St. Regis Hotels & Resorts announced the opening of The St. Regis Red Sea Resort in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The captivating new address is the first private island to open in The Red Sea, one of the Kingdom’s luxury regenerative tourism destinations on the west coast of the country. Situated on the pristine Ummahat Island in the Al Wajh Lagoon, the resort is a destination-defining oasis with its avant-garde architecture, sustainable design details and bespoke service. “One of the world’s unexplored treasures, The Red Sea in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is set to become a coveted leisure destination,” said Jenni Benzaquen, SVP and Global Brand Leader, The Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis Hotels & Resorts. “With The St. Regis Red Sea Resort, we are introducing an iconic island address that represents the pinnacle of timeless luxury and pioneering design. We are proud to welcome The St. Regis Red Sea Resort to our growing portfolio and look forward to inviting guests to immerse themselves in this emerging destination.” Accessed by chartered boat or seaplane from the newly opened Red Sea International Airport, The St. Regis Red Sea Resort features a collection of 90 lavishly appointed beachfront and overwater villas, offering one-to-four-bedroom accommodation, each with a private pool, sundeck and outdoor shower. The open and spacious villas seamlessly blend the outdoors inwards and capture unrivalled sea views from sunrise to sunset. Surrounded by swaying palm trees each deck is a peaceful place to star gaze at night. Designed by architect Kengo Kuma with interiors by Kristina Zanic Consultants, the resort’s design echoes the surrounding coral reefs, marine life and sand dunes. Interior spaces and furnishings take on organic forms with …

The Government of Maldives is aware of derogatory remarks on social media platforms against foreign leaders and high-ranking individuals. These opinions are personal and do not represent the views of the Government of Maldives. The Government believes that the freedom of expression should be exercised in a democratic and responsible manner, and in ways that do not spread hatred, negativity, and hinder close relationships between the Maldives and its international partners. Moreover, the relevant authorities of the Government will not hesitate to take action against those who make such derogatory remarks.

Fahad Kanoo entered the Gallery of Legends at the sixth edition of the Arabian Travel Awards 2023. Speaking at the ceremony Fawad Kanoo – CEO – Kanoo Group shared, “An honour to accept this esteemed award. This recognition is not just for me but for everyone who believes in the power and beauty of exploration. We are all adventurers at heart, drawn together by the magic that unfolds when we discover new places and forge new connections. A heartfelt thanks to my community, supporters and fellow explorers. This award strengthens my commitment to bridge understanding through our shared journeys. To wrap up, this moment is a testament to our collective spirit. Let’s continue to ignite coercivity and make our world a variety of shared experiences. Thank you. Honour being part of this journey and thank you very much.”  

As part of a campaign under the slogan “Our Guests Are Our Top Priority,” the Ministry of Tourism (MT) carried out more than 4,000 inspection visits of tourism accommodation facilities across Makkah and monitored more than 2,000 violations. The inspection visits aim to effectively implement the closure penalty against violating tourism accommodation facilities operating without obtaining the necessary licenses. In this respect, MT closed more than 280 violating tourism accommodation facilities until they regularize their status and obtain the required licenses from MT. The number of licensing applications in Makkah reached 200. MT also conducted more than 1,400 inspection visits of tourism accommodation facilities across Madinah and monitored more than 1,200 violations. These inspection visits resulted in the closure of more than 50 violating tourism accommodation facilities which will remain closed until they correct their conditions and obtain the required licenses from MT. The number of licensing applications in Madinah reached over 15. It is worth noting that MT continues its inspection visits under the slogan “Our Guests Are a Priority” with the aim of regulating and developing the sector and enhancing the quality of the provided services in a way that reflects positively on visitors’ experience, ensures their safety, and creates an environment that attracts investments. MT stresses the need for all tourism service providers to abide by the laws and regulations related to the services they provide to ensure the satisfaction and safety of the visitors. MT also noted that all tourist-related inquiries or complaints can be made via contacting Tourism Call Center on 930.

In a move to promote water sports tourism in Bahrain and the region the World Aquatics and the Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC)  laid the foundation stone for the establishment of the Bahrain World Aquatic Centre at the University of Technology Bahrain (UTB), in partnership with GFH Financial Group and the Bahrain Swimming Association. Held under the patronage of His Highness Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Supreme Council for Youth and Sports First Deputy Chairman, General Sports Authority Chairman and Bahrain Olympic Committee President, the foundation stone laying ceremony was attended by senior state officials, guests and Bahrain national swimming team players. HH Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad expressed pleasure at the new achievement, noting that it represents a new step towards establishing a global centre for water sports in the kingdom. His Highness stressed that the project will boost water sports in the region, and add to the kingdom’s status as a pioneering global sporting hub, expressing congratulations to the partners for their efforts to develop the project. “We look forward to welcoming world athletes to the kingdom to train and compete, as well as realise their dreams and aspirations in the field of sports,” HH said. HH Shaikh Khalid underlined the importance of the Bahrain World Aquatic Centre in embracing renowned swimmers from Bahrain and abroad, as well as in linking science with sports in one of the most successful sports projects launched in partnership with the private sector. His Highness stressed BOC’s keenness to strengthen its partnership with the World Aquatics, and cooperation with the GFH Group to make the Kingdom a centre for developing various water sports. Commenting, Dr. Husain Al Musallam, World Aquatics President, asserted that …

