Category Archives: Agents

The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) and the Statistics Centre – Abu Dhabi (SCAD) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to boost critical decision-making through Artificial Intelligence (AI). The agreement facilitates access for DCT Abu Dhabi to use SCAD’s AI-based Induction and Foresight Platform, which will contribute to supporting research and future planning to achieve strategic objectives. H.E. Saeed Ali Obaid Al Fazari, Executive Director of the Strategic Affairs Sector at DCT Abu Dhabi, and H.E. Badriya Abdullah Obaid, Executive Director of the Foresight and Communication Sector at SCAD, signed the agreement during their organisations’ participation at GITEX Global 2022. H.E. Al Fazari said: “This agreement represents an important step towards the use of AI solutions in our strategic planning, which will allow us to achieve our objectives for the culture and tourism sectors in Abu Dhabi. With this, we are showcasing the power of long-term public and private partnerships in the emirate which focus on digital transformation in line with the UAE Digital Government Strategy 2025. We appreciate SCAD’s collaboration on this initiative and look forward to witnessing the results of this successful agreement.” As part of the agreement, SCAD will provide DCT Abu Dhabi with access to the platform, allowing training for the Department’s employees in ways to leverage data for the development of future plans and strategies. SCAD’s Induction and Foresight Platform includes interactive panels, analytical modules and simulations based on statistical data that allow decision-makers to study the impact of various policies on the economic and social sectors, as well as continue integrating resources across government agencies. GITEX Global 2022 is taking place at Dubai World Trade Centre from …

Musafir.com inaugurated their new office in Doha, Qatar. The office was inaugurated by Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulla Al Thani, Co-founder, and Chairman of Musafir.com and a member of the Qatari House of Al Thani in presence of eminent guests from the travel fraternity. Musafir.com’s strong presence in Qatar is part of the organization’s regional growth strategy and commitment to boost travel and tourism in the country. It enables the organization to facilitate Qatar Tourism’s goal of attracting six million visitors by 2030 and raising the tourism industry’s contribution to the nation’s GDP to 10% by the same year. Musafir.com has seen two-fold growth post COVID and will invest in technology to drive seamless experiences for both leisure and corporate clients. Speaking at the opening of the office, Sheikh Al Thani said, “The new corporate office in Qatar is part of the company’s expansion within the region. The Middle East travel and tourism sector post-pandemic is gaining pace as pent- up desire to travel rekindles. Musafir.com has moved from strength to strength and this new office will help the company achieve long-term success.” The new office premises is centrally and strategically located in Al Emadi Financial Square, and includes a state-of-the-art, multilingual contact centre, which will offer Musafir.com’s customers dedicated 24 X 7 support. Sachin Gadoya, Co-founder, and CEO Musafir.com, said, “Qatar is an exciting and fast-growing travel market, and the opening of our office will allow us to better cater to the burgeoning travel and tourism demand while reinforcing our commitment to growth in the country.” With significant travel-intensive events such as the FIFA World Cup being held in Qatar, Musafir.com has plethora of exciting new offers for its customers …

AVIAREPS successfully relaunched its in-person AVIAREPS Middle East Travel Caravan after a 2-year hiatus following the Covid pandemic. Over 110 key travel industry professionals, media and travel influencers attended the Dubai leg of the event which was held on October 11th, 2022 at the Shangri-la Dubai Hotel. The travel roadshow saw key international travel brands and destinations gather under the one roof to meet with the UAE’s and Saudi Arabia’s key outbound travel agencies and meeting and conferencing professionals, to meet one to one to develop new travel packages, itineraries and events tailored for UAE and Saudi Arabia-based travellers. A total of 27 key international partners joined the 2022 edition of the AVIAREPS Caravan including Qatar Tourism Board, The Investment and Development Agency of Latvia, Malta Tourism Authority, The Royal Commission for AlUla, Visit California, Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority and a host of international hospitality brands, airlines and destination management companies. In addition to meeting leading travel agencies, partners also had the opportunity to meet with popular travel influencers from the region, as well as join an intimate panel discussion industry thought leaders, that included representatives from Emirates Holidays, ITL World and Al Rostamani Travel, where they were updated on the latest travel trends and consumer travel requirements from the region. Glenn Johnston, Vice President Middle East & Global Public Affairs, AVIAREPS commented: “As we head towards a post pandemic world outbound international travel from the Gulf Countries continues to demonstrate a remarkably strong and quick return compared to all other major travel regions around the globe. Within this context it is extremely important and timely to hold such an event. By bringing the UAE and Saudi Arabia’s travel professionals …

