Tag Archives: Jamal Humaid Al Falasi

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) undertook efforts to enhance the emirate’s position as the ‘cruise hub of the region’. Dubai Tourism exhibited at Seatrade Europe, held in Hamburg last month, under the Cruise Arabia banner, brought together the tourism authorities of Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Bahrain with the goal of promoting the region as a whole.  Dubai Tourism’s latest promotional drive was aimed at attracting more cruise tourists, specifically from Europe and India. The Dubai delegation at Seatrade Europe was headed by Jamal Humaid Al Falasi, Director of Dubai Cruise Tourism, and joined by several other relevant Dubai government entities and private sector stakeholders. Commenting on Dubai Tourism’s latest cruise activities, Jamal Humaid Al Falasi said, “Our participation at Seatrade Europe came at a time when cruise lines traditionally hold their discussions with destinations and service providers to plan for the subsequent seasons. We are pleased to have participated in the event under the Cruise Arabia banner, as it underlines the members’ commitment to further develop cruise tourism business in the region.”

The 2016-17 season of Dubai Cruise Tourism (DCT) officially concluded with the departure of the season’s final ship, the C.S. Sea Princess, from Port Rashid recently. This season of Dubai Cruise Tourism saw over 625,000 cruise tourists visit the city via 157 ship calls, reflecting an increase of 15 per cent in the number of tourists and 18 per cent in the number of ship calls when compared to the 2015-16 season. The season also saw Thomson Cruises, the first UK-based cruise line home porting in the region, in addition to inaugural visits from TUI’s Mein Schiff 1 Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Star and MSC’s MSC Fantasia among the eight other maiden ship calls. Commenting on the success of the 2016-17 season, Jamal Humaid Al Falasi, Director of Dubai Cruise Tourism said, “We are very pleased with the success of our 2016-17 cruising season and with the city’s sustained popularity as a winter cruise destination. We are grateful to DP World, Dubai Airports, Dubai Immigration, Dubai Customs, Emirates Airlines and our other key public and private sector stakeholders for their continued cooperation which has led to an ever-increasing number of cruise operators looking to anchor in the emirate.”

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism), in collaboration with Celebrity Cruises, commemorated the inaugural visit to Dubai of Celebrity Constellation during her maiden voyage in the region. Marking the occasion at a welcome reception, held at Dubai Cruise Terminal in Mina Rashid were Jamal Humaid Al Falasi, Director of Dubai Cruise Tourism, Mohammed Al Mannaei, Director of Mina Rashid, DP World and Lakshmi Durai, CEO of Travel Matrix, the Middle East representative for Celebrity Cruises. Attended by dignitaries from Dubai Immigration, Dubai Customs, Dubai Police, Environment Health and Safety (Trakhees) and PCFC Security, the arrival of Celebrity Constellation commenced with a traditional Plaques and Keys ceremony held aboard the luxury cruise liner, in which an honorary plaque was exchanged between government dignitaries and the ship’s captain. Event attendees were then invited on a tour of the 13-deck-high vessel, to experience the entertainment, culinary and wellness offerings available on board. Celebrity Constellation is the latest premium cruise ship to visit Dubai. The 91,000-tonne, 294-metre-long vessel features extensive family amenities, with some of the most expansive children’s facilities in the Celebrity fleet. The luxury liner is set to sail two nine-night cruises within the UAE and Oman, as well as longer trips from the UAE that follow the ancient Spice Route to the Indian cities of Cochin, Mangalore, Goa and Mumbai, before returning to home port in the UAE. The ship is scheduled to have four overnight and six day calls to Dubai between 29 November 2016 and 16 April 2017, contributing over 15,000 cruise tourists towards the record number of 600,000 expected to visit Dubai in the 2016/2017 cruise season. These projected numbers follow the 19% season-on-season increase …

The inaugural visit to Dubai of Ovation of the Seas, Royal Caribbean International’s third Quantum-class ship, was met with much enthusiasm, as onlookers marvelled at the magnificent vessel on its maiden voyage. The third ship of its kind, Ovation of the Seas stopped at Dubai Cruise Terminal 3 on its way from Barcelona to Singapore. The occasion was marked by Jamal Humaid Al Falasi, Director of Dubai Cruise Tourism, Dubai Tourism, along with a selection of dignitaries from Dubai Immigration, Dubai Customs, DP World, PCFC Security and representatives from the ship’s agency M/S Wilhelmsen Ship Services and ground handlers M/S. Arabian Adventures who presented the ship’s captain, Flemming Nielsen, with an honorary plaque at a special ceremony held on board the ship. Also in attendance at the event were Dr. Abdulaziz Aloshban, Managing Director of Royal Caribbean Arabia, and Abby Penlington, Marketing & Communications Manager, International Representatives – EMEA.