Tag Archives: Abu Dhabi

In celebration of Abu Dhabi hosting the inaugural Middle East & North Africa’s 50 Best Restaurants Awards on 7 February, the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) has announced the launch of 50 Best Week Abu Dhabi — a culinary festival featuring experiential dining experiences, cooking masterclasses and unique collaboration dinners. Taking place from 4 to 11 February 2022, the eight-day culinary festival will showcase the city’s vibrant gastronomic experiences and some of its finest restaurants. Ideal for food-lovers looking to explore Abu Dhabi’s diverse culinary scene, the event will be filled with mouth-watering moments to enjoy, with renowned international chefs coming to the UAE’s capital city to display their skills, and homegrown Emirati talent showcasing their own stellar abilities. Culinary leaders will provide insights into their food philosophy inspiring food lovers of their dishes, ingredients, stories and experiences. The esteemed restaurant awards and gala dinner will recognise 50 outstanding restaurants from across the region highlighting their culinary excellence and dining experiences. Fatima Saeed Al Baloushi, Acting Director of DCT’s Abu Dhabi Events Bureau, said: “We are thrilled to be celebrating culinary excellence across Abu Dhabi, catering to residents and visitors, and both seasoned food lovers and more casual diners offering them a taste of our diverse food, and to experience great dishes by some of the world’s leading chefs who are heading to our multi-cultural capital city next month.” The events include three interactive Masterclasses taking place on Friday 4 February, where acclaimed chefs from around the world will showcase their skills while preparing signature dishes in front of a live audience. The chefs – Tim Raue of Restaurant Tim Raue in Berlin; innovative …

Yas Island Abu Dhabi looks forward to welcoming back travellers from Saudi Arabia to the award-winning destination following the announcement of relaxed quarantine measures for fully vaccinated travellers to the UAE. With improved health measures, Yas Island Abu Dhabi is a destination where visitors of all ages can enjoy unforgettable experiences in a safe environment. Since the start of the pandemic, Yas Island has been reassuring visitors of their safety and well-being during their time at the destination. 95% of eligible team members across the destination have been vaccinated, including attractions, experiences, hotels, restaurants, and retailers in support of Abu Dhabi’s vaccination program. In addition, Yas Island’s theme parks and attractions were awarded the ‘Go Safe’ certification by the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi, including Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, Yas Waterworld Abu Dhabi, Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi, CLYMB Abu Dhabi earlier in the year, Yas Marina Circuit, Yas Mall, as well as W Abu Dhabi – Yas Island – the first hotel in the UAE to receive the accreditation – and all Yas Plaza hotels. The certification is one of 25 health and safety accreditations received by the destination, including the coveted WTTC ‘Safe Travels’ stamp by the World Travel & Tourism Council in August 2020 – the first destination in Abu Dhabi to receive the international honour. During the summer months, Yas Island introduced its popular ‘Kids Go Free’ packages across the destination for the ultimate summer break, and has now extended the package to holidaymakers from Saudi Arabia. Until 30 September 2021, children below the age of 12 will be able to stay and play for free – one child for every one paying …

Etihad Airways is restarting services to Rabat on 23 June 2021. As Phuket prepares to reopen to international vaccinated travellers, Etihad is recommencing services to the popular holiday destination on 1 July 2021.  Fares from Abu Dhabi to Rabat and Phuket start from just AED 995 return in Economy. This fare is limited on a first come first-served basis. The sale starts today, Wednesday, 2 June 2021 and ends on Friday, 4 June 2021. Guests who book between 5 and 9 June 2021 will enjoy return fares to Rabat starting from AED 1,995 in Economy and Business fares from AED 9,495. Travellers can jet off to Phuket in Business from AED 6,995. Sale fares are valid for travel until 20 November 2021. The Rabat service will operate with an initial twice-weekly flight and Phuket will be three times a week, using a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, offering Economy Space and Neighbour-free seating options. To simplify the travel experience and provide additional peace of mind, Etihad recently launched Verified to Fly, allowing guests to validate their Covid-19 travel documents before arriving at the airport. Travellers who use Verified to Fly can enjoy fast track check-in at the airport by going to the dedicated Verified to Fly desk for a quicker and smoother experience. To use the Verified to Fly service, guests can sign-up by visiting Manage my Booking and will receive further information on how to submit their documents. For more convenient travel options, guests can also check in for their Etihad flight from the comfort of their own home by visiting etihad.com/homecheckin up to seven hours before their flight. This means passengers can check in their bags, choose their seat and …