The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi)  unveiled its new, innovative crowdsourcing platform, which serves as a collaborative, agile, and welcoming tool connecting DCT Abu Dhabi with the world. The unveiling took place as part of the Department’s participation in the 42nd edition of GITEX Global, which runs from 10 – 14 October at the Dubai World Trade Centre. The new Platform complements DCT Abu Dhabi’s five additional data-led projects on display throughout the event. The crowdsourcing platform will be used to implement a complete corporate innovation ecosystem and engage the worldwide community in solving challenges concerning DCT Abu Dhabi’s mandate whilst facilitating access for participants to share new ideas with the Department. The global activation will also support DCT Abu Dhabi’s brand and digital transformation, enhancing regional recognition and focusing on the Department’s efforts to encourage new talents, projects, designs, and ideas through one unified digital platform. Further, through this platform, DCT Abu Dhabi will tap into the vast knowledge of participants to create a wealth of knowledge of significant value. As a result, the competitive benefit for DCT Abu Dhabi can be found in the unexpected solutions that these unique insights will deliver. Additionally, the platform will allow for faster problem-solving while involving the community and driving the adoption and analysis of valuable data. H.E. Adnan Mohammed Alawadhi, Support Services Executive Director at DCT Abu Dhabi, said: “Developing and launching this platform comes in line with the UAE Digital Government’s Strategy 2025, focusing on digital transformation, which is a core priority of DCT Abu Dhabi. We are committed to identifying avenues for faster problem-solving and continually involving the community in projects. In addition …

Malta, an emerging outbound destination for GCC travellers showcased their prowess when it came to luxury hotels and travel at the AVIAREPS Travel Caravan which consisted two stopovers to meet with their GCC clientele, one in the UAE and the other in KSA. Both events were successfully concluded. TBN spoke with Brian Bartolo, Director of Sales and Marketing Radisson Resort and Spa Malta Golden Sands, reiterated, “ We are showcasing one of Malta’s five star properties located on the north side of the island it is blessed with its location, primarily it sits besides Malta’s Golden Bay beach enjoying Malta’s wonderful sunsets and it is a place that one has to visit. We have five different types of luxury suites, our best selling suites are what called the sense tower suites which sits by the water’s edge and they have just being refurbished two years ago.” Grace El Khoury, Senior Business Development Manager Middle East, Intercontinental Malta, “We are trying to extend our market in the GCC, as you know Intercontinental is part of IHG and we want to explore the GCC market in Malta. The agents mainly inquired about our room inventory, as well as the surrounding areas as well as the meeting facilities for MICE business.” Malta’s delegation consisted of luxury five star properties, luxury DMC and MICE agents and of course the tourism board who brought in the team.

Malta was one of the prominent partners at the AVIAREPS Middle East Travel Caravan with a contingent of DMCs and hotels which were more suited for the Middle Eastern travellers. The travel roadshow saw key international travel brands and destinations gather under the one roof to meet with the UAE’s and Saudi Arabia’s key outbound travel agencies and meeting and conferencing professionals, to meet one to one to develop new travel packages, itineraries and events tailored for UAE and Saudi Arabia-based travellers. Arthur Grima – Senior Manager Marketing at Malta Tourism Authority shared, “We are in the interesting period of seeing the recovery of tourism from the pandemic, in fact this year we are expecting to have around 2 million passengers from all our markets. Middle East is an emerging market for us and the type of tourists we receive are luxury travellers, interested mainly in more exclusive and boutique, private luxury type of hotels. We shared our diverse culture as various civilisations left their mark on their island, which is a significant attraction for visitors, also ours is the only language which is sematic but written in the Latin alphabet and this is very particular, its not just the language but also the gastronomy which is very varied and one can experience over 7000 years of history. Connectivity to Malta from this region is quite easy with the daily flight on Emirates to Malta. We are trying to make ourselves more known in the region.” Brian Bartolo, Director of Sales and Marketing Radisson Resort and Spa Malta Golden Sands, reiterated, “ We are showcasing one of Malta’s five star properties located on the north side of the island it …

Sabre Corporation and Nirvana announced a new long-term, strategic partnership agreement to distribute Nirvana’s lodging content and offerings through Sabre’s marketplace. The new agreement will integrate Nirvana’s lodging content into Sabre’s Content Services for Lodging (CSL) allowing Nirvana to promote its content to hundreds of thousands of travel agents globally. Sabre agencies will be able to shop and book Nirvana’s lodging content and amenities of over 11,000 properties at a competitive net-rate. “Many of our agents have indicated that they prefer to shop and book lodging content inside the GDS, thus we are constantly focused on expanding our lodging offerings and adding more content to help them meet travelers’ needs,” said Traci Mercer, senior vice president, Lodging Ground and Sea products, Sabre. “We are pleased that Nirvana will join our CSL offerings, adding more regional lodging options for customers in the Middle East. This enables travel buyers find the right lodging and amenities at the right price to craft the personalized travel offerings that travelers seek.” Nirvana is a leading lodging content aggregator based out of the United Arab Emirates that aims to provide variety of traditional and non-traditional lodging options including serviced apartments and rentals that are gaining popularity for both corporate and leisure travelers. “It is our vision to extend our operations, expand our reach and provide lodging content to online and offline travel buyers around the world.,” said Alaa Al Ali, Group Chief Executive Officer, Nirvana Holding. “Working with Sabre will help us put our content in front of travel buyers beyond the scope of our existing distribution structure, globally. We are delighted to partner with Sabre and benefit from its robust and scalable solutions and extensive …

