Tag Archives: CEO

Dubai’s Jumeirah Group announced its plans to expand its brand presence in Asia, Europe and US whilst doubling its portfolio by 2030, building on its strength in the UAE and further expanding into key global markets. Plans include upweighting its presence in Europe, leveraging its strong base in London, Capri, Mallorca and Geneva to acquire luxury properties in other major cities as well as exploring opportunities in the US. The Group will also look to capitalise on the strong growth potential of the Asia Pacific market to extend its current reach beyond its properties in China, Bali and the Maldives. The growth plans are part of Jumeirah’s Mission 2030 strategy which will also see an evolution of the brand with a renewed focus on delivering distinct guest experiences and new ancillary businesses to complement its ultra luxury positioning.  Launching in 2024, this will include the integration of wellness into the entire guest journey based on the principles of lifelong learning, longevity and inclusivity, as well as a re-imagined family experience with a focus on education, self-discovery, environmental stewardship, cultural immersion and the arts. Katerina Giannouka, Chief Executive Officer of Jumeirah Group, commented: “The luxury landscape continues to evolve in response to consumer demand, particularly from younger millennial and Gen Z audiences, and as a brand we need to continually innovate to stay relevant.  Mission 2030 is a strategic plan that is designed to evolve the Jumeirah brand from a regional success story to a global leader in ultra luxury hospitality. It focuses on four key areas – international expansion, brand and product development, operational excellence and ancillary business – with an overall aim to sustainably double the size of our …

COP28 will witness world leaders gathering in the UAE which will open new chapters in tourism. Mohamed Abdalla Al Zaabi, Group CEO, Miral shares the importance of this gathering to the tourism sector. “In a few days, the highly anticipated COP28 UAE will convene with world leaders and policy makers right here in the UAE in a bid to accelerate global efforts towards Net Zero and carbon neutral goals. These conversations are more critical than ever for the tourism industry, which is responsible for approximately 8% of the world’s carbon emissions. The UAE has played an increasingly crucial role in the fight against global warming, from committing to Net Zero by 2050 to marking 2023 as the Year of Sustainability. To ensure such endeavours go a long way in creating a positive impact on our people and the planet, our tourism ecosystem must make concerted efforts to keep sustainability high on the agenda and mitigate the overall effects of climate change. It’s inspiring to witness several industry pioneers across Abu Dhabi already rising to this challenge. A comprehensive sustainability framework by the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) is enabling industry partners to apply sustainable practices across their operations and pledge towards Net Zero carbon events by 2050. In addition, the opening of Abu Dhabi Airports state-of-the-art Terminal A is spearheading a new chapter in the Emirate’s sustainable economic development. As a key player within the tourism industry, Miral has long been committed to this positive transformation. Sustainability is an integral part of our vision to deliver growth across the leisure, entertainment, and tourism sector. We define our success by creating a positive impact on …

Time Hotels walked away with two titles at the 6th edition of the Arabian Travel Awards with Passionate hotelier Mohamed Awadalla, CEO Time Hotels as the DDP Trailblazer and Time Hotels as ‘Fastest Growing Brand’. Awadalla shared, “The Arabian Travel Awards are renowned for their steadfast dedication to advancing excellence in the tourism and hospitality sectors throughout the Middle East and North Africa region. Being part of such an event not only spotlights the achievements of the nominees but also serves as a testament to their dedication and contributions. Earning recognition as a “Fast Growing Brand” is a moment of triumph and acknowledgment that can profoundly impact both personal and professional dimensions of one’s life. It often signifies the culmination of relentless effort, unwavering dedication, and an unyielding commitment to excellence within the travel and tourism industry. This award serves as a token of appreciation for all members of the TIME team and acts as a motivating force for the challenging year that lies ahead.”

Having served over 150 million passengers and operating flights to a vast network of more than 190 routes from seven strategic hubs, Air Arabia Group, the Middle East & North Africa’s first and largest low-cost carrier operator, enters its milestone 20th year of operations as it continues to solidify its position as a pioneer and market leader in the aviation industry. Marking this special milestone, Air Arabia has introduced a new addition to its distinctive livery, a unique 20th-anniversary emblem, that celebrates the airline’s two decades of excellence and serves as a testament to the remarkable journey that Air Arabia has undertaken, fueled by the dedication and hard work of its staff members. Commenting on the low-cost carrier’s momentous journey since 2003, Adel Al Ali, Group Chief Executive Officer of Air Arabia, said: “For two decades now, Air Arabia has demonstrated its leadership position by transforming the way air travel is perceived in the MENA region. Air Arabia’s successful trajectory as a driving force behind connecting people, cultures, and economies, has since brought change to the industry, and has grown the market for affordable air travel”. Since introducing low-cost air travel to the MENA region 20 years ago, Air Arabia has strengthened its market position by offering greater travel options for customers and providing high quality services at affordable fares. Commencing operations on October 28, 2003, with just two aircraft servicing five routes, the airline has grown into a multi-billion-dollar group offering travel and tourism services across the globe. Today, the Air Arabia Group has a multi-brand portfolio spanning across aviation, hospitality, tourism, information technology, flight operations, ground handling, catering and MRO. Air Arabia now operates from multiple hubs spread …

