As demand grows during the summer holiday season, Oman Air has increased the weekly number of flights from its Muscat hub, offering 10 flights to Bangkok, 7 flights to Kuala Lumpur, 5 flights to Manila, and 4 flights to Jakarta, providing more options to discover an array of cities and experiences across Southeast Asia. The additional flights offer greater convenience and connectivity for Oman Air guests to discover more than 40 other exciting destinations in Southeast Asia and Australia. Oman Air is optimizing its network through increased cooperation with alliance partners to link passengers to more locations as quickly and as seamlessly as possible. This will result in increased travel connections and an expanded network of destinations. Oman Air currently has four partner airlines in Southeast Asia, allowing guests to fly to 44 destinations across Southeast Asia and Australia from Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta. In total, Oman Air has entered into strategic codeshare agreements with 18 different partner airlines. These agreements enable Oman Air to market 229 different sectors, which, when combined with the 45 sectors that the airline itself operates, brings the total number of sectors it serves to 274. Oman Air is renowned for its exceptional award-wining products and services, both in the air and on the ground, and for the signature Omani hospitality accessible to guests on every flight. The airline offers wide-body service, including the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and Airbus A330, between Muscat and destinations in Southeast Asia. Guests departing Oman should ensure that they are aware of all pre-departure requirements and requirements during their flights, in addition the updated flight times and schedule which are provided at omanair.com

The first and biggest world-class shopping destination in Thailand, bringing together all-encompassing shopping, dining, attractions, and entertainment options, it is a one-stop location for all a tourist could need in the Thai capital. Siam Paragon is an ultimate lifestyle destination in Thailand. With Thailand re-opening its doors to the world in recent months, it is better now than ever to plan a trip to this majestic Asian nation. Located in the heart of Bangkok, this unrivalled shopping mall is a must visit locale in the Land of Smiles. The mall features extensive shopping options including the world’s most luxury fashion outlets, top quality food vendors, amazing attractions, and convenient accommodation choices in Siam Kempinski. Offering many services for UAE residents including prayers rooms, free WIFI throughout the whole mall, and a superb tourist card that gives guests incredible discount in several outlets, it really has it all for tourists to Thailand’s capital. The mall has gathered stores, places of entertainment, tourist check-ins, as well as world-class restaurants into one location, delivering unique experiences. Siam Paragon also includes the lavish Dii Aesthetics, the biggest aquarium on the Southeast Asian mainland in SEALIFE Bangkok, a range of local and international culinary options from popular street food to Michelin Star quality, and a whole host of high-quality shopping choices.   Siam Paragon has recently been recognised for its brilliance as a luxury lifestyle destination by receiving some highly coveted awards. The superb mall was the recipients of multiple awards within the last year including “Best Luxury Mall 2022”, “TripAdvisor’s Traveler Choice 2022” and “Best SHA award” from the Thai government for their efforts during the pandemic, which really shows how it embodies the …

Etihad Airways announced the extension of its flights between Abu Dhabi and Zanzibar to 14 January 2023. The service will continue to be operated at the current schedule of three times weekly until 26 November, when a fourth weekly flight will be introduced for the end of year holidays. The flights will be operated on modern Airbus A320 aircraft, providing travellers with a range of travel options to the popular Indian Ocean archipelago throughout the week. Martin Drew, Senior Vice President Global Sales & Cargo, said: “Zanzibar is an incredible destination and Etihad looks forward to welcoming more travellers on their way to experience the natural splendour of its islands. “Our seasonal Zanzibar flights have proven extremely popular with guests from the UAE and across Europe, especially Austria, Germany, Switzerland, France and Italy, and Etihad is on track the pass the 10,000-passenger milestone over the next few weeks.” Etihad’s seasonal Zanzibar service this year was launched on 17 June and initially scheduled to operate until 18 September before being extended throughout 2022.

