TravTalk Middleeast

A DDP PUBLICATION

Pages: 16

ddppl.com

travtalkmiddleeast.com

Vol. VIII No. 7; July 2012

Dubai tops the chart in ME and Africa ................................................................06 ‘I Know Europe’ ..................................................................................................09 ME scores highest in inbound ............................................................................14

True spirit of the Holy Month Highly anticipated and a very special time of the year is round the corner. It’s the ‘Holy Month of Ramadan’, when most of the hotels are coming up with special prices and value-added benefits with luxurious Iftar and Sohour offers.

More so, this year, Dubai Summer Surprises, Ramadan and Eid - all fall on the same time for an enjoyable hotel stay.

S U S M I TA G H O S H

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ajestic Hotel Tower is offering an unbeatable deal for luxurious suites in this ‘Holy Month of Ramadan’, essentially one bedroom apartments that is perfect for families and extended stays favourable for the Saudi Arabian guests. “This 76m2 suite starts from AED 550 with one child stay entirely free along with complimentary early check-in and late check-out, free transfers to the malls and the beach, 20 per cent discount in Tirquaz restaurant, featuring international cuisine, enrich evenings with heart-warming ambience and services,” informed Khan Naheed Masarrat, EAM & Head of Sales & Marketing, Majestic Hotel Tower Dubai. “By the time of Eid 2012, the hotel will complete its refurbishment of its 252 rooms with a fresh modern look,” he further stated.

“To enhance the experience of our guests, we will be offering a sumptuous Iftar buffet like every year at Cinnamon with traditional Ramadan beverages every

night after sunset for AED 139 per person. Guests can also relax at Breeze Terrace, which will be kept open till 1:45 am throughout the Holy Month offering traditional Ramadan drinks and Shisha,” explained Andreas Mueller, General Manager, Cove Rotana, Ras Al Khaimah. “We will also offer special rates for group of 10 or more on the purchase of Ramadan gift vouchers,” he added.

Grand Millennium Dubai is also getting ready for a sumptuous Iftar and Sohour offer this Ramadan. “This year we are coming up with offers for corporate and groups like family stay at AED 770 per day for two adults and two children in deluxe rooms with Arabic Iftars or dinner and Sohour or breakfast buffet, with children aged below 8 years dining for free and subject to a maximum of two children per family.

While children aged 8 to 12 years can dine for a supplementary charge of AED 80 per child,” uttered Peter Mansourian, General Manager, Grand Millennium Dubai.

Khan Naheed Masarrat

Andreas Mueller

EAM & Head of Sales & Marketing Majestic Hotel Tower Dubai

General Manager Cove Rotana, Ras Al Khaimah

The suite starts from AED 550 with one child stay entirely free along with complimentary early check-in and late check-out

Banyan Tree Al Wadi and Banyan Tree Ras Al Khaimah Beach will present two very attractive Ramadan

Guests can relax at Breeze Terrace, that will be open till 1:45 am throughout the Holy Month offering traditional Ramadan drinks and Shisha promotions during the Holy Month. “The first promotion will be a combination of accommodation stay and an

Peter Mansourian General Manager Grand Millennium Dubai

Offers for family stay starts at AED 770 per day for two adults and two children in deluxe rooms with Arabic Iftars or Sohour with children below 8 years dining for free attractive Iftar for two adults in the pool villas and at guests’ choice between the beach and the desert resorts

starting from AED 1,560 only.

The second promotion will target ‘Private Iftar Events’ for corporates and family groups, offering a selection of family style set menus at customer’s choice and will offer a complimentary gift voucher to experience one of our signature activities for every 10 person booked,” mentioned Shamel Droubi, Director of Sales & Marketing, Banyan Tree Al Wadi.

“The private Iftar groups will start from AED 150 per person and our awarded activities will include private beach access, archery, camel and horseback riding and the signature rainforest and hydrotherapy experience,” he added.

Kris Restaurant at Park Regis Kris Kin Hotel Dubai promises to make this Ramadan a truly memorable event with live cooking stations, henna painting and soothing music for diners with beautiful setting and superb cuisine.

Scott Butcher, General Manager, Park Regis Kris Kin Hotel, Dubai said, “Corporate companies and groups can take Contd. on page 2

COVER STORY FOREIGN EXCHANGE DIRHAM VALUE

(Subject to variation) Country

Currency

(As on 21-06-2012)

CN Buy

CN Sell

USA ..........................USD ................3.653..............3.685 UK ............................GBP ..............5.7183............5.9396 Egypt ........................EGP ................0.605..............0.711

Time for Iftar and Sohour Contd. from page 2

advantage of special packages that have been created to offer greater value. The

and group Iftars, including an early bird rate. Every person will be served daily from sunset to 11 pm at AED 130 and kids below 6 years can dine

package will be at AED 100 per person for minimum 30 people while early bird rate at AED 75 per people.

Euro ..........................EUR ................4.568............4.7566 Canada......................CAD ..............3.5529..............3.677 Bahrain ....................BHD ..............9.5739............9.9137 Oman ........................OMR................9.405............9.6512 Kuwait ......................KWD..............12.939..........13.4043 Saudi Arabia ............SAR ..............0.9625............0.9972 Qatar ........................QAR ..............0.9944............1.0209 Australia ..................AUD ..............3.6748............3.7855 Japan ........................JPY................0.0456............0.0479 Philippines ................PHP ..............0.0856............0.0887

Shamel Droubi

Scott Butcher

Director of Sales & Marketing Banyan Tree Al Wadi

General Manager Park Regis Kris Kin Hotel, Dubai

Singapore..................SGD ..............2.8427............2.9668

The private Iftar groups will start from AED 150 per person and our activities will include private beach access, archery, camel and horseback riding, etc

India ........................INR................0.0640..............0.067 Pakistan ....................PKR ..............0.0383............0.0401 Bangladesh ..............BDT ..............0.0438............0.0456 Sri Lanka ..................LKR ..............0.0271............0.0281 Nepal ........................NPR ..................0.05..............0.056 Morocco ....................MAD................0.405..............0.525 Switzerland ..............CHF ..............3.8014............3.9650 South Africa ..............ZAR ................0.485..............0.553

Now book your luggage in advance Air Arabia has introduced a new online prebooked baggage policy, enabling passengers to pay for only the baggage weight they need. The new policy, effective for all tickets purchased on or after July 1, 2012, allows passengers when booking a flight with Air Arabia to pre-book a checked baggage weight allowance (20 kg, 30 kg or 40 kg), with no limitation on the number of pieces.

Passengers who prebook a 20 kg checked baggage allowance will pay

just AED 10, while passengers booking 30 kg will pay just AED 20. Subject to availability, a 40 kg checked baggage allowance can also be pre-booked for AED 100. The airline also announced that it has raised its cabin baggage allowance from 7 kg to 10 kg. Pre-booked baggage can be availed through all sales channels: airarabia.com, Air Arabia ticketing offices, call centres and travel agents. Any booking made prior to July 1, 2012, will be unaffected.

