Airbnb announced that its global accommodation and experiences platform will be available in Arabic to enable its growing community across the Middle East and North Africa region to access an even more seamless travel experience. The localised web platform and iOS and Android apps are part of Airbnb’s ongoing commitment to the region and will further Airbnb’s mission to create a world where anyone can belong anywhere. All of the popular features of the Airbnb platform will be accessible in Arabic: listing pages with thousands of homes bookable for great stays, experiences around the world and lots of content on how to travel or host with Airbnb.  Airbnb has also released new data to show that across the Middle East and North Africa region more than 70,000 listings are now available to book on the Airbnb platform. As of 1 January 2019 in the UAE, 10,000 listings were available on the Airbnb platform and hosts in the UAE welcomed more than 145,000 guests from around the world – showing more than 63% year-on-year growth. Hadi Moussa, Regional Manager Middle East & Africa at Airbnb, said, “The Middle East and North Africa region is extremely important to us, so we are delighted to launch Airbnb in Arabic today. People from across the region have been using Airbnb since it was founded ten years ago to book magical travel experiences. We want to create a true sense of belonging for them by ensuring they can do so in their native language going forward.” Issam Kazim, CEO of Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DCTCM), said, “Our ongoing partnership with Airbnb helps Dubai maintain its global competitiveness in a highly digitised marketplace …

With the completion of ‘Great Move’ to its brand new home base, Istanbul Airport, one of the most significant cornerstones of the Turkish aviation history, Turkish Airlines will open five passenger lounges available for Business Class, Miles & Smiles, Elite Plus & Elite, Star Alliance Gold and Corporate Club passengers. There are currently three lounges open – the Turkish Airlines Business Lounge, Miles & Smiles Lounge and Domestic Lounge. The Exclusive Lounge and Arrival Lounge are planned to open in Summer 2019. The Turkish Airlines Business Lounge has an approximate area of over 60,000 square feet, seats 765 guests and features 13 private suites with showers. Turkish Airlines also designed a 130 square foot museum in here collaborating with the arts and cultural institution, Istanbul Modern. The Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles Lounge is also over 60,000 square feet seating 765 guests, and offers 11 private suites with showers and space where guests can rest on comfortable couches, savor delicious and exclusive treats from Turkey along with international cuisine, or enjoy mobile masseur services. A console gaming experience, golf simulators and large children’s play area provide entertainment, while a technology center with 3D glasses and virtual reality is planned. The two lounges also provide meeting rooms, a library and prayer room. The Turkish Airlines Domestic Lounge is accessible through a special entrance gate located outside the terminal so passengers can complete check-in procedures. Lounge amenities include comfortable couches, Turkish cuisine, a large children’s play area, media wall with multiple TV screens and a prayer room. The overall design concept of the Business Class and Miles & Smiles Lounges reflect an Aegean theme, including designs depicting breezes from the Aegean region. …

The Ministry of Community Development and Etihad Airways have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to launch the Etihad Senior Emiratis Basma Programme, which offers UAE nationals over the age of 60 an exclusive programme of benefits when flying with the airline. Etihad has also signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi Airports to provide Basma members with a range of added benefits from the capital’s airport. On the occasion of the launch, Her Excellency Hessa Bint Essa Buhumaid, Minister of Community Development, emphasised the importance of signing this MoU with Etihad Airways to offer an exclusive programme of benefits and discounts for senior Emiratis. Tony Douglas, Group Chief Executive Officer, Etihad Aviation Group, said, “Following in the footsteps of our country’s great leadership, Etihad Airways truly values the contribution of the UAE’s senior citizens to our society.” Users of the Etihad Senior Emiratis Basma Card will be able to instantly access Silver status with Etihad Guest, the airline’s award-winning loyalty programme. Further benefits include discounts on Etihad Airways flights, when booked through Etihad Airways retail offices. Members will also receive 25 per cent bonus Guest Miles, discounts on upgrades using miles at the airport, alongside priority check-in at Abu Dhabi International Airport. They will also be entitled to an additional baggage allowance, depending on the class of travel. Commenting on this collaboration, Bryan Thompson, Chief Executive Officer at Abu Dhabi Airports, said, “Abu Dhabi Airports is eager to collaborate with our key partner, Etihad Airways, on producing tailored and creative offers that will further enhance our customer experience across our services.” Guests within the programme will also be offered a 10 per cent discount at Abu Dhabi Duty Free, as well …