The newly launched national carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh Air, today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Colleges of Excellence (CoE), a leading entity in providing training services in the Kingdom, established by the Technical and Vocational Training Corporate (TVTC) in Saudi Arabia. The agreement was signed by Riyadh Air CEO, Tony Douglas and the Colleges of Excellence CEO, Engineer Ayman Mustafa Al Abdullah attended by His Excellency the Governor of the TVTC, Dr. Ahmed bin Fahd Al-Fuhaid at its training facility. The agreement aims to solidifying both parties commitment to collaborate and create a transformative vocational program that will shape the future of the aviation industry, which includes the activation of a first of its kind, female training program specialized in the field of engineering and maintenance at the college in Saudi Arabia. The MoU aims to provide innovative and specialized training programs for students in the aviation sector, which will include qualifying the first cohort of Saudi females in the Aircraft Maintenance Engineering program. The students will gain insight from the exchange of experiences and information, hands on training and workshop in order to implement and support their studies, to be provided at the college facilities. Riyadh Air’s CEO Tony Douglas remarked, “We are thrilled to partner with the Colleges of Excellence to support the launch of the specialized aviation programs,” he added “By providing students with hands-on experience and specialized training, we aim to bridge the gap between education and industry requirements. We are particularly excited about the opportunities this program will create for women in technical engineering and maintenance, paving the way for a more diverse and inclusive aviation workforce.” The …

ADNEC Group has announced through its subsidiary, Capital Holiday, its full operational launch in Munich, marking a significant milestone in its vision to elevate Abu Dhabi’s tourism sector. With a dedicated team in place, Capital Holidays is committed to supporting sustainable growth of tourism in the emirate. Driven by a shared passion for excellence, the Capital Holidays team is working to activate a state-of-the-art technological infrastructure. This infrastructure aims to streamline workflows and enhance collaborations between Capital Holidays and its trade partners, ensuring seamless travel experiences for tourists exploring Abu Dhabi. The inauguration of Tourism 365’s new office in Munich, operating under its subsidiary Capital Holidays, represents a strategic move to attract European leisure and business tourists to Abu Dhabi. This expansion aims to promote the emirate’s captivating tourist attractions in the European market while forging partnerships with tour operators. Humaid Al Dhaheri, Managing Director and Group CEO of ADNEC, said: “The establishment of our Munich office reflects our commitment to creating lasting connections between Europe and Abu Dhabi. By providing convenient access to our exceptional destination through our European hub, we aim to showcase the richness of Abu Dhabi’s offerings to travellers, entrepreneurs, and investors alike. This move is evidence of ADNEC’s dedication to bolstering the growth of Abu Dhabi’s tourism sector on an international scale.” The strategic location of the new office in Munich positions Capital Holidays to cater to the unique preferences of European travellers. Through targeted marketing initiatives, Capital Holidays will highlight Abu Dhabi’s diverse cultural heritage, modern infrastructure and unparalleled hospitality. Emphasis will be placed on the city’s iconic landmarks, thriving arts and culture scene, and world-class business facilities to foster a deeper understanding of …

SriLankan Airlines joined the Arabian Travel Mart (ATM) 2023 to boost tourism from the Middle East and North Africa. The region is an important source market for high-net worth tourists and SriLankan hopes to promote its flight services from the Middle East to Sri Lanka and beyond for leisure travel. Richard Nuttall, Chief Executive Officer Sri Lankan Airlines speaking with TravelTV Middle East highlighted the importance of the destination and the new campaign to attract hitherto unknown places in the destination. He further reiterated that currently SriLankan Airlines operates over 40 weekly flights to the Middle East spanning the key cities of Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates; Doha in Qatar; Dammam and Riyadh in Saudi Arabia; and Kuwait. The airline is now looking ahead to further strengthen its operations in the Middle East with the anticipated new aircraft deliveries to its fleet in the near future. SriLankan’s plans for the Middle East include an increase in the number of weekly flights to Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Doha and the relaunch of services to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. He further stated, “There is a huge diaspora living in the Middle Eastern region and we want them to feel at home as soon as they board the flight, and for those tourists who will travel with us for the first time, we want them to feel the Sri Lankan hospitality as soon as they begin their journey onboard. For Middle Eastern customers seeking the thrill and vibrancy of Sri Lanka, SriLankan Airlines is arguably the best choice of travel due to the airline’s convenient and direct flight options between multiple cities across the Middle East and the island.” SriLankan …

