Rotana has signed a hotel management agreement with Grandview Hotels and Resorts to manage a new five-star hotel in the Republic of Zambia that is scheduled to be opened by 2021. Set to be situated in Lusaka, the upcoming hotel will be the first-ever property to be operated under the Rotana Hotels and Resorts brand in Zambia and will be an addition to the company’s three operating properties in the African continent, including Al Salam Rotana, Khartoum, Sudan; Kin Plaza Arjaan by Rotana, Kinshasa, DR Congo and Grand Rotana Resort & Spa, Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. It will feature 150 rooms and 50 hotel apartments that will provide guests with all the comfort and the luxury for a pleasant and memorable long-stay experience. Making it appealing to business and leisure travellers, the five-star hotel will also feature exclusive hospitality offerings, including three signature dining restaurants, executive lounge, state-of-the-art meeting facilities and generous indoor and outdoor space for formal and informal gatherings. Other amenities will include pool and terraces as well as a fully equipped fitness & wellness club. Commenting on the agreement, Selim El Zyr, Vice Chairman, Rotana, said, “We are delighted to sign the agreement for a new hotel in Zambia which underpins Rotana’s growing presence in Africa. As reflected in our strong portfolio and our solid development pipeline, the continent is a key focus market for us. We will continue to seek new opportunities to add our hotels in new destinations, thereby providing value to our partners and guests and strengthening our global footprint even further. On behalf of Rotana, I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to the owner of Grandview Hotels and Resorts Limited for placing its …

Sabre Corporation has entered into an agreement to acquire Farelogix, a recognised innovator in the travel industry with advanced offer management and NDC order delivery technology used by many of the world’s leading airlines. Sabre expects that upon close, the acquisition will allow the company to accelerate delivery of its end-to-end NDC-enabled retailing, distribution and fulfillment solutions. Based in Miami, Farelogix provides a suite of SaaS solutions that enables carriers to dynamically create, control, optimise and deliver personalised and differentiated offers across sales channels. These airline-controlled retailing, merchandising and distribution capabilities complement Sabre’s existing retailing and merchandising solutions and future product roadmap. “Farelogix’s investments in offer management and NDC order delivery will help us accelerate our plans to deliver future-ready retailing, distribution and fulfillment solutions that unlock increased value for the industry,” said Sean Menke, President & CEO, Sabre. “By integrating Farelogix’s capabilities into Sabre’s leading airline technology platform, we’ll be able to offer the innovative and comprehensive solutions that airlines require, backed by best-in-class technology and the deep expertise that our teams bring to market.” Building upon Farelogix’s GDS- and PSS-agnostic capabilities, Sabre expects to drive faster innovation in the dynamic and highly competitive airline IT space to enable airlines to accelerate their own growth and profitability while benefiting customers across the travel ecosystem. “For the past few years, Farelogix and Sabre have worked together with shared customers to implement our complementary technologies to solve some of the industry’s toughest challenges. Today’s announcement is a natural evolution of the successful, ongoing collaboration between our two companies,” said Jim Davidson, CEO, Farelogix. “Sabre shares our vision for innovation and has the leading technology, resources, and global presence to help us …

More than 500 business leaders and 30 industry experts, chief executives and decision-makers representing the region and the world, are expected to attend the fourth edition of Sharjah FDI Forum, to be held on December 10 and 11 in Sharjah. The event is set to witness discussions on corporate investment strategies, expansion opportunities, and explore the latest in solutions, innovations and best practices within the global economy. Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, the Sharjah FDI Forum 2018 is organised by the Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) and the Sharjah FDI Office (Invest in Sharjah), with the endorsement of the UAE Ministry of Economy and in strategic partnership with CNBC Arabia. The forum will be held under the theme, ‘Shaping the Future of Economies’ at the Al Jawaher Reception and Convention Centre in Sharjah. A press conference was recently organised to unveil the forum’s programme details. It was attended by HE Marwan bin Jassim Al Sarkal, CEO, Shurooq; Mohammed Juma Al Musharrkh, CEO, Invest in Sharjah, several representatives from government authorities, and media personnel. Al Musharrkh unveiled the forum’s comprehensive six-panel agenda, which will highlight the role of sustainable development in shaping the future of global economies. He also announced that for the first time, Sharjah FDI Forum will be hosting a special workshop on December 9, organised and conducted by the World Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA), targeting a number of investment promotion agencies from around the world, to discuss latest practices of promoting investment opportunities by studying investor needs and embracing latest technological breakthroughs to identify in-demand sectors.