Emirates is the only airline globally to have its mobile app available in 19 languages, including Arabic, English, Traditional and Simplified Chinese, Czech, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil & Portugal), Polish, Russian, Spanish, Thai and Turkish. All the features in the Emirates app are now available in Arabic, bringing the total number of languages supported to 19. The Emirates app currently receives an average of 600,000 monthly downloads and allows users to search, book and manage their flights as well as their Emirates Skywards accounts. In recent years, the airline has been using analytical and customer behaviour insights to constantly improve its digital channels. Last financial year, a quarter of all ticket sales were made on its web and mobile channels and over 40% of customers checked-in online for their flights. “We have worked very hard to ensure our customers enjoy the same high-quality Emirates experience in the digital world as they do when enjoying our award-winning physical product and service. Our app has become a useful travel companion for more than 1.5 million travellers a month and it ensures a seamless customer journey on the go. We will continue to invest in mobile to provide an enjoyable customer experience and to make our customers’ travel journey as seamless as possible,” said Alex Knigge, Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications, Marketing and Brand (Digital). Earlier this year, the Emirates app was enhanced with new technology allowing customers to create bespoke playlists of their inflight entertainment ahead of their travel and sync it to their seats once on board, providing a world-class travel experience. The Emirates app is free to download on iOS or Android devices.

Emirates Airline has signed an agreement with Smart Dubai to offer special flight discounts to the latter’s employees for travel. Emirates will also support Smart Dubai with its travel requirements to participate in international events and conferences, as well as with the events that it organises on a yearly basis in Dubai, including the Future Blockchain Summit and Smart Dubai Blockchain Challenge. The agreement was signed by Sheikh Majid Al Mualla, Divisional Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations Centre at Emirates, and H.E. Dr Aisha Bint Butti Bin Bishr, General Director of Smart Dubai. Sheikh Majid said, “We are proud to partner with Smart Dubai to provide their teams with special travel benefits and to support their many activities and initiatives. Emirates is fully aligned with their vision to deliver world-class smart services and infrastructure through embracing technology and innovation, in order to ultimately make Dubai the world’s smartest and happiest city.” H.E. Dr Aisha commented, “We continue to invest in innovative technologies and network with skilled industry experts, entrepreneurs and organisations that have launched exceptional start-ups. Our aim is to continue raising awareness around the world and with the support of our new partner, Emirates, we look forward to accomplishing our goals and transforming Dubai into a leading, global smart city.” Smart Dubai consists of 304 employees who are now are entitled to purchase Emirates flight tickets at a discounted rate. This offer applies to all destinations on the Emirates network, originating from Dubai, and can be availed upon booking at Emirates offices, as well as select travel agents. Emirates will be hosting travel clinics at the Smart Dubai offices over the next few months to provide their employees …

The second edition of the Dubai Association Conference, being held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, will take place from December 9 to 10, 2019, under the theme of ‘Driving change: The societal impact of associations’. Over the course of two days the conference, organised by Dubai Association Centre and taking place at Dubai World Trade Centre, will bring together association executives from around the world, government representatives, industry leaders, as well as university faculties and students, in a space focused on building the association community in the region for the purpose of positive social impact. Established in 2014, the Dubai Association Centre (DAC) is a joint initiative of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) and Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) which  support and license regional and international associations in setting up an office or chapter in Dubai. The inaugural edition of its Dubai Association Conference took place in December 2017, while DAC last year hosted an Association Leaders Getaway in the city. Issam Kazim, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing, said, “As Dubai continues to grow as a knowledge hub, associations have immense potential for driving growth in our rapidly transforming economy. Along with being a catalyst for business opportunities within a thriving ecosystem, they have the power to fuel innovation and creativity which ultimately contributes to the wellbeing of our communities, and society. We are looking forward to the second edition of the Dubai Association Conference this year to further facilitate our transformation agenda as …

The third ITB China successfully closed in Shanghai with around 17,000 attendees, a plus of 2,000 compared to last year. Buyers, trade visitors and exhibitors reported positive business results and experienced a unique gathering of the Chinese travel industry from May 15 to 17, 2019. The ITB China Conference, co-organised by TravelDaily China, has also maintained strong attendance figures of 4,000 in total, with positive feedback about the quality of speakers and insights generated from the sessions. In all, there were about 850 Chinese top buyers at the event. Their share significantly increased in terms of buyers coming from second and third-tier cities, running 40 per cent in total and proving the show’s acceptance in the Chinese travel market. Another highlight of the conference was the ITB China Startup Award taking place for the third time this year. This year SeeVov convinced the jury with its video based trip planning platform. First time exhibitor Italy was the official partner destination of ITB China 2019 and recorded a successful first attendance. It co-hosted the Opening Dinner one day prior to the show, attended among others by H.E. Sen. Gian Marco Centinaio, the Italian Minister of Agriculture, Food, Forestry Policies and Tourism, and Jane Sun, CEO of Ctrip or Feng Bin, Chairman of Utour. This year a broad range of 800 companies and organisations coming from 84 countries presented their products to the Chinese travel industry, reflecting ITB China has become more international and established itself as the not-to-miss event for the Chinese travel industry within three years only. “We have set out to build the show as the key knowledge platform in China by boosting even more content and innovations this year …

