The ninth Arab Aviation Summit (AAS), the region’s leading aviation and tourism industry event at Al Hamra International Exhibition & Conference Centre in Ras Al Khaimah, concluded today on an optimistic note with industry stakeholders expecting the region to demonstrate strong recovery. They underlined the need for greater collaboration and open dialogue between governments, regulators and operators to better support the industry’s recovery. They also highlighted the need for greater investment in technology to respond to changing passenger behaviour, which is shifting towards a preference for a seamless and digital experience. Discussions also centred on the importance of sustainability and the role of the industry in achieving Net Zero carbon emissions. In addition, experts highlighted the role of the tourism as a catalyst for economic development and pandemic recovery in the region, addressing the need to support small and medium-sized businesses moving forward. Under the theme of ‘Roadmap to Recovery’, more than 750 international and local industry experts as well as media representatives gathered to discuss a wide array of aviation and tourism topics spread over the 2-day summit. The first day of the AAS (Feb. 28) hosted industry workshops covering various topics related to regional and international practices across tourism, aviation, airports, and other sectors. The second day of the summit (Mar. 1) featured high-profile industry leaders speaking across panel sessions that discussed the state of air transportation and tourism in the Arab world, and its effect on the global economy. Top aviation and tourism leaders gathered to discuss how airlines are thriving in a post-pandemic world, in addition to sharing new operational models and success stories based on their unique expertise and knowledge. Adel Al Ali, Group CEO …

Global Village, the UAE and wider region’s leading multicultural family destination for culture, shopping, and entertainment has announced the launch of a fully digitized, one-stop portal for its travel trade partners through an exciting photography competition with prizes worth AED 40,000 up for grabs. From tickets to world-class attractions like Ripley’s Believe It Or Not!®, Carnaval fun fair and Harbour Force Stunt Show to dining and shopping opportunities, the new travel trade portal has everything needed to tailor the perfect package. With the latest and most up to date information available, it is easy to enhance an exisiting tour or simply introduce the multi-cultural destination to a new itinerary. Jaki Ellenby, Executive Director, Marketing & Events, Global Village, said: “We, at Global Village, are committed to providing enhanced services to our travel trade partners and keeping them up to date on the latest happenings. Our easy-to-navigate, user-friendly portal acts as an enhanced informational hub with customised resources and essential tools where partners can easily book tickets and avail exclusive offers to simplify the travel planning and promotion process. We very much look forward to welcoming all of our partners on board and to working together to make this a great success.” With a click of a button, the easy-to-use platform allows partners to download materials, including images, videos, brochures and offers. It is anticipated that portal will play a pivotal role in building relationships with tour operators, travel agents, and companies thereby allowing them to deliver a more superior, personalized services to their clients whilst raising awareness of Global Village as a top family destination. Register for a chance to win big! To celebrate the launch of the dedicated portal …

flydubai celebrated its inaugural service to AlUla on 02 March, becoming the first national carrier of the UAE to operate flights from Dubai. Yesterday’s inaugural flight arrived at AlUla International Airport (ULH) and was greeted with a traditional water cannon salute, marking the start of a twice-weekly service. On board the inaugural flight was a senior delegation led by Ghaith Al Ghaith, Chief Executive Officer at flydubai, members of the Royal Commission for AlUla, as well as representatives from the UAE media. The delegation was invited to a welcome reception which was followed by a press conference. Speaking at the press conference, Ghaith Al Ghaith, Chief Executive Officer at flydubai, said: “we are delighted to see the first flydubai flight land in AlUla today and we would like to take this opportunity to thank the authorities and the Royal Commission for AlUla for their support. The launch of operations to AlUla reflects our commitment to strengthening the cultural, trade and tourism ties between the UAE and Saudi Arabia and opening up new markets to more passengers.” Phillip J. Jones, Chief Destination Management and Marketing Officer at The Royal Commission for AlUla, said: “As AlUla continues to attract more visitors from around the globe, we are thrilled to have flydubai offer year-round direct flights from Dubai. The new twice-weekly flights will facilitate not only the movement of visitors from the important UAE market, but from throughout flydubai’s extensive international network into AlUla.  There is no other destination that equals AlUla for fascinating ancient history, heritage and culture combined with high-end luxury settings and experiences – and now increasingly more easily accessible for both leisure and business visitors. We still have five …