Torch Doha opens doors

The Torch announces its entrance on the luxury hotels market, as the flagship project situated at the heart of Doha’s Sport City. At 300m high and with 360° panoramic views across the whole of Doha, the hotel is formerly shaped to represent a colossal torch.

restaurant has created an array of value-added packages for corporate meetings

Corporate companies and groups can take advantage of special packages that have been created to offer greater value

free and those between 6 and 12 years can enjoy 50 per cent discount. The group Iftar

Rushdi Al Ashka General Manager Coral Hotel Dhahran

Our chefs have crafted a special menu of traditional Ramadan Arabic dishes for Iftar and Sohour buffets. In addition, we will conduct daily raffle draws Coral Hotel Dhahran, the ultimate address for travellers seeking a unique stay

in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, offers a special Ramadan package for families, leisure and business visitors to come together and experience the true spirit of the Holy Month.

“Ramadan is a time of togetherness, sharing and giving. Our chefs have crafted a special menu of traditional Ramadan Arabic dishes for Iftar and Sohour buffets. In addition, we will be conducting daily raffle draws with exciting prizes on offer,” expressed Rushdi Al Ashkar, General Manager, Coral Hotel Dhahran.

The Iftar buffet is priced at SAR 140 per person while the Sohour buffet costs SAR 75 per person.

In addition to these dining promotions, there is a fabulous Ramadan room package offering a special room of SAR 425 per night during the Holy Month. With Sohour the room costs SAR 500 and with Iftar it costs SAR 550.

Coral Hotel Dhahran is known for pampering its guests with its personalised service and exclusive luxury, a unique feature being its ‘ladies only’ floor that ensures privacy for women guests.

TI’ME on Microsoft’s ‘Cloud’ The new Dubai-based hospitality company TI’ME Hotels Management became the first ME-based hotel group to partner with Microsoft for the exclusive use of ‘Office 365 cloud’ software across its IT platform. rather than a product.

For businesses, this means that all company information – from databases to email and from monitoring to finances – can be accessed from any point at any time, negating the need to use local infrastructure and saving substantial quantities of time and money.

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IME Hotels Management (TIME) is setting the information technology example in the Middle East hospitality industry, by launching a technology-led initiative to streamline the company’s communications processes and improve their operational efficacy.

Thomas Huber, Corporate Director - IT, TI’ME said, “TIME is the first hotel group in the region to begin installing Microsoft’s cloud software across all their IT platforms. ‘Office 365 cloud’ collaboration software is the latest and best IT solution for hotel chains and it will inevitably revolutionise the way hotel communications and operations are conducted.”

Basically, ‘cloud computing’ refers to computing that is used as a service

Thomas Huber Corporate Director - IT TI’ME

‘Office 365 cloud’ collaboration software is the latest and best IT solution for hotel chains

“In the hospitality industry, there are several specific applications for property management, catering, finance, point of sales, yield, and so on.

Rather than purchase those applications from a variety of different manufacturers and need to support them with specialised personnel, they are streamlined under the Microsoft cloud software, allowing immediate access to databases from any of TIME’s modcoms – computers, smartphones, servers, etc.,” added Huber.

While talking about the company’s strong-minded expansion plans, Huber informed, “TIME needed a solution that would support scalability when new properties are added to its portfolio, reduce energy consumption and increase collaboration among staff, which is precisely what Microsoft’s cloud software provides.”

Study A recent Motorola Solutions study showed IT spending will continually increase year-on-year, with over half of hospitality organisations planning to raise investment levels to better equip their workforces and improve operational efficiency ‘Cloud computing’ refers to computing that is used as a service rather than a product

BULLETIN

JULY, 2012

TRAVTALK

3

Cruise

Egypt lifts visa conditions

Waiting for multiple entry visa

Designed to boost the number of tourists in Egypt, visa conditions has been lifted on tourists from countries like Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco. Visa exemptions will also be extended to China, India, Jordan, Turkey and Azerbaijan.

Now, tourists can obtain a Visa-on-Arrival and do not

Dubai has been serving as a home port for leading cruiselines and is termed as the ‘cruise hub’ of the region. Under discussion for almost three years, the plan for multiple entry UAE visa for cruise passengers is expected to be in place by September 2012.

Accomplishment of such a visa will be of great support to the cruiselines in selling their holiday cruise packages in the region. It will create a wider market to bring tourists from key source markets like Russia, China, India, South Africa, Brazil and other emerging markets.

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ommemorating Voyager of the Seas, maiden call to Dubai on May 15, at a press conference organised onboard, Hamad bin Mejren, Executive Director - Business Tourism, DTCM, remarked,

“We have re-emphasised the importance of having multiple entry UAE visa for the cruise tourists to the highest level and is underway.

Hopefully, we will have a positive feedback before the next cruise season commencing October 2012.”

Hamad bin Mejren Executive Director - Business Tourism DTCM

The present visa process is a burden financially and requires lots of documentation procedures for the tourists of nationalities who are not on the list of 32 countries whose citizens’ gets Visaon-Arrival.

Managed and operated

by DTCM, Dubai Cruise Terminals has catered to 3,96,500 cruise tourists arrived from 108 ship calls in 2011. In 2012, Dubai is expected to see 4,20,000 cruise tourists to the emirate.

The projections for 2013 are 125 cruise ships and 4,50,000 passengers and in 2014 the number of cruise ships and passengers will be 135 and 4,75,000, respectively. In 2015, this number

will go up to 145 cruise ships and 5,00,000 passengers.

Plans are in place to build additional terminals to meet the forecasted growth. Upon completion of the planned expansion the Dubai Cruise terminals will have the capacity to handle six mega cruise ships simultaneously.

Visa Woes The present visa process is a burden financially and requires lots of documentation procedures for the tourists of nationalities who are not on the list of 32 countries whose citizens’ gets Visaon-Arrival

Hesham Zaazou First Assistant Minister Egypt Tourism Authority

need to apply at Egyptian embassies in their respective home countries.

The number of tourists reached 4 million during the first four months of 2012 and the total number of Middle Eastern tourists visiting Egypt during 2010-2011 reached 1.6 million. The destination is planning to attract 41

million tourists in the fiscal year 2011-12.

“The Country’s tourism accounted for more than tenth of Egypt’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) before the uprising in January 2011 and employed an estimated one in eight workers in the country,” informed Hesham Zaazou, First Assistant Minister, Egypt Tourism Authority.

In 2010, around 14.7 million tourists visited Egypt generating around US$ 12.5 billion, but their numbers slumped to a 9.8 million visitors in 2011 generating US$ 8.8 billion.

One positive aspect is that Egypt has a healthy numbers of Russian and Eastern European tourists, who have not been deterred by instability in the region.

GUEST COLUMN

RAK TDA: A Rising Emirate

EDITORIAL Back on track

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he ‘Holy Month of Ramadan’ coincides with the summer months this year and airlines operating across the Gulf have slashed fares as they look forward to boost their capacity. Hotels are also aggressively competing for business by flooding the market with special Ramadan packages. Many hoteliers have reported that their forward bookings indicate occupancy levels could go up to 80% in August.

MasterCard Worldwide’s annual Global Destination Cities Index said that the number of people travelling abroad continues to increase around the world despite challenging economic environment. Dubai was the top ranked city in the Middle East that outranked New York, Amsterdam, Rome and Beijing. Abu Dhabi also emerged as the world’s fourth fastest growing destination city by visitor numbers, the index said.

The Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS), now in its 15th edition, showcasing an array of shops with packed entertainment and exciting prizes will lure visitors and residents. An estimated four million people visited the emirate during DSS 2011.

The Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) has noted that since January 2012, the emirate registered a 27% increase in hotel guests from China, recording a total of 1,93,000 stays.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has indicated that outlook is brighter for carriers in the ME, as long haul markets have been relatively robust and load factors have risen in recent months thanks to a slowdown in the introduction of new capacity. Hence the industry body has raised its profit forecast for the region to US$ 500m, up from the previously forecast US$ 300m.

Publisher Director Editorial Director Editor Assistant Editor (ME) Desk Editor Sub Editor Design Manager Advertising Asst. Manager - Sales Circulation Manager Manager Production

: SanJeet : Sumeera Bahl : Rupali Narasimhan : Deepa Sethi : Susmita Ghosh : Archana Sharma : Raina Mandal : Nityanand Misra : Geetika Pathak : Akassh Kapoor : Ashok Rana : Anil Kharbanda

The tagline for Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority (RAK TDA) is ‘A Rising Emirate’ and we will be sure to live up to this motto by making further announcements throughout the year of various new tourism developments and projects.

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o facilitate the rise in demand, Ras Al Khaimah TDA introduced two charter flights in 2011 with a German tour operator and a Swedish tour operator, which brought an additional 60,000 visitors to the emirate by June 2012. These direct flights to RAK have proven extremely successful and it’s a model that we look forward to continue with.

The ability for RAK to provide quality luxury experience with value is also a strong draw card. Also, we are located mere 45 minutes away from Dubai International Airport which is convenient for travellers.

Following these factors, are the natural varied landscapes, mountain, desert, beach and sea activities and experiences that make it quite unique.

The opening of new tourism attractions have included the Pearl Museum and Pearl Farm which opened in October 2011 and January 2012 respectively. The museum and farm offer visitors a unique opportunity to discover the ancient process of cultivating natural pearls with the added attraction of being able to take a pearl home.

The travel trade provides a positive and vital service during the process of promotion of any destination.

Hence, we have introduced educational and marketing programnmes for the travel trade partners throughout UAE to gain greater knowledge of the attractions available. We are also working closely with major European tour operators to establish direct charter flights to Ras Al Khaimah.

includes the extending of the villa complex, building a new equestrian club and expanding the selection of wildlife at the resort.

RAK Airways is a natural partner for us. With their direct flight access it provides various opportunities to work together to develop these markets and promote tourism attractions of Ras Al Khaimah.

In addition to the development of new quality hotel and resort accommodation, the Ras Al Khaimah Hospitality Group is also busy developing the emirate as a new gourmet destination.

Furthermore, research and resources are being invested into developing Ras Al Khaimah’s Wildlife and Cruise Tourism.

Regarding Cruise Tourism, upgraded projects have been launched including the enhancement of the Al

Modern and authentic Italian restaurant ‘Pesto’, owned by the Ras Al Khaimah Government and managed by the Ras Al Khaimah Hospitality Group, opened in February 2012, presents a new concept for food and beverage stand-alone restaurant in the emirate.

RAK Airways is a natural partner for us. With their direct flight access it provides various opportunities to work together to develop these markets and promote tourism attractions of RAK

By October 2012, we will establish the ultimate Desert experience ‘Bassata Camp’. The main aim behind building this camp is to introduce an Arabian experience with Bedouin shows and entertainment to the visitors.

Additionally, many new hospitality projects and hotels have also been initiated, including the Ras Al Khaimah Waldorf Astoria, which will mark the entry of Hilton’s worldwide luxury brand into the UAE and the Bab Al Bahr family luxury resort on Al Marjan Island, scheduled to open in Q1 2013.

Hamra Marina and Yacht Club and the Ras Al Khaimah Corniche.

A further exclusive facility to add to the highlights of Ras Al Khaimah is the 100-feet sailing boat ‘Prince of Sea’, offering sailing trips along the beach of Ras Al Khaimah.

The development of upscale accommodation is an important element of our activities in reaching our stated objectives of increasing the emirate’s total hotel and resort room inventory to 10,000 keys by 2016, and these developments will occur in our various locations

With regards to developing and further protecting Ras Al Khaimah’s wildlife, the Banyan Tree Al Wadi, owned by the Ras Al Khaimah Government, is also currently undergoing an upgrade. The reconstruction

of beach, mountain and desert terrains.

During Q1 2012, the visitor numbers reached 3,06,750, marking a 47 per cent increase over the same period last year.

Beach hotels, resorts and city properties both witnessed an occupancy rise of 3 and 11.5 per cent respectively during this time. Beach and resort hotels have witnessed an occupancy increase of 16.28 per cent while city hotels reported a growth of 2.08 per cent in May 2012 over May 2011.

For the month of May 2012, visitor number topped 1,02,966, with key feeder markets comprising Germany (40 per cent), the UAE (26 per cent), Russia (10 per cent), Austria (3.4 per cent) and Czech Republic (2.6 per cent).

Year-to-date (YTD), total hotel visitor numbers have reached 5,23,568, representing half of the target for 2012. We expect to maintain this strong momentum from key feeder markets throughout 2012.

(Victor Louis, COO, Tourism Development Authority, Ras Al Khaimah)

Emirates and Master Card join hands Emirates Airline and Master Card to jointly offer top-notch packages for the airline’s First Class and Business Class passengers who use their Master Card cards to purchase flights on

www.emirates.com before September 30, 2012. For every Emirates top class round-trip ticket, Master Card holders visiting Dubai will receive complimentary stays at Dubai’s top hotels,

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by SanJeet on behalf of

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in addition to complimentary visas and tickets to ‘At The Top’ in the Burj Khalifa.

Cardholders purchasing Emirates First Class tickets will receive a complimentary two-night stay, including

TRAVTALK is a publication of DDP Publications Private Limited.

All information in TRAVTALK is derived from sources, which we consider reliable and a sincere effort is made to report accurate information. It is passed on to our readers without any responsibility on our part. The publisher regret that he cannot accept liability for errors and omissions contained in this publication, however caused. Similarly, opinions/views expressed by third parties in abstract and/or in interviews are not necessarily shared by TRAVTALK. However, we wish to advice our readers that one or more recognised authorities may hold different views than those reported. Material used in this publication is intended for information purpose only. Readers are advised to seek specific

advice before acting on information contained in this publication which is provided for general use, and may not be appropriate for the readers’ particular circumstances. Contents of this publication are copyright. No part of TRAVTALK or any part of the contents thereof may be reproduced, stored in retrieval system or transmitted in any form without the permission of the publication in writing. The same rule applies when there is a copyright or the article is taken from another publication. An exemption is hereby granted for the extracts used for the purpose of fair review, provided two copies of the same publication are sent to us for our records. Publications reproducing material either in part or in whole, without permission could face legal action.

breakfast, at The Armani Hotel, located in Burj Khalifa, while cardholders choosing Business Class tickets will benefit from a one-night stay with breakfast at The Address Dubai Marina.

The publisher assumes no responsibility for returning any material solicited or unsolicited nor is he responsible for material lost or damaged.

This publication is not meant to be an endorsement of any specific product or services offered. The publisher reserves the right to refuse, withdraw, amend or otherwise deal with all advertisements without explanation.