Emirates has demonstrated its commitment to fostering innovation in the global aviation industry by signing MoUs with three teams from the sixth cohort of the Dubai Future Accelerators (DFA) programme. The companies, hailing from the USA, Germany and the UK, were selected from the pool of seven participant teams that worked with Emirates through DFA for nine weeks between March and May 2019. The MoUs were signed by Adel Al Redha,  Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer, Emirates,  and by representatives from the shortlisted companies — Opinsta (UK), Predapp (Germany) and Verusen (USA). Emirates joined the DFA programme in 2017. In what was a first earlier this year, Emirates and the Dubai Future Foundation announced that all the teams participating in the sixth cohort of the DFA programme would be dedicated to addressing three challenges set forth by Emirates in the domains of B2B procurement, seamless customer experience, and an integrated system for crew duty travel. The teams from Cohort 6 of the DFA programme worked with stakeholders from Emirates to map out requirements, refine their proposals and develop prototype solutions. Opinsta, Predapp and Verusen were chosen based on the fit of their proposed solutions, and broader application and scalability within Emirates. Adel Al Redha said, “Over the course of nine weeks, the interactions between the teams at Emirates as well as the participants of Cohort 6 of the Dubai Future Accelerators programme have resulted in a number of options we can explore to address the challenges we had defined.” Khalfan Belhoul, CEO at Dubai Future Foundation, said, “The MoUs signed today are the outcome of DFA’s offering of an ideal setting for Emirates, the world’s largest international airline, …

The annual growth in the contribution of AI is expected to range between 20-34 per cent per year across the Middle East, with the fastest growth in the Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Egypt. The $135 billion investment plan in digital transformation set by Vision 2030 will transform the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia into the global epicentre of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and supercharge the Saudi economy as a global powerhouse in the digital age. A PwC 2018 report estimated that AI could contribute up to $15.7 trillion to the global economy in 2030, more than the current output of China and India combined. Of this, $6.6 trillion is likely to come from increased productivity and $9.1 trillion is likely to come from benefits to consumers. PwC’s report estimated that the Middle East is expected to accrue 2% of the total global benefits of AI in 2030. This is equivalent to US$320 billion where the largest gains are expected to accrue to Saudi Arabia as AI is expected to contribute over US$135.2 billion in 2030 to the economy, equivalent to 12.4% of GDP. In relative terms the UAE is expected to see the largest impact of close to 14% of 2030 GDP. AI contribution in Egypt is expected to reach US$42.7 bn in 2030, equivalent to 7.7% of the Egyptian GDP. To meet the demand for having a global platform gathering world class technology experts, the Saudi Emerging Technologies Forum will take place from November 11-13, 2019 in Kempinski Hotel in Riyadh.  The forum is a mega event that will gather over 500 government officials and senior level executives, more than 50 speakers, leading 12 panel discussions with the participation of 900 attendees, …

Dubai Taxi Corporation (DTC) is offering Umra trips to 25 taxi drivers during this Ramadan. The step, which coincides with the Year of Tolerance, reflects the keenness of DTC to bring happiness to drivers during the holy month of Ramadan. “Since 2010, Dubai Taxi Corporation has been running this initiative, and about 1200 drivers have benefited from it so far. The initiative is part of DTC social responsibility to bring happiness to employees, especially taxi drivers,” said Adel Sharif, Director of Human Resources, Dubai Taxi Corporation. Priority in the selection of drivers was given to excellent-performing drivers who have made no offences this year, and winners of Dubai Taxi Corporation awards. DTC will cover all expenses of the trip, and educative lectures will be given about the rituals of performing Umra. “DTC is offering several initiatives to cement the relationships between employees, drivers and managers as well as educative programmes at its Training and Qualification Centre. It is offering rewards as part of its plans and strategic goals of happier employees, which will ensure delivering better services, trust and loyalty,” concluded Sharif.