In order to change business as usual, the city’s design will be completely digitized, and the construction industrialized to a large degree by significantly advancing construction technologies and manufacturing processes. The announcement of THE LINE’s designs is a continuation of NEOM’s progress in the development of its flagship projects such as OXAGON, its reimagined manufacturing and innovation city; and TROJENA, its global mountain tourism destination that will offer the Arabian Gulf’s first outdoor skiing; as well as the launch of two of NEOM’s subsidiaries: ENOWA, its energy, water and hydrogen company; and the NEOM Tech & Digital Company. His Royal Highness Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Chairman of the NEOM Board of Directors, announced the designs of THE LINE, a civilizational revolution that puts humans first, providing an unprecedented urban living experience while preserving the surrounding nature. In January last year, His Royal Highness launched the initial idea and vision of the city that redefines the concept of urban development and what cities of the future should look like. The designs of THE LINE embody how urban communities will be in the future in an environment free from roads, cars and emissions. It will run on 100% renewable energy and prioritize people’s health and well-being over transportation and infrastructure as in traditional cities. It puts nature ahead of development and will contribute to preserving 95% of NEOM’s land. The announcement reveals the most important characteristics of THE LINE, which is only 200 meters wide, 170 kilometers long and 500 meters above sea level. THE LINE will eventually accommodate 9 million residents and will be built on a footprint of 34 square kilometers, which is unheard of when compared to …

The UAE’s flagship racecourse, Meydan, will commence its 2022/2023 season on Friday, 4 November with the first of 21 fixtures, the Dubai Racing Cub announced. This season will see an increase of visitors from across the globe. The events at Meydan Racecourse will culminate in the 2023 edition of the $30.5million Dubai World Cup meeting, one of the world’s biggest horse racing tournaments, set to be held on Saturday, 25 March. Commenting on the announcement, Sheikh Rashid bin Dalmook Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Racing Club, thanked His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nayhan, Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Chairman of the Emirates Racing Authority for the support he has extended to Dubai Racing Cub’s initiatives. “We are delighted to announce an enhanced programme for the 2022/23 racing season in Meydan,” said Sheikh Rashid bin Dalmook. “We thank HH Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed and the ERA team for their support, which has enabled us to enrich the fixture list and create a dynamic new programme that offers greater opportunities for international horses to compete here during the Carnival. “We are also grateful for the support of our local horsemen and women, as well as our loyal racegoers, and look forward to welcoming them back to our iconic Meydan Racecourse for the first of our ‘Racing In Dubai’ meetings on 4 November.” “Dubai continues to introduce initiatives to boost the sector and revitalise the global community of horse owners, trainers and other equestrian professionals. With its deeply-rooted traditions in horse riding, racing, breeding and various equestrian activities, Dubai also continues to be focal point for the global equestrian fraternity,” he added. The build-up to …

With new flight services operating from Frankfurt, Dusseldorf and Munich to Ras Al Khaimah International Airport, the destination strengthens direct connectivity with a major source market. Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority (RAKTDA) announces a new strategic airline partnership connecting the Emirate with major cities in Germany, including Frankfurt, Dusseldorf and Munich. Starting from 1 November 2022, Corendon Airlines will operate seven direct weekly flights to Ras Al Khaimah International Airport, effectively meeting strong demand from Germany. Marking the latest in a series of strategic airline partnerships forged by the Tourism Authority, the new flights cement an important tourism market, delivering a significant weekly increase in visitors to an Emirate popular for its outstanding natural and cultural attributes, global hotel brands, as well as its unrivalled adventure tourism offering and year-round sunshine. The announcement strengthens the Tourism Authority’s ongoing strategy to enhance accessibility and accelerate connectivity by working closely with leading tour operators. Within a five-hour flying time, Germany is already a top five tourism source market for Ras Al Khaimah; the launch of new direct flights to the Emirate is expected to have a significant impact on tourism in the destination. “We’ve seen first-hand the impact of direct connectivity as one of the main drivers of tourism, especially in a post-pandemic period.  We also know that tourists who arrive directly to the destination, stay longer and really take the time to discover our nature emirate,” commented Raki Phillips, Chief Executive Officer, Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority. “He added: “As Ras Al Khaimah’s tourism vision gains momentum, working with valued trade partners and securing new airline alliances builds on this progress, and delivering additional tourism from three major German …

Ajman tourism is set to launch a number of innovative initiatives and projects to enhance the tourism sector as a part of the department’s efforts to showcase Ajman’s natural touristic destinations, and rich heritage, aiming to increase its visibility and attractiveness for visitors from all over the world, and achieve the emirate’s tourism vision. Ajman Museum Smart App – in conjunction with the renovation of the museum to provide a unique interactive experience enhanced with the latest technologies to stimulate all senses, through exhibits explained in Arabic and English, to promote it by providing a detailed audio-guided tour of all sections of the museum and a map of the site, opening times and how to reach the museum. The Visual Identity of Ajman Museum, Masfout Museum, & Al Manama Museum – Ajman Tourism also launched the new visual identity for Ajman Museum, Masfout Museum, & Al Manama Museum, one of its initiatives aimed at preserving the unique heritage of Ajman and present it in a renovated updated look. Moreover, the department unveiled the “Media Hub” which is a digital media library project, and an integrated platform for displaying promotional images and videos for Ajman that is constantly updated, and displayed on a dedicated page within the ADTD’s official website to serve all stakeholders and community, where images and videos can be downloaded, and to eventually become the largest digital archive documenting the main tourist attractions of Ajman. Ajman’s Heritage Path – Ajman Municipality and Planning Department revealed the latest activities of the Heritage Path project, which is located in the Al-Nakhil neighborhood and stretches over 1,025 km, linking heritage buildings starting from the Ajman Museum and the heritage district to …