All advertisements must comply with the Indian and International Advertisements Code. The publisher will not be liable for any damage or loss caused by delayed publication, error or failure of an advertisement to appear.

AVIATION

Emirates connects DFW to Dubai Connecting two of the world’s top airport hubs Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport and Dubai International Airport, Emirates Airline’s daily, non-stop Dubai-DFW service will give a boost to the DFW Airport.

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he flight marks DFW’s first non-stop passenger

Dallas-Fort Worth. To take advantage of every opportunity and expand the global business and tourism presence, DFW also participated in Arabian Travel Market 2012.

“Creating a bridge between two cultures and opening up infinite economic prospects for our region and the cities within it,

Kenneth Buchanan Executive Vice President Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport

flight to the Middle East while opening key regions of the world for the citizens of

“More so it came at a perfect time, as our economy rebounds, more travellers arriving at Dallas and exports climb upwards.

Exceeding everybody’s expectation, Emirates with an excellent load factor has a huge potential for business travellers besides VFRs,” he further confirmed.

This direct daily flight is a big pact for both North Texas and our partners in the UAE,”

With various marketing strategies and co-branding with the Emirates, DFW Airport expects around 57 million passengers in 2012 out of which international travellers will consist of 11 million.

said Kenneth Buchanan, Executive Vice President, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.

With 7 runaways and more than 100 million passenger handling capacity, expansion plans are there to

add more terminals on this 18,000 acres land airport.

The Emirates flights are expected to produce US$ 227 million in economic impact annually for the DFW region in terms of additional visitors, business ties and investments, according to DFW Airport estimates.

Expectations DFW Airport expects around 57 million passengers in 2012 out of which international travellers will consist of 11 million The Emirates flights are expected to produce US$ 227 million in economic impact annually for the DFW region

Fuel saving sharklets for A320s Etihad Airways is entirely determined on maximising the environmental efficiency of the entire fleet. Growing the fleet with the modern, fuel efficient Sharklet-equipped A320, the airline can reduce fuel-burn.

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he Airline has signed a contract with Airbus to equip 17 of its future A320s on order with Airbus’ fuel saving Sharklets. The new wingtip device is 2.5 mt tall, replacing the aircraft’s current wingtip fence and will reduce fuel-burn particularly over longer sectors.

Deliveries of the Sharkletequipped A320s to Etihad Airways will begin in the third quarter of 2013.

Etihad Airways have started taking delivery of its 20 A320s on order in the last quarter of 2011. Once in service, the A320s equipped with Sharklets will make the airlines single-aisle fleet, one of the most modern and fuel efficient in the Middle East.

James Hogan, President and Chief Executive Officer, Etihad Airways, said,

“Today, Etihad Airways’ fleet of Airbus aircraft comprises of 50 Airbus passenger aircraft and two A330-200 Freighter aircraft.

Another 43 aircraft will be delivered from the existing orders, including 10 A380s.

It will grow Etihad Airways’ total Airbus fleet to 95 aircraft.”

CO2 reduction of around 1,000 tonnes per aircraft.

The A320 already has the highest reliability of any single-aisle aircraft today, so to further boost the aircraft’s productivity, adding the Sharklet makes it a good business decision.

New Technology James Hogan President and Chief Executive Officer Etihad Airways

Offered on new aircraft from the end of 2012, Sharklets increase payloadrange and improve take-off performance. The new wing tip device will result in around 3.5 per cent reduced fuel-burn over longer sectors, corresponding to an annual

Offered on new aircraft from the end of 2012, Sharklets increase payload-range and improve take-off performance The new wing tip device will result in around 3.5 per cent reduced fuel-burn over longer sectors, corresponding to an annual CO2 reduction of around 1,000 tonnes per aircraft

Boeing 787 Dreamliner lands in Abu Dhabi Etihad Airways has welcomed Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner to Abu Dhabi International Airpor t. The historic BOE787 flight was greeted by a traditional water canon salute on arrival. The flight took off from Casablanca, Morocco covering a distance of 6,000 km.

6

TRAVTALK

STATISTICS

JULY, 2012

Dubai tops the chart in ME and Africa According to the MasterCard Worldwide Insights 2011, Dubai ranks ďŹ rst among the top 10 Destination Cities in Middle East and Africa. It is followed by Cairo, Johannesburg and Tel Aviv in second, third and fourth ranks, respectively.

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able 1 shows the ranking of destination cities by growth rates of their visitor arrivals. From this perspective, the really interesting feature of the Middle East and Africa region

is that the same set of destination cities is in the top 10 in both visitor arrivals and their growth rates. Only their individual ranking is altered somewhat. In other words, these destination cities have the highest numbers of visitors, and their visitor arrival

numbers are also the fastestgrowing in the region. Dubai is also the top-ranked destination city by visitor expenditures. From the point of view of growth in expenditures, Riyadh is in the top rank with an impressive growth rate of 35.5%.

Middle East and Africa region under this category.

The data analytics of the Global Destination Cities Index can support the analysis of where visitors are coming from and how much they spend in each of the destination cities. Dubai, Cairo, and Johannesburg are three top destination cities in the

The top five cities of origin for travellers coming to Dubai (Table 3) are London, Kuwait, Beijing, Frankfurt and Paris. While there is no surprise that vis-

itors from London and Kuwait are both the biggest in number and the highest in their expenditures in Dubai, it is interesting to note that Beijing now ranks third in both number of visitors to Dubai and how much they spend there.

1

Global Top 20 Destination Cities by International visitors (2011)

Amsterdam Frankfurt Vienna Milan Rome Istanbul

London Paris Barcelona Madrid

New York

Seoul Shanghai Dubai

Tokyo Taipei

Hong Kong Bangkok Kuala Lumpur

2

Singapore

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

London Paris Bangkok Singapore Hong Kong Madrid Istanbul Frankfurt Dubai Rome

20.1m 18.1m 11.5m 11.4m 10.9m 1 10.1m 9.4m 8.4m 7.9m 7.9m

11 12 13 14 5 16 17 18 19 20

Seoul New York Amsterdam Kuala Lumpur Milan Barcelona Vienna Shanghai Taipei Tokyo

7.9m 7.6m 7.4m 6.9m 6.7m 6.7m 6.2m 5.5m 5.4m 5.0m

Top 10 Destination Cities in Middle East and Africa by International Visitors (2011) Casablanca

1 Dubai

7.9m

6

Abu Dhabi

2.0m

2 Cairo

3.7m

7

Nairobi

1.8m

3 Johannesburg

3.0m

8

Amman

1.8m

4 Tel Aviv

2.7m

9

Beirut

1.7m

5 Casablanca

2.5m

10 Tunis

1.7m

Tunis

Tel Aviv Cairo

Beirut Amman Dubai Abu Dhabi

Nairobi

Johannesburg

1

Growth Rates of Visitor Arrivals for the Top 20 Destination Cities in 2011 Destination

Barcelona Kuala Lumpur Istanbul Shanghai Hong Kong Dubai Taipei Singapore Tokyo New York

2011 Rank

2010 to 2011 Growth Rate

16 14 7 18 5 9 19 4 20 12

24.3% 21.8% 20.4% 18.6% 17.4% 17.3% 16.9% 14.5% 13.5% 11.7%

Top 5 Cities of Origin in 2011 for Dubai

3

Origin Cities

Visitor Arrivals (,000)