Since Monday, 1st January 2024, France has started operating a new system called the “Olympic Consulate” which will be processing applications of 15,000 international athletes, 9,000 journalists and delegations of foreign countries participating in the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports. The system has been established in a bid of the French authorities to prevent the applications for the Olympics from getting mixed up with the flood of files currently being processed at French visa centres abroad. “It [the system] is indeed necessary to guarantee the issuance of visas within timeframes compatible with the successful organization of the Games.” shared, France Ministry of the Interior. Applications will be filed and processed via the France-Visas platform completely online, which makes France the first EU country to process visas online, in line with the EU Schengen visa digitalisation plans adopted by the Parliament last October. At the same time, these 70,000 people will not have their visas affixed to their passports, but will have them integrated directly into their accreditation cards. The Olympic and Paralympic Games in France are set to be held from July 26 to August 11 and from August 28 to September 8, 2024, respectively. The country expects around 1.5 million spectators from all over the world to attend the games. “In 2024, France will host the summer Olympic Games for the first time in a century, and the Paralympic Games for the first time in its history. It will host 15,000 athletes, over 9,000 accredited journalists, and almost 1.5 million spectators from all over the world ” said France Diplomacy. Previously, the 2024 Paris Olympic Games services and relations manager, Alejandro Recalde, had announced that athletes and officials who …

Metropolitan Hotel Dubai walked away with the title of ‘Best Corporate Hotel’  at the sixth edition of the  Arabian Travel Awards 2023. Accepting the award, Samer Homsi – General Manager – Metropolitan Hotel Dubai shared, “I’m very proud of my team, with their support I managed to win and we managed to win BEst corporate hotel and I have won Best hospitality leader and it is an honour to have won those two prestigious awards.”    

Emirates reinforces its commitment to South Korea by ramping up its operations in Seoul with three additional weekly flights starting 19 February 2024.The new flights will operate as EK324/ EK325 on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Operated by a Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, Emirates’ flight EK324 will depart Dubai at 0445hrs, landing in Seoul Incheon International Airport at 1805hrs. The return flight EK325 will depart Seoul at 2200hrs, arriving in Dubai at 0315hrs the following day. Emirates’ additional services will increase the capacity on flights between Dubai and Seoul by more than 1,000 additional seats per week, helping to alleviate the suppressed demand for international travel to one of the most popular East Asian destinations and supporting South Korea’s inbound and outbound tourism. The airline’s ramped-up operations will further serve the need for adding more flights between UAE and Korea, in line with the strong bilateral relations between the two nations. Through the three weekly Boeing 777 flights, Emirates will provide 45 tonnes of additional cargo capacity between Dubai and Seoul, boosting the trade and economic ties between South Korea and the UAE as well as through Dubai and beyond to more global destinations in Emirates’ network, further contributing to Korea’s economy and facilitating convenient air connectivity for the Republic’s imports and exports. Emirates launched services to Seoul in 2005 and currently operates a daily Airbus A380 service from Dubai. With the additional services, the airline will serve Seoul with 10 weekly flights operated by a mix of its signature Airbus A380 and Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, guaranteeing more flexibility and choice for its customers to and from Dubai, as well as beyond to its global network of over 130 destinations.Travellers flying with …

According to the latest report released by ForwardKeys in MEA the recovery of demand for premium cabin classes continues to perform better than for economy seats — an indication that even during widespread cost of-living concerns, high-income consumers remain resilient to pricing pressure. Another trend for the year is that lead times are back to pre-pandemic length, now that booking behaviour is no longer conditioned by travel restrictions, and consumer confidence is restored, booking patterns reflect pre-pandemic behaviour in  MEA and Europe where lead times for 2023 are on par with 2019. Some of the other trends this year is that travellers opt for fewer, longer trips, travellers prefer to stick together, flexible work drives offseason travel, the future is digital for travel agencies and climate change matters long-term.

UNWTO declared the theme for 2024’s World Tourism Day as  ‘Tourism and Peace.’ In the special news released by UNWTO it shares that 2024 is set to be the year international tourism returns to pre-pandemic levels, capping a rapid and remarkable comeback. UNWTO has set the direction of travel, evolving its Programme of Work and moving even closer to its Members on the ground. Now, it’s time to look ahead and build a sector that offers even more for even more people and communities while also focusing on this year’s World Tourism Day Theme: Tourism and Peace. It further states that ‘Tourism’ only works between people. It is a vehicle to raise awareness, educate and transform societies for the better. And it builds bridges of understanding, in a world still in need to come closer, as reflected in the ‘Tourism Opens Minds’ initiative. As the devastating impacts of the Russian invasion continued to be felt, UNWTO amplified tourism’s voice in solidarity with Ukraine. And as new conflicts and connected humanitarian emergencies emerged in the latter part of last year, the message of tourism’s potential to bridge divisions and help international understanding remains more relevant than ever. Hence, in 2024  this message will take centre stage as the theme of World Tourism Day was declared as  ‘Tourism and Peace.’