhood, community and city levels. The first phase of the Diriyah development has targeted the certification at both the building and city levels. The precertification of LEED for buildings and cities at a platinum level shows that the development has sustainability at …