Travellers flying from Abu Dhabi with Etihad Airways, will be able to validate their Covid-19 travel documents before arriving at the airport. Guests can arrive at the airport with confidence and with peace of mind, knowing they have met all essential requirements before their flight. With the formalities out of the way, verified travellers can enjoy fast track check-in at the airport by going to the dedicated Verified to Fly desk for a quicker and smoother experience. Mohammad Al Bulooki, Chief Operating Officer, Etihad Aviation Group said: “As Etihad continuously looks for innovative solutions to simplify the travel experience, Verified to Fly removes any guess work from the equation and makes check-in faster. Guests have total peace of mind knowing that when they arrive at the airport, they have already met all Covid travel requirements”.

Xtreme Zone has announced reopening of its premises in Abu Dhabi. The centres are now ready to welcome all guests, who can have fun and thrill of a variety of activities in a safe and healthy environment. Xtreme Zone is operational in The Galleria, the super-regional mall in Al Maryah Island and the new age Abu Dhabi Mall in the heart of the city, adding a breath of fresh air to entertainment of kids and families in the city. The centres offer an experience of leisure combined with fitness and recreational options, maintaining all the safety protocols to families and children to make them get active again. Commenting on the reopening, Fahad Al Othaim, Vice Chairman of Al-Othaim Leisure and Tourism, said, “We have started welcoming our guests back to their favorite ‘sports based entertainment destination in the city. All our centres are sanitized as per the official guidelines, and our staffs are trained to ensure a healthy and safe environment for our guests. Now we are bringing back all our special campaigns for families across these centres. This will help families to participate in special fun activities, rides, games and trampoline activities.” “Social distancing and other preventive measures against COVID-19 are always being followed across all its outlets. Our dedicated and specially trained and experienced staffs ensure that safety guidelines and regular maintenance of equipment help customers to achieve an enhanced experience upon every visit,” he added. “Your boys and girls can blow off some steam in the trampoline park and also learn and try active climbing which is a lot of fun. With the strategic locations of Xtreme Zone, parents shopping with their children may look for an …

Nature enthusiasts, can once again find sanctuary in Jubail Mangrove Park, Abu Dhabi’s, first of its kind, educational, nature and leisure destination on beautiful Jubail Island effective October 1, 2020. Abu Dhabi’s premier nature attraction, Jubail Mangrove Park, first opened in January with the aim of enhancing the awareness, appreciation and understanding of the delicate ecosystem and rich biodiversity of the UAE capital’s famed mangroves. The park was an instant success with residents and visitors alike, who flocked to explore the mangroves. The park temporarily ceased operations in March in accordance with safety precautions to limit the spread of COVID-19. Visitors will once again be able to stroll down the sprawling boardwalk that runs through the mangroves, meander through 2.3 kilometres of Boardwalk and see a variety of terrestrial and aquatic flora and fauna. Specially trained rangers are on hand who can explain the history behind the mangroves and detail wildlife native to Abu Dhabi that can be spotted within the lush natural habitat and crystal waters. Educational tours led by rangers and other activities will also resume. Richard Russell, Chief Operations Officer of Jubail Island Investment Company (JIIC) said, “We have been working tirelessly with our partners in preparation for the reopening as the safety and health of our visitors and employees has – and remains – our top priority. As we resume operations, we have implemented policies designed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and we will monitor all aspects of this issue as we continue to co-ordinate with relevant entities and strive to meet the highest standards of safety. We urge the public to help us keep our treasured park open by also doing their part by …