Reed Travel Exhibitions, organiser of Arabian Travel Market (ATM), has renewed its host hotel partnership with Emaar Hospitality Group. Emaar Hospitality Group will continue to be the Official Hotel Partner for Arabian Travel Market’s 2019 and 2020 events. It will officially accommodate a select number of key media and industry buyers attending the annual event in Dubai as well as host the ATM Welcome Party. Commenting on the announcement, Nick Pilbeam, Divisional Director, Reed Travel Exhibitions, said, “Arabian Travel Market is committed to the Middle East as a leading international travel and tourism destination and our partnership with Emaar Hospitality Group and its hotel brands represents an ideal opportunity to align one of the region’s leading hospitality brands with our unique event platform.” Properties of Address Hotels + Resorts, Vida Hotels and Resorts, and Rove Hotels, situated in some of Dubai’s most sought-after locations, will welcome the ‘Hosted Buyers’ programme, which includes senior travel industry decision makers with direct purchasing responsibility, as well as selected international press. Commenting on the renewal of the partnership, Olivier Harnisch, Chief Executive Officer, Emaar Hospitality Group, said, “Arabian Travel Market is a significant platform that underlines the vibrant tourism and hospitality landscape of the UAE and the region. As Official Hotel Partner, we are committed to showcasing the exceptional breadth of hotels and resorts we have in Dubai as well as in other key markets across the world. We are expanding our footprint, with over 50 hotel projects, including 13 operational hotels. Through our partnership with ATM, we will offer guests a true experience of our hospitality standards.”  

flydubai will operate flights to three points in Kazakhstan following the relaunch of its Shymkent service. The twice-a-week service will be offered from December 28, 2018. flydubai has been flying to Kazakhstan since 2014 and together with the re-launched service to Shymkent and existing flights to Almaty and Astana, the airline will operate 13 weekly flights to three points in the country. Commenting on the recommencement of flights to Shymkent, Ghaith Al Ghaith, Chief Executive Officer, flydubai, said, “We are pleased to see the strengthening of direct air links between the UAE and Kazakhstan, which provide more opportunities for the development of tourism and trade flows. flydubai has been flying to Kazakhstan since 2014 and we have seen over the years a positive demand from the region.” With flydubai, Business Class passengers can enjoy comfortable spacious seats and a variety of dining options onboard, as well as a priority check-in service and lounge access. flydubai offers its Economy Class passengers numerous features onboard including comfortable seating, a range of tasty snacks to purchase during flights and an award-winning in-flight entertainment system with more than 1,000 hours of films, television, music and an extensive range of Arabic, English and Russian content. The airline’s latest offering includes WiFi connectivity and Live TV on selected flights.

Aimed at the vision of receiving 10 million tourists to the emirate of Sharjah, the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority conducted its 5th Hospitality Forum under the patronage of His Excellency Khalid Jasim Al Midfa, Chairman, Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA). The day was a learning experience of best practices from various professionals from around the globe. Michel Julian from UNWTO shared the key note address on the impact of budget travellers and millenials on the tourism sector and economy.

The GCC Board of Directors Institute (GCC BDI) has announced the 6th Annual Chairman Summit in Riyadh on November 26, that is expected to draw the participation of influential chairmen, board directors and C-suite executives to debate on a wide range of topics. Titled ‘Digital Disruption and the Fourth Industrial Revolution – Are boards ready?’, the summit will look into board strategies on digital transformation and the skill sets required to fully embrace disruptive technologies, as well as cyber security advice, best-practices in IT governance and how Blockchain technology and AI will transform business processes. The summit will be opened by His Excellency Eng Abdullah Al-Swaha, Minister of Communication and Information Technology, Saudi Arabia, with welcome remarks given by Mohammed Al-Shroogi, Chairman, GCC BDI, as well as Dr Abdul-Rahman bin Saad Al-Jadhai, Chief Executive Officer, Elm. Other guest speakers will include renowned serial entrepreneur James Bilefield, Lino Cattaruzzi, Managing Director- MENA, Google; Ihab Foudeh, General Manager- Public Sector- MENA, Microsoft; Abdulrahman Tarabzouni, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, STV; Xavi Anglada, Managing Director and Digital Lead-MENA, Accenture; Phyllis Newhouse, Chief Executive Officer, Xtreme Solutions, Dr Hans-Martin Stockmeier, Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company, Evans Munyuki, Group Chief Digital Officer, Emirates NBD; Matthew White, Head, Digital Trust and Blockchain Lead, PwC; Omar Hashem, Head of Digital and Technology at NCB; Wael Fattouh, Cybersecurity and Technology Risk Partner, PwC; Zeyad Khoshaim, Managing Partner, Khoshaim & Associates and Vinay Chandran, Digital Partner, McKinsey & Company. Jane Valls, Executive Director, GCC BDI, said, “Technological advancements continue to shift the paradigms in the business world faster than ever before. This year’s Chairman Summit has been established to identify industry trends with the help of some of …