New research from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has revealed the Travel & Tourism sector in the Middle East could reach US$246 billion this year, just 8.9% behind pre-pandemic levels. In 2019, before the pandemic struck and began to devastate economies around the world, the Travel & Tourism sector in the Middle East was booming, generating US$270 billion to the region’s economy. However, in 2020, when COVID-19 brought international travel to an almost complete standstill, its contribution more than halved, plummeting 51.1%, suffering a brutal loss of more than US$138 billion. Latest research from WTTC shows that as the region continues to recover from the pandemic, with major markets reopening borders and easing restrictions to travel, the sector’s contribution to employment could almost reach pre-pandemic levels this year. Research by WTTC reveals that if countries continue to roll out the inoculation programme at pace this year, and restrictions to international travel are eased around the world – 6.8m people could be employed in the sector by the end of 2022, just 40,000 behind pre-pandemic levels. Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant losses to the Middle East’s Travel & Tourism sector, but we now have reason for real optimism. “Since the start of the pandemic, governments across the Middle East have shown real commitment to travel and tourism. Saudi Arabia in particular, has shown strong leadership throughout the crisis and is making a major investment in Travel & Tourism. “2022 is poised for a strong recovery if governments across the region continue to open up their borders and remove restrictions to travel which will have a massive positive effect on both the economy, …

Emirates has opened the doors of a new retail sales office in Fujairah, further expanding its presence in the Northern Emirates and offering more convenience to customers wishing to book their next trip. Located in Al Ghilaila Building, overlooking the Fujairah corniche, the new office was inaugurated by senior Emirates and dnata commercial and sales executives, in a ceremony attended by local government representatives. To celebrate the airline’s expansion in the Northern Emirates, Khalid Bel Jaflah, Emirates’ Divisional Vice President, UAE; Shaz Peshimam, Senior Manager Dubai and the Northern Emirates and Khalid Hassan, District Manager Northern Emirates were joined by dnata representatives including Simon Woodford, Vice President, Global Air Services and Distribution, dnata Travel Group, along with Yaser Rashed Mohammed Rashed from Fujairah Police, and Esmaeil Al Boloushi, General Manager, Fujairah International Airport, for a ribbon cutting ceremony. Emirates has worked in partnership with dnata Representation Services as its General Sales Agent (GSA) in Fujairah for the past three decades. The opening of the first Emirates retail sales office in the emirate represents a focus on expansion to offer more first-hand support to the airline’s avid traveller base. Significant investment has been made in equipping the new, conveniently located office, for a comfortable and more relaxed environment for Emirates customers wishing to walk in, book their travel, or speak to a sales agent to plan their next journey. The new retail sales office covers 68 square metres and features four customer service counters dedicated to flight reservations, ticketing, and general customer enquiries. The contact details for the Emirates retail sales office in Fujairah are: Address: Al Ghilaila Building shop 5 & 6 Office opening hours: Mon – Thu & Sat …

Ras Al Khaimah(RAK)  International Airport is eager to use digital technologies to provide best experience for the travelers and tourists visiting Ras Al Khaimah’s top range hotels, tourist attraction centers and RAK international Airport. TAV Technologies will provide it’ s state of the art digital technologies and knowhow to levitate passenger experience in RAK. The scope of the cooperation is to provide a digital platform for all stakeholders, institutions and the individuals. RAK International Airport CEO Mr. Atanasios Titonis stated: “ We are pleased to partner with TAV technologies to develop best in class digital technologies to the travellers visitiong Ras Al Khaimah . Our long lasting partnership will support tourism of Ras Al Khaimah to provide a user friendly digital platform for the esteemed travelers and tourists.‘’ TAV Technologies CEO M.Kerem Öztürk said: ‘’ As Tav Technologies we are aiming to implement the newest technologies for Airport operations and also create a digital ecosystem with all the stakeholder like hotels, tourism agencies, airlines and tour operators in order to provide the best experience to all the visitors of Ras Al Kaimah. So we are looking forward to a great digital transformation in Ras Al Kaimah Airport and the region.  

Hotelbeds is pleased to announce that it is one of IHG Hotels & Resorts’ preferred partners for distribution of wholesale rates from IHG hotels in Europe and Greater China. As a result, travel buyers working with Hotelbeds will continue to enjoy access to wholesale rates from IHG hotels. Hotelbeds’ network reaches thousands of B2B travel buyers, such as offline tour operators, retail travel agents, airlines and company employee loyalty programs, across more than 140 source markets worldwide. Hotelbeds’ portfolio of B2B travel buyers offers IHG’s hotels incremental, high-value bookings from both domestic and international travelers. Carlos Muñoz, Chief Commercial Officer at Hotelbeds, commented: “This partnership demonstrates our shared confidence in the future growth of the B2B industry.  Thanks to this collaboration, our client partners worldwide will have access to a leading product portfolio which is fantastic news coming off the back of some very challenging years.” George Turner, Chief Commercial & Technology Officer at IHG Hotels & Resorts, commented: “Partnering with Hotelbeds in Europe and Greater China will enable us to more seamlessly manage our wholesale distribution.” IHG Hotels & Resorts has 17 brands including InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts and Holiday Inn Express and last year joined Hotelbeds’ Green Hotel Programme to further strengthen its commitment to sustainable tourism. The Green Hotels Programme is a turn-key solution to bring Hotelbeds and its partners into the green economy and accelerate the transition of the travel industry towards sustainability – a topic whose importance has increased dramatically in light of the COVID pandemic.