The Future Hospitality Summit (FHS) will debut in Dubai this September, bringing together the Middle East and Africa’s industry leaders for discussions, deals and insight on the continued growth of the region’s hospitality and tourism sectors. Hosted by Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts and co-organised by The Bench and MEED, FHS brings together the investment communities of the Arabian Hotel Investment Conference (AHIC), Global Restaurant Investment Forum (GRIF) and AviaDev under one roof. Other conference tracks include Sustainability & Innovation, Startup Den and The Future of Human Capital. The three-day summit takes place at Madinat Jumeirah from 19 to 21 September 2022, uniting government leaders, hotel investors, owners, developers and operators to discuss the industry’s hot topics, set the scene for the future and network with elite players in their field. 50 leaders from some of the world’s most dynamic hospitality brands who have confirmed to speak include José Silva, CEO of Jumeirah Group Hotels & Resorts; Puneet Chhatwal, MD and CEO of Indian Hotels Company Limited; Dillip Rajakarier, Group CEO Minor Hotels; Guy Hutchinson, President and CEO at Rotana; Sandeep Walia, Chief Operations Officer at Marriott International; Khalid Anib, CEO of Abu Dhabi National Hotels; Marloes Knippenberg, CEO of Kerten Hospitality; Haitham Mattar, Managing Director MEA & South West Asia at IHG Hotels and Resorts; Dimitris Manikis, President EMEA at Wyndham Hotels, Jochem-Jan Sleiffer, President Middle East, Africa & Turkey at Hilton as well as Chris Newman Executive Director Hotel Development at Neom; Agnès Roquefort, Chief Development Officer at Accor and Elie Younes, Chief Development Officer at Radisson. Among the names representing the global food & beverage investment community – coming together on the first day of FHS for the …

With the aim of promoting tourism within the country, Kuwait tourism is on its way to develop a mega project in Messilah Beach by 2023. The project aims to develop Messilah Beach into an integrated and contemporary facility covering an area of 70,000 square meters, containing recreational and sports activities to meet the needs of visitors of all age groups throughout the year. As a center of attraction for families, the development of the project includes the provision of water games for all ages, in addition to swimming pools, sports and marine games, restaurants, cafes, shops and much more.

Star gazers, camping enthusiasts, leisure and adventure lovers, culture buffs, and families are all set for a memorable summer 2022 surprise as Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) unveils a wide range of unique world-class experiences at incredible value for residents and visitors in the emirate. From exclusive discount packages, buy-one-get-one-free offers, cash prizes, and more, Shurooq has rolled out diverse activities and experiences at its destinations that give more reasons to have fun in the sun this year. Commenting on the 2022 line-up of summer promotions, Mahmoud Rashid Deemas, Director of Operations and Tourism Development at Shurooq, said: “Shurooq’s commitment to providing quality leisure and learning experiences in a safe environment lies at the heart of our carefully curated summer offers, and gives residents and visitors more reasons to explore and enjoy the diverse attractions in the emirate. Sharjah has plenty to offer visitors in the form of attractive deals and offers across our portfolio to fuel interest in new experiences and enhance the emirate’s status as a must-visit destination any time of the year.” Khalid Al Qaseer, Director of Operations, said: “With an exciting array of unique leisure and recreational summer offers at our destinations, Shurooq enables residents and visitors of all ages to enjoy a variety of unparalleled experiences as it builds on the emirate’s status as a leading family-friendly destination in the region. The expansive range of offerings across Shurooq’s destinations this summer combines the best of leisure, entertainment, and education to offer a holistic experience to our growing community and holidaymakers.” Ladies can enjoy pianist performances, Zumba and Live DJ sessions every Tuesday during Ladies Day Season 2022 until September 13. Weekends, from Thursday to …