The number of hotel guests staying in the emirate’s 162 hotels and hotel apartments increased by 7.3 per cent for the first four months of 2018, compared to the same period last year to number 1,724,967, according to figures released by the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi). The total number of hotel guests was boosted by key international markets registering impressive percentage gains. During April, the numbers of visitors from leading international source market China increased by 9.6 per cent to number 37,300, Indian guest figures increased by 15.9 per cent to number 32,400 and the US increased by 16.2 per cent to reach 15,900. The impressive figures mean that Abu Dhabi’s aim of achieving another record-breaking year for hotel guest is still on target. Last year, just below five million visitors stayed in Abu Dhabi city, Al Al Ain Region and the Al Dhafra Region’s range of accommodation and 2018’s figures so far put the emirate on track to surpass this impressive figure. UAE-based guests into the emirate also increased across the first four months of the year, to number 489,081, a rise from 2017’s total of 488,881 for the same period. From January until April, China has maintained its position as the leading international hotel guest supplier for Abu Dhabi, with more than 164,500 Chinese staying in the emirate – an increase of 25.8% compared to the same period in 2017. Indian visitors have surged past 132,000 and showed a 26.8% increase, but still maintain second place for overseas guest arrivals. The US market registered a 22.2% increase, the UK up 13.7% and Germany are up 16.9%.

Huawei Consumer Business Group (CBG) has partnered with Wego to integrate the travel app into Huawei smartphones. The new Huawei devices in the Middle East will come pre-installed with the Wego app, which will help simplify travel shopping experiences for Huawei device users. “The world of travel and hospitality has entered a new era of m-commerce, as more than 60% of travellers rely entirely on smartphone applications when making their travel plans. Pre-installing the Wego app into smartphones is part of our continuous efforts to enable these travellers to get the best deals and options when shopping for their holiday,” said Mamoun Hmedan, Wego Managing Director for MENA and India. “Huawei was an obvious choice for us to partner with; given the company’s global pedigree, strong resonance with the customers, and immense R&D capabilities.” Starting May this year, all Huawei smartphones EMUI 5 and above bundled with the Wego app will be made available across stores in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Pakistan. “We are excited for this partnership as Wego has been a market leader, bringing seamless travel services to the MENA region. Now Huawei device users can access Wego through one click as Wego would be available on all Huawei device EMUI 5 and above,” said Managing Director, Huawei Consumer Cloud Services. Huawei mobile services ecosystem has been simplifying device users’ daily life through technology by providing device user best in class travel services.

IHG has announced opening of Crowne Plaza Riyadh Palace in partnership with Dur Hospitality. The 304-room hotel adds to the growing portfolio of IHG hotels in Saudi Arabia. Crowne Plaza Riyadh Palace is strategically located in the Ministries Quarter, a popular business district that is close to major Saudi financial institutions and government offices. The hotel is located 15 minutes from King Fahd Stadium and the King Fahd Cultural Centre, and is less than 30 minutes’ drive from King Khalid International Airport, making it easily accessible for visitors to the city. Productivity and rejuvenation go hand in hand at the Crowne Plaza Riyadh Palace, which is redefining the business travel experience and offering a comprehensive range of facilities to meet the needs of corporate and MICE travelers. For those in town on business, the hotel features five meeting rooms spanning 1,400 sqm and a dedicated team to execute seamless events. With free Wi-Fi access throughout the hotel, the guests can stay connected to their business or home. Additionally, the 24-hour business center is fully equipped with the latest technology and amenities, providing a great working space to the hotel guests. During downtime, guests can enjoy the hotel’s outdoor pool, Club Lounge or rejuvenate and relax at the spa. The guests staying at the hotel can keep their workouts on track at the well-equipped fitness centre.

Emirates has announced that it will introduce the first scheduled commercial Airbus A380 service to Hamburg on October 29. To commemorate the inaugural arrival in Hamburg, the A380 will be deployed on the morning service (EK059/EK060), while from 30 October the A380 will be regularly deployed on the afternoon service (EK061/EK062).  The deployment of the iconic double decker aircraft will represent a capacity increase of over 22 per cent on the route, the airlines said in a statement. With a total of 6,090 weekly seats in each direction, Emirates will offer business and leisure travellers from the North of Germany an even greater choice of travel options to Dubai and to over 150 destinations beyond, highlighting Hamburg’s importance as part of the airline’s global network. Emirates’ Airbus A380 aircraft serving the Dubai-Hamburg route will offer high levels of comfort and high quality service: a total of 516 seats in a three-class configuration, with 426 spacious seats in Economy on the main deck, 76 fully flat bed seats in Business and 14 First Class Private Suites on the upper deck. The Emirates A380 is renowned for its First Class Shower Spas as well as the Onboard Lounge for First and Business Class passengers, arguably the most popular social spot at 40,000 feet. Passengers in all classes enjoy free Wi-Fi to stay in touch with family and friends and Emirates’ multi-award winning ‘ice’ inflight entertainment with up to 3,500 channels of movies, TV programmes, music and podcasts on the industry’s biggest personal screens in each class of travel.

Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts has invited its guests around the globe to join its efforts to mark World Environment Day on June 5. From beach clean ups and tree planting to fun recycling projects and organic gardening, the hospitality firm’s hotel teams across the globe are embracing the United Nations initiative with a raft of events. Selected properties across Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East have planned a vast range of activities in support of the UN initiative, which encourages worldwide awareness and action for the protection of the environment. This year’s theme is ‘Beat Plastic Pollution’– a call to action to combat one of today’s greatest environmental challenges, with plastic pollution posing a significant threat to natural places, wildlife and human health. Mövenpick – the world’s most Green Globe certified hotel company – aims to raise awareness of this and other major environmental issues by staging a variety of educational and practical activities at several properties worldwide on June 5, with guests of all ages invited to join its hotel teams to take part.