As one of ATM’s longest-standing partners, Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) marked the 26th year of its participation in showcasing the emirate’s diverse tourism offerings to the local and international travel trade community at this year’s Arabian Travel Market (ATM). Dubai Tourism was joined by over 300 representatives from government bodies, hotels, destination management companies and tour operators. The Dubai stand showcased the breadth of the emirate’s ever-evolving destination portfolio, as well as highlighted an upcoming pipeline of new experiences through numerous interactive activations and content-rich displays. The strategic platform also brought together an extensive network of industry stakeholders across the public and private sectors to strengthen new and existing in-market trade partnerships. In support of the show’s 2019 focus on technological innovation, the state-of-the-art stand will embrace disruptive innovation by providing unique and immersive experiences to visitors, all designed to showcase the city’s unique and attractive tourist proposition for diverse market segments. Issam Kazim, CEO, Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DCTCM) said, “ATM plays a key strategic role in helping Dubai Tourism provide insights into the emirate’s dynamic tourism proposition to international, regional and local travel, tourism and hospitality decision makers. We are delighted to extend our reach this year by hosting more than 300 buyers from around the world to explore how to maximise our combined potentials. Our activations and on-stand experiences will build on the technological innovation theme of this year’s show, and we look forward to highlighting the scale of the activities that continue to build on our ‘digital, mobile and social first’ agenda.” This year, visitors to the Dubai stand could explore a dedicated ‘EMAAR Zone’ with a new Virtual …

His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation, has inaugurated the 26th edition of Arabian Travel Market (ATM). He was joined by Helal Saeed Al Marri, CEO, Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) and Director-General of Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM), plus other VIPs who embarked on a tour of the show floor as the four-day event got underway at DWTC. Taking place from April 28 to May 1, this year’s event has 400 main stand holders with representation from over 150 countries. With more than 40,000 visitors expected to attend the event, ATM 2019 will showcase over 2,500 exhibiting companies – of which 100 will be making their show debut. The 26th edition of ATM will form part of the inaugural Arabian Travel Week, as well as ILTM Arabia, CONNECT Middle East, India and Africa – a new route development forum launching this year and new consumer-led event ATM Holiday Shopper. Other highlights will include the debuts of Arabia China Tourism Forum and Hotel Industry Summit, as well as the return of Global Halal Tourism Summit. As this year’s main theme, cutting-edge technology and innovation will be integrated across all show verticals and planned activities.

Shaza Hotels has signed a management agreement with Sheikh Sultan Al Harthi to operate Mysk Jeddah, the Mysk brand’s first property in KSA. Located on Heraa Street, close to the Jeddah Corniche, the four-star hotel is expected to open in 2021. Included in its facilities are a restaurant, a café, meeting rooms, a kids’ club, fitness centre and rooftop pool. Sheikh Sultan Al Harthi stated, “To support the tourism initiatives for Saudi Vision 2030, we have decided to enter the tourism sector by developing an upscale hotel in a prime location in Jeddah Province. We have chosen Shaza Hotels to operate it under the Mysk by Shaza brand as we were keen on bringing a new and fresh brand to the Saudi market. This hotel will be one-of-a-kind in the Kingdom.” Simon Coombs, President and CEO, Shaza Hotels, commented, “The tourism landscape in KSA is changing rapidly due to various government initiatives being put in place to boost the number of arrivals into the country. New destinations are being created and a new generation of hotels is entering Saudi Arabia. Mysk Jeddah is one of them, catering to the evolving needs of the Saudi tourism sector where discerning guests are seeking a more personalised experience aligned with their lifestyle. We are very grateful to Sheikh Sultan Al Harthi for having entrusted us with the management of Mysk Jeddah and we are confident that this Mysk will become the new sought-after address in Jeddah.” Mysk Jeddah is the brand’s seventh property, the first being the award-winning Mysk by Shaza Al Mouj in Muscat, and the next hotels to open are three Mysk retreats that are part of the Sharjah Collection as announced …