The German National Tourist Board (GNTB) has revealed the country recorded a 318 per cent increase on overnight stays from Gulf nationals in the first six months of 2022 when compared to the same period last year*. GCC nationals were responsible for more than 335,000 stays in H1 2022, compared with a little less than 81,000 in 2021. Such figures confirm the region’s position as representing the biggest growth from an Asian source market. While tourism numbers may not have returned to pre-pandemic levels yet, the promising growth demonstrates the countries strong recovery as it continues to attract tourists. “The GCC is the top Asian source market, therefore it’s unsurprising with our recent campaigns that there has been such a strong increase,” said Yamina Sofo, director of sales and marketing at the German National Tourist Office, the regional office of GNTB. “Pandemic recovery has long been top of mind and it’s encouraging to see that both longstanding and first-time travellers are increasingly keen to explore everything that Germany has to offer.” Overall, the Asian source markets have recorded a 252.3 per cent increase in overnight visitors, a jump from just over 217,000 to just under 800,000 in 6 months. The surging increase demonstrates a dedication and determination to travel internationally, despite some countries continuing to implement travel restrictions during the first half of the year. To further drive interest in travel to Germany in the remainder of 2022, GNTB has announced the launch of its ‘Feel Good’ campaign, which encompasses a plethora of guiding tips highlighting the country’s eco initiatives that provide conscious tourists with adequate tools and information to reduce their carbon footprint during their travels. A recent survey by D/A, …

As part of its tireless efforts to provide the best services to its valued customers, Kuwait Airways continues its preparations for the biggest and most prominent event, the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar, where the Blue Bird will operate direct, daily match day shuttle services for fans to attend the matches and return on the same day to their homeland, giving fans an exceptional travel experience. In this regard, Kuwait Airways Chief Executive Officer, Eng. Maen Razouqi stated, “Kuwait Airways participation in this global event is an excellent opportunity to highlight our distinguished services to our customers. Our preparations for this event commenced in October 2021 and we launched our first promotional and marketing campaign in February 2022. In addition, we signed an agreement with Qatar Airways in May 2022, enabling Kuwait Airways to carry fans on a daily basis to attend the World Cup matches in Doha, and are fully prepared to meet the travel requirements of customers. Kuwait Airways will operate 13 daily flights from the start of the World Cup, which would gradually reduce as the participating teams progress to the finals, with the frequency in the number of flights depending on the extent of requirements of the customers.” Razouqi added, “Kuwait Airways will provide exceptional travel packages to its customers through KAC’s Holidays Office which include match tickets and KAC flight tickets, at prices starting from 200 Kuwaiti Dinars, depending on the respective classes on the flights and the different categories within the stadium. In addition, Kuwait Airways provides complete assurance to its customers about booking flight tickets and tickets for the matches, as we are certified to distribute match tickets in the State of …

Uranus Travel, a well-known name offering travel and tourism services in Dubai since 1994, has now joined hands with Veena World, one of the most-admired travel companies in India, as their very first OSA (Overseas Sales Agent). With this endeavor, Veena World spreads its wings outside India, while Uranus Travels ventures into the segment of operating escorted group tours. Recently a business meet took place between Mr. Vijay Bhatia, MD, Uranus Travels, and Sunila Patil, Founder and Director, Veena World, in Dubai. Veena World, headquartered in Mumbai, is a well-established travel company with 19 sales offices across Maharashtra, Kolkata, and Bengaluru and close to 150 sales partners across India, along with their corporate office in Mumbai. Veena World’s team of 700+ committed travel professionals, which includes 350+ in-house tour managers who are experienced in leading tours across the seven continents of the world, makes it the largest tour manager force in India Uranus Travel brings to its clients Veena World’s wide range of fully escorted and most affordable family group tours and innovative specialty tours such as Women’s Special, Seniors’ Special, Honeymoon Special Tours, Short Trips, YOLO Adventures, Treks & Hikes, Luxury Tours and more to destinations across the Indian Subcontinent and around Europe, Asia, Africa, the Americas, Australia, and even Antarctica. “With this partnership in place, travelers from the UAE are now certain to travel more, explore more, celebrate life, and see more of our big, beautiful world.” – Mr. Vijay Bhatia, MD, Uranus Travels “This adds another feather into Veena World’s hat. With close to 150 locations across India, we are now looking at also expanding Veena World’s presence overseas. We strongly believe in the potential of showcasing …