Abu Dhabi has demonstrated its commitment to safely organising large, high-profile events through successful management of health and safety protocols, as some of the biggest names in UFC, touched down in the UAE capital for the much-anticipated Return to UFC Fight Island. The mega five-event series is set to take place on Yas Island from September 27 to October 25. Brazilian fighter Paulo Costa and opponent Israel Adesanya arrived at the W Hotel, inside the UFC Fight Island safe zone on Yas Island, ahead of their UFC 253: ADESANYA vs COSTA clash on September 27. Both sporting black face masks on arrival, the pair were joined by Jan Blachowicz and Dominick Reyes, who go head-to-head in the co-main event light heavyweight bout on the same event card. Following two initial COVID-19 tests prior to their departure and upon arrival in Abu Dhabi, the athletes are required a third negative test before they can leave their hotel rooms and access the state-of-the-art UFC Fight Island™ safe zone, which includes all event facilities on Yas Island. Having achieved a new benchmark in global sport safety with its pioneering ‘bubble’ concept at the inaugural UFC Fight Island™ in July, the 6 square km safe zone incorporates the arena, hotels, and training facilities, as well as entertainment and dining establishments. The safe zone is only accessible to UFC fighters, coaches, delegates and UAE-based event personnel, as well as employees necessary to ensure operational continuity of Yas Island facilities.

Miral announced the latest milestones and construction progress at Yas Island’s Yas Bay. His Highness Sheikh Khalid bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Member of the Executive Council and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Office, visited the development and was briefed on construction progress and milestones achieved to date. Yas Bay represents a USD 1.1 Billion investment, and is an integral part of Miral’s USD 3.26 Billion portfolio of diverse leisure and entertainment developments under construction on Yas Island.As part of the overall masterplan for Yas Island, Yas Bay will play an important role in the continued growth of the island, with Miral investing the USD 1.1 Billion into The project’s Waterfront, infrastructure and public realm. H.E. Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman of Miral said, “We have made significant progress across Abu Dhabi’s new iconic development, Yas Bay. The latest milestones underscore our vision for Yas Island to position it as a top global destination for entertainment, leisure and business. We remain committed to enriching our portfolio of unique experiences and immersive attractions across Yas Island while further contributing to Abu Dhabi and the UAE’s wider tourism growth.”

Effective August 1, all travellers flying Etihad Airways from around the world to Abu Dhabi, and those transferring via Abu Dhabi onto other flights, will be required to show a negative COVID-19 PCR test result from a list of approved testing facilities listed on their website, alongside their ICA approval if Abu Dhabi is their end destination. The PCR test must be carried out within 96 hours prior to arrival in Abu Dhabi and a negative COVID-19 PCR test result certificate from one of the approved clinics listed must be shown for approval to board. Children under the age of 12 and people with mild to severe disabilities are currently exempt from this PCR test requirement. Travellers leaving the UAE from Abu Dhabi to any country in the European Union, the United Kingdom, or to any country where it is mandatory by the authorities at the destination, a negative COVID-19 PCR test result will be required within 96 hours prior to departure. To help facilitate this process, Etihad Airways is collaborating with Mediclinic Middle East to offer departing travellers the option of convenient PRC testing, for a fee, at their home, or at Mediclinic facilities in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and Dubai prior to their travel. The gradual return to more international flying to, from, and via Abu Dhabi is being greatly supported by the Etihad Wellness sanitisation and safety programme, which ensures the highest standards of hygiene are maintained at every stage of the customer journey. This includes specially trained Wellness Ambassadors, a first in the industry, who have been introduced by the airline to provide essential travel health information and care on the ground and on every flight, …

The final in a tri-series webinar to promote the rich, beautiful and historical Spain will be held on Wednesday June 24, 2020 at 11am. As Spain gears up to open its destination to foreign visitors, behind the scene, the authorities are on a drive to ensure safety and hygiene for its travellers. In this session Daniel Rosado Bayon – Director of the Spanish Tourism Office in Abu Dhabi will walk the viewers through a very interesting lush greenery areas in the Spain. First and foremost he will update of the current situation in Spain, regarding tourists, measures taken, what they need to know to travel to the destination etc. Thereafter he will take the viewers through an interesting journey of the greener areas in northern Spain and the many islands; Balearic islands in the Mediterranean and Canary Islands, of volcanic origin in the Atlantic.They offer paradise beaches with green sceneries, great nature, amazing gastronomy and history. Another few key factors are that they have mild temperatures and plenty of space to move around easily and without getting disturbed.