Tag Archives: Experience Hub

Experience Hub, the trade and promotion arm of Yas Island Abu Dhabi, has enrolled more than 7,000 travel agents into its distinguished ‘Yas Expert’ programme – a destination training and certification program for travel professionals and agents. Among the 7,000 enrolled, more than 5,000 travel agents have already received certification and been recognised as a Yas Expert, joining an elite team of specialists with enhanced knowledge of the destination and all it has to offer. Throughout the pandemic period, Experience Hub has been virtually engaging with travel trade in key source markets including UK, Russia, China, India and GCC, and training them online to assure continuous product knowledge in preparation for gradual market re-openings. In the GCC, which has seen more than 500 agents enrolled, Yas Expert works with entities such as Seera, Jumbo Travels, Fursan Travel and many more to create Yas Island Brand Ambassadors, a network of people who are able to drive visitation to the island globally. Commenting on the programme, Liam Findlay, General Manager, Experience Hub said, “Experience Hub continues to show its commitment to global partners by refining and enhancing its valuable trade programmes such as Yas Expert. Our top priority through the travel slowdown has been to support our industry and evaluate how we can improve our offering ready for the travel rebound. We look forward to helping more agents globally to become Yas Experts and showcase a destination like nowhere else”.

Experience Hub is drawing on this year’s Arabian Travel Market (ATM) to highlight the destination’s readiness as it looks forward to welcoming back regional and international travellers to the award-winning island. With excellent safety measures, new attractions, and enhanced summer packages, Yas Island Abu Dhabi is guaranteed to be the preferred destination for global visitors of all ages. Liam Findley, General Manager, Experience Hub said, “Arabian Travel Market is the perfect opportunity for us to reconnect with the travel trade in a long-awaited physical setting and highlight the extensive work we have done behind the scenes to prepare for the opening of international markets. “Despite the challenges of the pandemic, our teams across the island have responded vigilantly to ensure the wellbeing of our guests and staff, and we are proud to say that we are one of the safest destinations in the world for travel. Building on this foundation, we have pushed ahead with our new developments and demonstrated a world-leading framework for the staging of major sports and entertainment events. The only way is up for Yas Island as the world makes headway in global inoculation and we strive to rebuild the travel and tourism sector. We are delighted to be able to support the trade with an enhanced product offering that will undoubtedly be a huge draw for global customers”.

Seera Group signed an exclusive GCC partnership with Experience Hub, a subsidiary of Miral and the trade and promotion arm of Yas Island Abu Dhabi, one of the fastest growing leisure and entertainment destinations globally. The agreement will see the two entities work together to train Seera’s agents and sales associates on the iconic attractions in the UAE capital city and drive further visitations from Kuwait and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. A comprehensive calendar of virtual training activities has been lined-up to cover the various attractions on Yas Island Abu Dhabi, enabling Seera to promote these destinations further to its consumer travel customer base. Another initiative by Seera Group to foster strong industry linkages to support the recovery of the travel and tourism sector, the partnership is expected to drive stronger visitor footfalls to Abu Dhabi from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Muzzammil Ahussain, EVP of Consumer Travel at Seera Group, said, “Abu Dhabi is one of the fast-growing destinations of choice for visitors from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Through our partnership with Experience Hub, we are offering our sales associates and travel agents more insights into the diverse aspects of Yas Island. As we prepare for travel and tourism activity to reopen and flourish, such virtual training programmes will not only keep our teams motivated but also accelerate the sector’s growth.” Liam Findlay, General Manager of Experience Hub, said: “The GCC is a key source market for Yas Island and our first priority in welcoming back international visitors to the destination. Our aim at Experience Hub is to forge deeper relationships with our partners through collaboration and resource-sharing so that together we can rebuild consumer confidence and foster growth …

Experience Hub has announced the launch of the ‘Yas Wellness Program’ on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi’s premier leisure and entertainment hub, following the announcement of the reopening of Yas Theme Parks and attractions at 30% capacity and as part of the Island’s continued commitment to the health and safety of its guests and employees. Travel trade professionals across all markets are invited to learn more about Yas Wellness program through the Yas Expert platform, the dedicated destination online training and certification programme for travel agents. With Ferrari World Abu Dhabi and Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi set to welcome annual passholders on July 28, with all theme parks and CLYMB Abu Dhabi opening to all guests from 29th July 29, the ‘Yas Wellness Program’ will reassure visitors of Yas Island on the enhanced health and safety measures. Yas Island’s hotels will be open from Saturday August 1. The initiative offers all visitors, trade partners and prospective guests a direct line of communication to specially trained team members to answer all queries and concerns before they visit the island. Starting today, Yas Wellness Ambassadors are available across multiple platforms, including phone, social media, WhatsApp and email, to answer guests’ questions on the health and safety measures in place at the reopened Yas Theme Parks and attractions. The ambassadors will also be on hand to answer queries regarding openings and closures across the island, hotel reopening dates and general visitor information. Yas Island has doubled the cleaning teams and reduced capacity across all attractions, increased the frequency of sanitization at frequent touch points and high traffic areas, and defined clear and separate entry and exit points. Social distancing policies are in place …