Turkish Airlines’ Miles&Smiles has launched a Frequent-Flyer Programme (FFP) partnership with Azul Brazilian Airlines. The agreement was signed between Ahmet Olmuştur,  Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), Turkish Airlines and Alexandre Wagner Malfitani, Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Azul Brazilian Airlines. With its principle to provide privileged travel experience with seamless connections, Miles&Smiles expands its partnerships to allow its members to enjoy Miles&Smiles advantages on their flights all over the world. Miles&Smiles members now will be able to earn and redeem miles on flights operated by Azul Brazilian Airlines, as of January 1, 2019. Reciprocally, Azul Brazilian Airlines’ loyalty programme TudoAzul members will also be able to earn and redeem miles on Turkish Airlines’ operated flights. Commenting on the agreement, Ahmet Olmuştur, CMO, Turkish Airlines, said, “We are delighted to expand our partnership with Azul Brazilian Airlines. We have a working codeshare cooperation which was established in December last year. And with this Frequent Flyer Programme partnership, we are glad to achieve a higher level of collaboration with Azul.”

Air Arabia has selected Thales for its new Aviobook Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) system that allows pilots to operate efficiently in the cockpit with digital manuals and charts. The signing happened at the side-lines of Bahrain International Airshow that took place this week in Bahrain. Air Arabia had already implemented the Aviobook electronic flight bag system years back that helped the airline reduce the amount of paper required to be carried on board while bringing robust efficiency into its operations. Thales Pads will now replace existing electronic devices on board ensuring latest technology is adopted. The new EFB, lighter in weight, includes enhanced features and provides highest level of reliability and performance on board. Adel Al Ali, Group Chief Executive Officer, Air Arabia, said, “Efficiency has been at the heart of Air Arabia operations since the carrier launch 15 years ago. Adopting the Thales Pads into our cockpit reflects Air Arabia’s innovative approach towards investing in technology and business intelligence to continue driving operational reliability and efficiency higher. We look forward to working with Thales to successfully implement this new project”. Roger Daix, VP-Thales, Middle East, said, “Thales is proud to have been selected by Air Arabia, and we are honoured to equip the airline with the new Aviobook electronic flight bag system. This selection represents a major win for Thales in the Middle East reinforcing our presence within the region. Thales is committed to support Air Arabia in driving innovation at the highest standards.”

In partnership with Dubai Holding, Meraas has signed an agreement with D-Marin to attract international investments in the yacht sector and various supporting sectors to promote Dubai as the preferred destination for luxury yachting and boating internationally.  The joint venture agreement was signed at MB92 premises in Barcelona by His Excellency Abdulla Al Habbai, Group Chairman, Meraas and Chairman, Dubai Holding; and Ferit Şahenk, Chairman, Doğuş Group. The newly-established joint venture will manage and operate the existing and future marinas being developed by Meraas and Dubai Holding, including marinas in Port de la Mer, Dubai Harbour and Jumeirah Beach Hotel. The partnership seeks to also establish a regional centre with global standard for renovation, service and maintenance of luxury yachts and boats in Dubai, similar to D-Marin backed MB92, which is currently serviced by branches in Barcelona, Spain and La Ciotat, France. Al Habbai said, “The success of the two companies in attracting a global operator such as D-Marin to invest in the luxury marinas sector is aligned to the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister, the UAE and Ruler, Dubai, to promote Dubai as a leading international tourist destination and position the UAE at the forefront of world’s most business-friendly countries. This agreement will contribute to attracting new foreign investment to Dubai, which has high rates of direct investment growth in high value sectors.”