Visitor Expenditures (US$ Million)

London

926

$876

Kuwait

343

$373

Beijing

300

$334

Frankfurt

278

$245

Paris

262

$221

Growth Rates of Visitor Arrivals in Top 10 Destination Cities in ME and Africa in 2011 Destination

Cairo Tunis Dubai Abu Dhabi Nairobi Amman Beirut Tel Aviv Johannesburg Casablanca

2011 Rank

2010 to 2011 Growth Rate

2 10 1 6 7 8 9 4 3 5

21.6% 19.9% 17.3% 15.5% 14.1% 14.1% 13.9% 13.8% 9.9% 5.5%

2

Source: MasterCard Index of Global Destination Cities: Cross-Border Travel and Expenditure

HOTELS

First Spanish 5-star hotel in Dubai

JULY, 2012

TRAVTALK

7

Cristal for hat-trick

The Cristal Group signs an To meet the need of a celebrity property with high profile facilities and agreement to manage Cristal services in the central part of the Emirate, the new Meliá Dubai, the Amaken and Cristal Siyaha in Riyadh 5-star luxury boutique hotel had its soft launch under Khamas Hospitality and Cristal Himmah in Dammam.

Group, managed by Melia Hotels International.

T T B U R E AU Kapoor’ offering elegant Indian delectables.

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ocated in Port Rashid, this 164 rooms and suites boutique hotel, equipped with every state-ofthe-art technology, features a variety of restaurants. It includes two signature restaurants, ‘Titanic’ by British Master Chef - Marco Pierre White, serving contemporary European cuisine and ‘Signature’ by Celebrity Chef - Sanjeev

Pawan Kachroo Managing Director Khamas Hospitality

Rebranding Hilton Worldwide has signed an agreement to transform The Royal Ascot into new DoubleTree Hilton, the second DoubleTree branded property planned for the city and the third for the UAE. With the re-branding of DoubleTree

by Hilton Bur Dubai in January 2013, the 174-room property will undergo refurbishment and upgrading programme and would prove to be a major attraction for bulk leisure and commercial travellers.

“Designed for both business and leisure travellers, Melia Dubai expects to have around 75 per cent occupancy throughout 2012. Besides, all other properties like Royal Ascot, Royal Ascot Apartments, Seaview, all are functioning on 90 per cent occupancy.

An overall growth of 10 per cent is seen in 2012 over 2011 whereas the leisure market occupies around 45 per cent,” informed Pawan Kachroo, Managing Director, Khamas Hospitality.

“Being the most important distribution arm, various

Agents bring 70% business Radisson Blu Resort Sharjah receives about 65-70% of business from the travel trade who also plays the major source for the property’s turnover.

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he Sensational Summer Camp will include two camps, each will run for about a month. The children will enjoy new outdoor activities which will focus more on beach and water sports, enhance their creativity with several indoor activities.

As being handled by the Bay Club team, all Bay Club members’ children will be entitled to 25 per cent discount per entity.

Growth Chart About 65-70 per cent of business has been received from the travel trade who plays the major source of the property’s turnover Being a hotel with an excellent mix of leisure, corporate, government and group, Radisson blu, Sharjah attained 8 to 10 per cent growth in 2011 over 2010 and around 96.45 per cent since October 2011 till date

“Radisson Blu Resort Sharjah has also prepared special discount for the Holy Month of Ramadan. Iftar Buffet everyday will be offered for the whole month at the Falls Restaurant and private Iftar can also be arranged in the hotel’s events room or can be catered for outdoor venues,” informed Basel Talal, General Manager Radisson Blu Resort Sharjah.

In addition, the Resort is also offering valuable discount for bulk purchase of Iftar vouchers ranging from 5 to 15% for companies who would prefer to give a gift of Iftar to its clients and partners.

Moreover, special room & suites rate have been slashed down for the entire summer season and is almost half the price of the normal rates (during the rest of the

Basel Talal General Manager Radisson Blu Resort Sharjah

year). 10 per cent off the retail rates has been offered for guests who would prefer to stay for minimum of 3 nights or weekend with minimum of 2 nights on a room only basis.

About 65-70 per cent of business has been received from the travel trade who plays the major source of the property’s turnover. Being a hotel with an excellent mix of leisure, corporate, government and group, Radisson blu, Sharjah attained 8 to 10 per cent growth in 2011 over 2010 and around 96.45 per cent since October 2011 till date.

promotional attractions and familiarisation trips are designed for the travel trade along with one-oone incentive programme depending on their individual productivity,” Kachroo further informed.

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ristal Hotels & Resorts recently signed agreements to manage three hotels in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Cristal KSA will be managing the Cristal Amaken Hotel, which

Company Profile Khamas Hospitality Group has been in the industry for more than a decade now, initiated by a budget hotel, Sea View. Experiencing adequate growth, it started spreading its wings and launched Royal Ascot, Ascot Hotel, Ascot Hotel Apartment and Royal Ascot Apartment and now Melia. Expansion persists and the plan to move to premium lifestyle luxury brand is in the pipeline to begin in 2012-end and complete in 2014

Peter Blackburn President & CEO Cristal Hotels & Resorts

will open in 2014 in the 2nd Industrial City, Riyadh; Cristal Himmah Hotel, which will open in 2015 in Dammam and Cristal Siyaha

Hotel, which will open early 2013 in Riyadh. The new hotels will collectively supply more than 600 hotel rooms in KSA’s burgeoning hospitality market.

Peter Blackburn, President & CEO, Cristal Hotels & Resorts, said, “The demand for hospitality amenities in Saudi Arabia continues to surge.

We are, therefore, thrilled to deliver more than 600 hotel rooms within the next two years through joint efforts with our local partner.

Moreover, the successful launch of these hotels will further boost our ongoing expansion programme across key markets in the Middle East.”

8

TRAVTALK

CRUISE

JULY, 2012

An ode to travel agents worldwide Q. A.

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What are the exceptional features of MSC Cruises?

Numerous itineraries of MSC Cruises cover exotic destinations and offer exclusive onboard entertainment facilities and delectable’s making it an exceptional product while the ‘Yacht Club’ provides a royal feeling.

What is the extent of awareness among the ME cruise lovers? Do you feel it’s still needed more?

MSC Cruise has an organic growth in this region and we are optimistic about the future.

Loyal and repeated clients always make us feel good yet the cruise segment needs more attention and efforts to be put in.

How does MSC Cruises handle MICE travellers?

All kind of facilities are available on-board all MSC Cruises, even the services which are available on land to cater to the MICE segment. Hosting a MICE event in the ship provides a better feeling of togetherness as is expectated from any MICE event.

Are there any special plans and offers for Ramadan and Eid? We have tour operating fares which can be used by agents to form their own packages.

Is Halal food available on any cruise as this is a requirement for certain travellers in the region?

Every ship caters to Halal meals and Indian vegetarian and non-vegetarian meals with prior intimation and available for FITs and groups.

Alok Dey, Holidays Manager, Sharaf Travel, The GSA responsible for marketing MSC Cruise in the GCC region

To offer support, training and loyalty to the travel agents worldwide, Royal Caribbean International celebrated the ‘world’s largest travel agency appreciation day’ on June 6 as part of its ‘Loyal to You Always’ year-round campaign.