Experience Hub, the trade and promotion arm of Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, has revealed ‘Yas Expert,’ a new destination training and certification programme for travel agents.  In the first three weeks of the programme’s launch, more than 1,000 agents registered to undertake the online programme, which includes modules on the destination’s award-winning attractions, leisure experiences, on-island stays and itinerary planning. Additional modules in development include seasonal experiences that will cater to holidaymakers from key feeder markets, such as upcoming Diwali celebrations. Travel agents who complete all modules are certified as ‘Yas Experts,’ and also qualify to enjoy a number of incentives as well as join exclusive familiarisation trips, during which the agents complete their educational journey by experiencing the destination first-hand. Programme completion incentives include experience vouchers, the opportunity to win instant and mega prizes, including all-expenses paid trip to Yas Island for two. The first mega-prize draw in each key market will take place at the end of September. Speaking about the programme, Bruno Wiley, Vice President of Sales, Experience Hub, said, “Initiatives such as the Yas Expert programme highlight Experience Hub’s evergreen approach to continuously enhancing our relationships with travel agents to help them get acquainted with Yas Island, which continues to grow and evolve.” The programme is currently available to travel agents in the GCC, India and the UK and will soon be available to agents in Russia and China.

The trade and promotion arm of Yas Island Abu Dhabi ‘Experience Hub’ announced a strategic agreement with Hotelbeds, the world’s leading business-to-business bedbank, which will result in a new and wider distribution of leisure and entertainment experiences to the international travel trade. The agreement was officiated during the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) in Dubai, with representatives at the Yas Island stand were Experience Hub’s General Manager Marina Cipriano, and Vice President, Sales, Bruno Wiley. Hotelbeds was represented by Michael Lynden-Bell, Beyond The Bed Sales & Sourcing Director – MEAPAC at Hotelbeds,  and Mahesh Ammanath, Regional Sourcing Manager at Hotelbeds. Speaking about the signed agreement, Marina Cipriano, General Manager, Experience Hub, said, “Yas Island is now firmly established as a unique tourism destination which offers visitors to the UAE a diverse mix of leisure and entertainment, including three award-winning theme parks. Partnering with Hotelbeds will allow us to showcase Yas Island’s offerings to an even wider audience abroad and support our efforts to connect international markets to our one-of-a-kind destination.” Michael Lynden-Bell said, “We are very excited and pleased to confirm that a strategic agreement has been forged with Yas Island, one of the world’s fastest growing leisure and entertainment destinations. This news reflects our commitment to Abu Dhabi and the UAE as a whole, and demonstrates the confidence that partners, such as Experience Hub, place in our business-to-business bed and ancillary bank to access incremental and high-value clients”. Experience Hub will broaden its product distribution network and reach, driving increased awareness of Yas Island as a leisure and entertainment destination, while Hotelbeds – along with its Beyond The Bed division – will expand its offering beyond accommodation to include packaged …

Experience Hub, the trade and promotion arm of Yas Island Abu Dhabi, is participating at the ITB Berlin to further engage and strengthen relationships with the European travel market, while also expanding its network of partners from Europe. Yas Island is positioned to attract a growing number of visitors from across Europe with recent 2018 visitation numbers revealing an increase of 22 per cent in tourists from the United Kingdom, 10 per cent from Germany and a whopping 45 per cent from Russia. “Yas Island delivers a holiday experience unlike any other and that’s what we will showcase to industry leaders at ITB Berlin this year. With attractions that include award-winning theme parks, including the recently-opened Warner Bros World Abu Dhabi and a world-class motor sports facility like the Yas Marina Circuit, which is home to the Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, alongside more than 160 restaurants and Yas Mall, we have a portfolio of entertainment attractions to provide unparalleled holiday packages in the UAE capital,” said Marina Cipriano, General Manager, Experience Hub.” Experience Hub is managed by expert travel professionals across a wide global network who continuously cultivate collaboration opportunities to source valuable insights into the preferences of travellers from Europe and beyond. Experience Hub’s B2B booking portal provides travel partners direct access to holiday packages and tickets to Yas Island attractions at exclusive rates, among other services, keeping them in the know about the latest experiences and opportunities to enrich their offering to their travellers. “With our dedicated teams in the UK, Germany, Russia and other international markets, we have found that travellers are keen to experience shopping, dining, culture and the outdoors. With that knowledge, we can …

Experience Hub is set to participate at the South Asian Travel and Trade Exhibition (SATTE) taking place from January 16 to 18, 2019 in Delhi, India for promoting Yas Island Abu Dhabi as a one-of-a-kind destination for the UAE holidaymakers. It will highlight many of the island’s award-winning attractions while underscoring collaboration opportunities for travel companies in the South Asian market. Marina Cipriano, General Manager, Experience Hub, said: “We are deeply invested in India, which at a 20 per cent year-on-year growth rate is one of our fastest growing markets for Yas Island. SATTE 2019 is the perfect platform for us to further engage and strengthen our relationships with existing travel partners, while also expanding our network across the country. As always, we are keen to work hand-in-hand with the travel industry to deliver best-in-class services, and ensure we can provide Indian travellers visiting Yas Island Abu Dhabi with unrivalled entertainment value.” Following its launch in January last year, Experience Hub demonstrated its commitment to the Indian market by expanding its presence in the country, with the establishment of key offices in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru. Experience Hub also embarked on several roadshows and events, in collaboration with the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi and Etihad Airways, in an effort to further meet the particular needs of the Indian travel market.