According to the latest figures released by Switzerland Tourism, UAE residents staying overnight in Switzerland have surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Comparing figures between July to December 2021 with the same period in 2019, the number of bed-nights recorded, increased 20.8% from 188,384 to 227,482. The number of UAE arrivals also grew from 75,084 to 85,632, during the same period, 2019 versus 2021. “These are extraordinary figures and underscores the popularity of Switzerland with Emirati nationals as well as residents. From the moment that UAE residents were allowed to travel to Switzerland (28th June 2021) we have seen a significant increase in the volume of visitors and the length of stay has also grown from an average of 2.5 nights per visitor to 2.66,” commented Matthias Albrecht, GCC director for Switzerland Tourism. The substantial increase in numbers is supported by a recent survey conducted by YouGov, which in its 2022 Travel and Tourism Brand and Destination Rankings Report, highlighted Switzerland as the top ranked overseas destination for UAE residents. YouGov’s index gave Switzerland a positive impression score of 31.6 a year-on-year increase of 17.9%, ahead of Singapore (30.9), Canada (28.6) and the Maldives (27.6). In further welcome news for UAE travellers to Switzerland, on the 17 February 2022, the Swiss federal government announced that visitors from the UAE are no longer required to provide an entry form, vaccine certificate, or negative PCR test. “UAE visitors can now enjoy the endless attractions Switzerland has to offer, from natural scenery and outdoor pursuits to delicious local cuisine and immersive cultural experiences. With regulations eased, masks and COVID certificates are not needed when entering shops, restaurants, cultural venues, and other public settings and events,” added …

H.H. Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and H.H. Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince’s Court and Chairman of Etihad Rail witnessed the connection of Abu Dhabi and Dubai with a direct railway within the “UAE National Rail Network”, in a major development within the largest infrastructure project in the UAE. Their highnesses installed the final piece on the railway track, marking the start of a new phase of logistic and economic integration between the two emirates, and in preparation for linking the rest of the emirates to an integrated national railway network in the UAE. The completion of the main railway between Abu Dhabi and Dubai comes within the framework of “The UAE Railway Programme” which was launched as a part of the Projects of the 50, with an investment worth of AED 50 billion. The UAE Railway Programme includes a national network of railway projects that would link the seven emirates. The programme is expected to create economic opportunities amounting to AED 200 billion. H.H. Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum affirmed that “The UAE Railway Programme” reflects UAE’s ambitions and aspirations to start the next fifty years with huge development projects that enhance its position as a leading regional and global center in the sectors of trade, economy and logistics services. H.H. Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed added: “The completion of the main railway of the “UAE National Rail Network” project between Dubai and Abu Dhabi represents an important pivotal phase that shows the great benefits of this national project in linking all the …

Emirates is streamlining check-in formalities for its customers in Ajman and the Northern Emirates with the introduction of a new check-in facility in collaboration with the Ajman Transport Authority. The new facility, located in the Ajman Central Bus Terminal,  is the first remote check-in facility outside of Dubai and is another way the airline is helping customers reap the benefits of simple and quick check-in closer to home, reducing queues and improving their overall experience across the first touchpoints of their travel journey. From 1st March, customers can easily and efficiently check-in, verify Covid-19 related medical records for their destination, receive their boarding passes and board one of the convenient Ajman Transport Authority buses to Terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport.  Once customers arrive at Terminal 3 and disembark, they can drop of their bags in a dedicated baggage area and proceed directly to immigration and security—ensuring a smoother ground journey through the airport by bypassing the check-in counter at Dubai International. Plans are underway to integrate baggage check-in at the new Ajman facility in the coming weeks. Open 24 hours a day,  the Emirates check-in facility in Ajman will have four counters and two self-service kiosks for a contactless start to the journey, allowing check-in, boarding pass collection, choosing or changing seats on board, and updating passport and Skywards information. Bus trips from the facility to Terminal 3 will run in parallel with Emirates’ peak operational periods, which include early and late morning scheduled flights as well the late night departures. Mohammed Mattar, Divisional Senior Vice President Emirates Airport Services said: “We are committed to continually enhancing every aspect of the on-ground experience for our customers and creating a …