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RCI celebrates travel agents

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he campaign is the company’s way of recognising the valuable role travel agents play, highlighting the ongoing support Royal Caribbean has in place. It provides regional support through its hub in Dubai in the Middle East. ‘Loyal to You Always’ is built on four principles - personal interaction and support, valuable resources that get results, increasing profits for the agents and award-winning travel agents’ education and development programmes.

The campaign offers the travel trade up to US$ 100 in bonus commission per stateroom for cruises aboard Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises.

“Royal Caribbean Arabia had been providing support, training and assistance in the region for more than 17 years.

Royal Caribbean International recently celebrated its ‘world’s largest travel agent appreciation day’. More than 7,000 travel professionals were called on worldwide by the cruiselines’ executives and employess to appreciate the travel agents. They also showcased new agent support programmes as part of the ‘loyal to you always’ commitment campaign.

Lakshmi Durai Executive Director, Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises Middle East

We have many initiatives and programmes to express our loyalty to the travel agents, which help them, not only sell more cruises and increase their profits, but build valuable relationships,”

explained Lakshmi Durai, Executive Director, Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises Middle East.

“We offer them the opportunity to visit the ships when they are in Dubai, to get an idea what a cruise holiday is all about. Every year, we take them on-board for the ‘Seminar at Sea’ and provide a first-hand experience of a cruise holiday. It helps the agents to sell Royal Caribbean Cruise products effectively. We also have an interactive online training programme, ‘Cruising for Excellence’, helps our travel partners to learn more about our cruises and what we

offer,” she further informed.

Royal Caribbean is investing more than US$ 100 million over the next five years on its internal reservation system and automation tools to help travel agents sell cruises more easily and service their clients more effectively by leveraging the latest technologies.

On Offer The campaign offers the travel trade up to US$ 100 in bonus commission per stateroom for cruises aboard Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises

MSC Divina christened Adding more to its fleet MSC Divina was recently christened in France, in an elegant style by international screen legend Sophia Loren.

The event was themed as ‘Med with Passion’ and MSC Divina represented the Mediterranean heritage.

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t is the 12 th ship added to the MSC Cruises fleet and showcases the Mediterranean heritage of which the company is so

Aloke Dey Holidays Manager, Sharaf Travel GSA – Marketing, MSC Cruise - GCC region

proud of. Every detail of the on-board experience and the christening itself was considered to reflect the colours, the history and culture of the area, offering the guests, an opportunity to enjoy the region’s celebrated values of authenticity and warm hospitality.

The christening ceremony was attended by numerous international stars and celebrated classical performer.

“MSC Divina has homeport from Venice, Italy for the 2012 summer season, calling at many of the most famous sites in the Mediterranean.

MSC Divina had a full schedule of 22 8-day/7-night cruises starting from June 2, 2012 through November 3, 2012, which explores the North-Eastern Mediterranean, calling at Bari, Italy, Katakolon, Greece, Izmir and Istanbul, Turkey and Dubrovnik, Croatia,” explained Aloke Dey, Holidays Manager, Sharaf Travel, the GSA responsible

for marketing MSC Cruise in the GCC region.

MSC Yacht Club, a trend-setting concept designed as a distinguished sanctuary for guests seeking peace, privacy and exclusivity but with entrée to that entire large cruise ships offer, has been taken to even greater heights on-board MSC Divina.

The Silversea Group plans to add upmarket expedition ship, Galapagos Explorer II to its fleet of six ships in 2013 after the 100-guest vessel goes through a major refurbishment in September 2013.

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ilversea will soon detail more on the plans for the ship after it is renovated and renamed, ensuring consistency with the standards of the Silversea fleet. Till then

The VIP Treatment Lucky guests staying in ‘Yacht Club Sophia Loren Suite 16007’ can take this VIP treatment further and revel in the glamour of a suite designed for and with the help of Loren, international screen icon and godmother to the MSC Cruises’ fleet. Rich, deep reds, designed lamps and a wild heather and red carpet have been chosen

by Loren for a personal touch of glamour, while stunning black and white photographs of her most memorable roles decorate the walls of the suite

Mike Bonner General Manager UK, Ireland and Middle East

Galapagos Explorer II will continue on its planned schedule of cruises and to be operated by Canodros, which is based in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Canodros will also continue handling reservations for Galapagos Explorer II and sales and marketing through its established net-

work of travel companies and tour operators.

“Galapagos Explorer II offers the stylish elegance of a megayacht, attentive onboard service and an enriching naturalist education programme. All of its 50 spacious suites feature ocean views and 24 include private balconies,” said Mike Bonner, General Manager, UK, Ireland and Middle East.

Its existing expedition ship, Silver Explorer, is regularly deployed in the polar regions and the addition of a second vessel, offering yearround unique luxury expedition cruises in the Galapagos archipelago.

In other words, Silversea will have the opportunity to offer the adventure traveller a broader portfolio of itineraries,

encompassing some of the world’s most desired and least explored regions.

Guests currently booked on Galapagos Explorer II and travel agents or tour operators with clients booked on the ship, should continue to liaise through their normal channels with Canodros for any needed assistance with their reservation.

Guests sailing aboard Galapagos Explorer II will continue to enjoy the same exciting itineraries, luxury accommodation, shipboard amenities, informative lectures and sustainable tourism for which Canodros is known for.

New Purchase The Group recently purchased Canodros SA, the premier Ecuadorian Tourism Company and their ship, Galapagos Explorer II Galapagos Explorer II will continue on its planned schedule of cruises and to be operated by Canodros

AGENTS

‘I Know Europe’

JULY, 2012

TRAVTALK

9

Browse & book globally

Introducing the certificate training programme ‘I Know Unlike most of the B2B players in the market, Foras Europe’ in ME, the Globus Family of Brands brings in Tourism provides information to travel agents across experts from Europe to Dubai to train the travel agents. the world along with every aspect of travel bookings.

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t helps travellers to find qualified travel agents to enhance their European travel experiences.

The first and only comprehensive Europe certification sets the standard among the travel agents and consultants in the Middle East, selling Europe with skills, knowledge base and tools. It showcases Europe as a complete destination and parts of the continent as stand-alone destinations.

Regional Office Headquartered in Switzerland for more than 80 years, the regional office of Globus family of brands is in Bengaluru, India, responsible for the South Asian and Middle East market.

Gauri Jayaram Regional Director, South Asia & Middle East, Globus Family of Brands

Supporting the Globus family of brands in this certification are various European National Tourism Boards. The agents are put through an extensive training schedule of over 30 study hours where each specialist will appear for and clear a comprehensive examination as an endorsement of their knowledge to prove their specialisation.

“To provide a stress-free and memorable vacation, the

travel agent helps the travellers to get the best value for money with their recommendations and expertise.

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It’s impossible to expect a travel agent to visit every place to know the details of a destination.

Therefore, an exhaustive training is the next best thing,”

The travellers, travel agents, DMCs, tour operators, insurance companies and service providers are all part of the Foras Tourism initiative and are working

says Gauri Jayaram, Regional Director, South Asia & Middle East, Globus family of brands.

“We have been operating vacations to Europe for over 80 years. This clearly puts us in the position of leadership when it comes to giving travel agents such detailed certification,” added Jayaram.

salers from the business point of view.