Etihad Cargo has launched its first humanitarian freighter missions as part of the Etihad’s extensive Year of Zayed programme, which will take place throughout 2018. The specially branded Year of Zayed Boeing 777 freighter aircraft departed Abu Dhabi – first to Almaty in Kazakhstan and then to Hyderabad in India – carrying special provisions to be distributed to those in need during the Holy Month of Ramadan. The humanitarian missions are taking place throughout the year in collaboration with the Khalifa Foundation, the Red Crescent, and His Highness Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Al Nahyan Humanitarian & Scientific Foundation. These missions represent the Year of Zayed theme of respect, one of the four key themes of Etihad’s Year of Zayed activation plan. Peter Baumgartner, Etihad Airways’ Chief Executive Officer, said, “We are pleased to have commenced our first Year of Zayed humanitarian operations with our cargo aircraft which is crossing the globe to deliver vital items to help people most in need. The humanitarian missions embody the spirit and values of the UAE’s founding father, HH Sheikh Zayed, and we are proud to play a small role in carrying forward his legacy and supporting people in need from around the globe.”

In line with the Sultanate of Oman’s efforts to become a leading global destination for business and leisure by 2040 under the Oman Tourism Strategy, the Ministry of Oman recently launched a major marketing campaign in partnership with Holidayfactory.com. The campaign highlights Oman’s most attractive and widely visited historical sites, featuring the richness of Oman’s ancient culture and civilization, through a series of marketing and promotional offers, and is seen to boost cultural awareness and enhance tourism development. The tie-up with Holidayfactory.com, a premium-experience travel website based in the UAE, is testament to the Sultanate’s distinct advantage as a destination of choice in the GCC and Arab region, which further strengthens the Ministry’s moves to increase partnership with the private sector to cement Oman’s leading position in the global tourism map. The marketing campaign also includes discounts and packages including tickets and accommodations to encourage travelers to visit and discover Oman.

Hyper Island, a Swedish pioneer that brings transformation in businesses and empowers employees with new skills is now offering its executive business educational programmes and innovation strategies in the United Arab Emirates and Middle East & North Africa. “We are absolutely delighted to launch a presence in the UAE and the MENA region. Hyper Island has over twenty years of experience in the educational and business innovation sector with global brands across the world. We have learning hubs in Stockholm, Singapore, London, Sao Paulo and New York City. It was only a matter of time for us to offer our services in the UAE. We’ve followed recent studies by the World Bank and World Economic Forum and have come to realise that the vision of the nation and the need of the hour in the UAE requires innovative talent development strategies and tools to ensure growth in the quality of the work force in the region,” says Per Vidar Lundberg, Client Partner at Hyper Island. A recent study conducted by the World Bank cited that if GCC countries expect to succeed in transitioning to highly productive, knowledge based economies, they must develop a system that can transform existing learning to growth-inducing innovations.

Emirates has commenced its signature Ramadan service for customers during the holy month. Emirates’ Ramadan service consists of specially crafted iftar meals on board, relevant programming on its ice inflight entertainment system, and the distribution of dates and water on the ground for those breaking their fast. The airlines provides iftar boxes with a nutritional meal for customers breaking their fast on board. The boxes have been redesigned this year by local homeware specialists Silsal Design House. The designs are inspired by the Middle East, its people, places and culture. Silsal has also created bespoke Emirates Arabic Coffee Cups available at the Emirates Official Stores. The iftar boxes provide a nutritious meal for customers to break their fast and includes couscous salad & grilled chicken or moudardara & roasted chicken, sandwiches, spinach fatayer or tomato and onion fatayer, assorted sweets, dates, laban and water. The boxes have been designed for customers to take away if they wish. The menus will be refreshed mid-Ramadan. These special meals will be available to passengers across all cabin classes on select Emirates flights that coincide with iftar times. This includes flights to and from the Gulf region as well as flights catering to Umrah groups travelling to Jeddah and Medina during the month of Ramadan. During the holy month, cold meals will be served in lieu of a hot one on all flights to Jeddah and Medina, including Umrah day flights. Emirates utilises a unique tool to calculate the correct timings for imsak (the time to commence fasting) and iftar while in-flight.

Minor International (MINT) announced that it has acquired 30,000,000 shares in NH Hotel Group in a transaction valued at EUR 192 million, which together with its existing shareholding will increase MINT’s stake in NH Hotel Group to 8.6% on a fully diluted basis. NH Hotel Group is on a strong growth trajectory as it has successfully enhanced operational efficiencies across its group in recent years and is also now benefitting from the improving European macroeconomic outlook, both of which have been reflected in its strengthening financial results and rising ADRs. In particular, its four main clusters, Spain, Benelux, Central Europe and Italy, have been, and will continue to be, the drivers for solid growth going forward. The investment in NH Hotel Group also marks a strategic progression given MINT’s current presence in Asia, Australia, the Middle East and Europe. The investment in NH Hotel Group is a further move into Europe by MINT following its earlier expansion into Portugal and Brazil through the acquisition of Tivoli Hotels & Resorts in 2016, and one that is complementary to the geographical footprint of MINT’s pre-investment portfolio. NH Hotel Group has a portfolio of 382 hotels and resorts with 59,350 keys spanning across 30 countries in Europe, the Americas and Africa. The NH and NH Collection brands have gained fast-growing recognition, particularly in Europe, with the strong potential to expand its footprint and enhance its reputation even further globally.