T T B U R E AU s part of the Foras International Investment, the investment arm of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), Foras Tourism is a one-stop travel shop, catering to the traveller’s needs under the banner: ‘Travel Made Easy’.

Workshop Foras Tourism organised series of first-of-its -kind workshops in Dubai during April 2012, which were attended by ministry representatives from top ten OIC countries in the tourism field

Hossam Andraous Managing Director Foras Tourism

together towards global tourism sector productivity.

The company recently announced the launch of its B2C platform, which is scheduled to be operational soon. Foras Tourism will be one of the few travel concepts in the world to sell both B2B and B2C. Negotiating rates and the services of the suppliers on wholesale basis, the company is termed as one of the renowned travel whole-

“Our website is not only a booking engine but also acts as a portal, containing interactive and complete information for travel agents across the world to browse, access and book as it offers confirmation simultaneously,” informed Hossam Andraous, Managing Director, Foras Tourism. “We are getting involved as a major player for the Umrah and Hajj business which is starting soon throughout OIC countries,” he further stated.

10

TRAVTALK

NTO

JULY, 2012

Pledging for sustainability DTCM goes ‘Green’ Abu Dhabi’s growing identity as a Sustainable Tourism destination was highlighted at the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from June 13 to 22. resources with 400 km of coastline, over 200 natural islands, deserts and oasis.

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he event was attended by senior environmental advisors from Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) and its subsidiary Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC) among other official UAE delegation.

Organised by the United Nations, in partnership with the Brazilian government, the Rio+20 Earth Summit is the most important global environment summit in 20 years.

Dr Shahrazad Roohi, Environmental Advisor, TCA Abu Dhabi presented Abu Dhabi’s credentials at the ‘Responsible Tourism in Destinations’ conference (RTD6) in São Paulo on June 18 and addressed the United Nations’ World Tourism Organisation official ‘Tourism for a Sustainable Future’ side conference in Rio de Janeiro on June 20.

Dr Shahrazad Roohi Environmental Advisor TCA Abu Dhabi

“We have been blessed in Abu Dhabi with an abundance of natural

Visit Abu Dhabi The website is designed as a one-stop-shop for tourists giving them easy access to interact in any of the eight languages, with extensive information on Abu Dhabi’s attractions and experiences, culture, heritage and events

While developing tourism, we were conscious, to protect our heritage and environment for the people of Abu Dhabi and generations to come, while sensitively opening them up to visitors,” Roohi further said.

Keeping a traveller’s need in mind, Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) has launched an upgraded version of its official destination website www.visitabudhabi.ae, supported by social media channels.

In conjunction with the World Environment Day, the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) launched a new environmental initiative as part of its Green Tourism Award programme.

In the second programme, a group of selected experts from the government and private entities, highlighted their thoughts about the environmental day and shared their recommendations with others accordingly.

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ith an aim to improve the service standards and excellence in the emirate’s tourism industry, the new initiative is designed to promote the concept of a green economy in the emirate.

Under the initiative, the department conducted three activities. It hosted the second session of its Tourism Environmental Training under the Think Green Initiative titled, ‘18Challenges of the Green Journey’. The session addressed 18 challenges and

Eco-Moves The department reduced 20% CO2 in tourism industry and expects to reduce 30% in 2012 One of the events was a week-long collection of recyclable items by the staff handed over to the Dubai Municipality

Khalid bin Sulayem Director General DTCM

recommended solutions raised by the participants during the first session held in February 2012.

More than 175 participants including hotels owners, directors, general managers and staff from all the hotel establishments and tour operators attended this training. The participants were divided in groups and each group dealt with the challenges and recommended solutions.

“The initiative aims to highlight Dubai’s role in developing Sustainable Tourism, motivating people in general and tourism industry professionals to pay attention to environment protection,” explained Khalid bin Sulayem, Director General, DTCM. Dubai now has over 576 Green Teams in hotels and more than 1,500 tourism industry professionals have been trained under this programme.

ME grows big in Kenya Direct from Dubai to Lisbon By introducing various new products and promotions, Kenya Tourism Board is making efforts to train, meet and work directly with the ME travel trade. Near 55% of traffic pours in to Kenya from UAE and the rest from the GCC. T T B U R E AU

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omparing January to November in 2011 over 2010, Kenya observed a 15.6 per cent increase in traffic arrival. With airlines like Kenya Airways, Air Arabia, Emirates, Qatar Airways, easy accessibility and direct air connectivity almost twice daily from Dubai, Sharjah, Doha, Bahrain, Muscat and Jeddah with an average of four-and-a-half hours flight and trouble-free Visa-on-Arrival, Kenya is vigorously gaining focus as a vital tourist hub.

Marketing strategies are in full swing with new products and new activities introduced in countries with packages, FITs and

Kenya’s popularity for the residents in the region has grown with visitor arrivals doubling from UAE in the last 4 years.

John Chirchir

Increasing Traffic Around 55 per cent of traffic pours in to Kenya from the UAE and the rest from the GCC Nairobi has become the major hub supporting other destinations Kenya’s popularity has grown with visitor arrivals doubling from UAE in the last 4 years

Incidentally Kenya proves to be an excellent alternative as a close-by ‘new’ destination offering relaxation in exotic landscapes and environments.

Regional Marketing Manager Emerging Markets, Kenya Tourist Board

group travel.

Among many others, presently India and Japan are the most potential markets.

Nairobi has become the major hub supporting other destinations. Kenya is comparatively cooler than the Middle East, perfect for families and friends to visit.

“In 2010 a total of 14,874 travellers from UAE visited Kenya with an increase of 26% compared to 2009.

Besides, in 2011, the maximum growth occurred from KSA, Qatar and Oman,” informed John Chirchir, Regional Marketing Manager, Emerging Markets, Kenya Tourist Board.

The distance between Portugal and the UAE is set to become much shorter when Emirates Airline launches direct flights from Dubai to Lisbon from July 9. It will be the only ME based carrier to fly into Portugal.

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he Portuguese capital becomes Emirates’ 31st European destination.

Tourists flown to Portugal each day from around the vast route network will provide vital tourism revenue. Importers, exporters and business people are expected to benefit with the flow of commerce and trade between Lisbon, Dubai and beyond.

“Portugal is a tourist’s delight with its history and cultural elements.

Number On The Rise Portugal is a well-known tourist destination which attracted 7.4 million tourists in 2011, up from 6.8 million in 2010 Tourism contributes 9.2 per cent of the country’s GDP and 8.2 per cent of total employment

It is also fully equipped to meet the requirements of visitors, be it retail, transport or accommodation.

Lisbon is also one of its main tourist destinations.

With the start of the direct flight, we are expecting a massive increase in visitor numbers to Portugal from this region,” said Frederico Costa, President - Tourism, Portugal.

Portugal is a wellknown tourist destination which attracted 7.4 million tourists in 2011, up from 6.8 million in 2010. Tourism contributes 9.2 per cent of the country’s GDP and 8.2 per cent of total employment.

Frederico Costa President - Tourism, Portugal

While the five main markets providing visitors to Portugal are Spain, the UK, Germany, France and Brazil, the Middle East and mainly India, too are generating tourist traffic to the country.

In the Gulf, the UAE and Qatar were the main drivers with the UAE providing 1,142 tourists to Portugal in 2009 and 2,045 in 2010. With the launch of the new flight, the number of tourists is expected to go up significantly to more than 1,00,000.

TECHNOLOGY Corporate Responsibility Report

Amadeus 165 projects, 45 nations

JULY, 2012

TRAVTALK

11

Sabre grows

Sabre signs distribution agreement with Saudia Airlines and EgyptAir, Amadeus published its Corporate Responsibility Report on June 10. where more than 3,50,000 travel The latest Amadeus Corporate Responsibility Report highlights the agents connected to Sabre, will get company’s activities with 165 projects in 45 countries. access to a range of air fares.

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he report highlights the company’s performance on Corporate Responsibility (CR) issues across the Amadeus Group in 195 countries over the past year.

Amadeus subscribed to the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, thus pledging to uphold, promote and implement the values of responsible and sustainable tourism development.

“At Amadeus we believe our expertise in the travel industry combined with our staff’s motivation to make a difference.

We provide a perfect platform to improve our environmental performance and support the communities in which we operate,” says Tomás López Fernebrand, Senior Vice

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There are Corporate Responsibility initiatives in 45 countries (nearly twice as many as in 2009)

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There are close to 800 Amadeus corporate volunteers (four times as many as in the previous year)

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More than 17,470 working hours were granted by Amadeus volunteers to support community initiatives

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A network of 90 Amadeus Corporate Responsibility specialists leads local, regional and global projects worldwide.

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On environmental matters, Amadeus continued its commitment to optimise operational performance and improved the energy efficiency per transaction processed by 8%. In addition, electricity consumption per employee was reduced for the second consecutive year

Tomás López Fernebrand Senior Vice President General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, Amadeus

President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, Amadeus.

Crisis relief has also received increased support from Amadeus. The initiatives developed during 2011 include Corporate Responsibility activities aimed at reducing the effects on the population

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Despite increased business operations, Amadeus reduced its overall CO2 emissions by more than 5% in 2011, due to both improved energy efficiency and increased use of renewable energy in the company’s larger sites

of natural disasters such as the earthquake in Haiti floods in Bangkok and Australia, the Japanese Tsunami and

Travelport’s new hub Combining its operations in the UAE, Travelport has established a new regional hub office in Dubai on May 31, 2012. It has started functioning as the company’s corporate headquarters for the ME and Africa region.

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elocating from its former offices in Al Barsha and Dubai Silicon Oasis, Travelport’s move to Concord Tower in Dubai Media City underscores the company’s continued expansion drive since it established direct Galileo global distribution system (GDS) operations in the Middle East in 2009. The GDS provider has hired more than 100 staff members since then to support its growing travel agency network across the region. Travelport is now fully equipped to serve local Worldspan-connected travel agents along with providing continued support to Galileo travel agents.

Base in Dubai Travelport’s corporate hub office in Dubai will act as an extension of its operations in Africa, where the GDS provider recently set-up a direct distribution network for travel agents in South Africa

“The company’s new MEA headquarters will be a thriving hub for customer support and innovation,” explained Rabih Saab, President and Managing Director, Middle East and Africa, Travelport.

“By bringing together our local resources and capabilities, Travelport will be able to better serve our valued travel agency customers and welcome them into an environment that unifies our talent, energy and innovation into one purposeful space,” he further stated.

All the Travelport’s Dubai-based employees have transferred to the company’s new Media City office as part of the successful relocation effort. Previously housed in Al Barsha, the move also brought the company’s training facilities and its full-service helpdesk, former-

Rabih Saab President and Managing Director Middle East and Africa, Travelport

ly located at Silicon Oasis – all under one roof.

In addition, Travelport’s corporate hub office in Dubai will act as an extension of its operations in Africa, where the GDS provider recently set-up a direct distribution network for travel agents in South Africa. Several key senior executives involved in developing the company’s growth strategy and supporting the Galileo network in Africa are also based at the Travelport offices in Dubai Media City.

Sendai earthquake, the typhoon in the Philippines and the crisis in the Horn of Africa.

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he Airline adopted its old name ‘Saudia’, after joining SkyTeam alliance on May 29, 2012.

Daniel Naoumovitch, CEO, Sabre Travel Network Middle East (STNME) explained, “Saudia joins many global airlines in identifying Sabre as an important source of revenue and growth. As host to SkyTeam carriers including Aeroflot, Aero Mexico and Vietnam Airlines, Sabre has the experience to power Saudia’s successful entry into the alliance.”

Offering traditional and online travel agencies improved access to fares and inventory, help drive its international expansion, Saudia has chosen to develop its level of connectivity

Daniel Naoumovitch CEO Sabre Travel Network Middle East

with Sabre. In addition, Sabre has also signed multi-year distribution agreement with EgyptAir. “With our strategic offices in Cairo and Alexandria, we are confident that this partnership will grow and prosper further,” Naoumovitch further informed.

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TRAVTALK

DESTINATION

JULY, 2012

Explore and Enjoy in Accessibility to Brunei is evidently increasing and getting easier with matchless services of its national carrier, Royal Brunei Airlines.

Exploring this one of the smallest nonisland countries on earth, the Empire Hotel and Country Club is distinct among Brunei’s finest treasure, the relaxing ambiance of hospitality industry.

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visitors with families from the region especially in the hottest months of July to September,” informed Desmond Acheson, General Manager, The Empire Hotel & Country Club Hotel.

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esides more flights disembarking at Bandar Seri Begawan, many luxury cruiseliners are also choosing to stopover in Brunei for day trips. This increased access is making Brunei a popular tourist stop while helping the Sultanate to double its visitor arrival numbers from 2011 to 2016.

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e are quite delighted to work with the Empire Hotel and Country Club and Brunei Tourism Board to promote Brunei as an ideal tourism destination.

We believe in Brunei’s potential to attract holiday makers from this region because it is interestingly small and yet has a lot to offer in terms of culture, food and nature. The Bruneians are very friendly and hospitable and such characteristics always help in attracting the travellers. Most importantly, Brunei is also known as one of the safest countries, the main factor nowadays, influencing GCC travellers to plan their holidays,” informed Francesca Monfero, Account Manager, Gulf Reps, Royal Brunei Airlines’ PR & Marketing representative in the UAE.

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ith our joint efforts, we are hopeful to continue to build awareness on the destination and entice people to visit Brunei for a short stopover before heading off to another destination.

Operating daily flights from Dubai to Bandar Seri Begawan, Royal Brunei Airlines has excellent connections to Melbourne, Manila, Jakarta, Singapore, Bangkok and Kota Kinabalu, providing travellers from the GCC, a convenient and hassle-free travel experience.”

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he travellers visiting Brunei will have more places to explore and more activities with new infrastructure and attractions planned.

Brunei Tourism will spend around BND 8,00,000 on 69 tourist related projects till 2015 to enhance the natural beauty of the destination.

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ituated on top of a hill overlooking the capital and the Brunei River, the Royal Palace ‘Istana Nurul Imam’ is the largest residential palace in the world. Malay Technology Museum has the galleries on the Malays, ethnic tribes and their lifestyles.

Jame Asr Hassanil Bolkiah Mosque is one of the most magnificent mosques in Asia with 29 golden domes.

Loaded with pictures of the Crown Prince, Royal Regalia Building is used during the Coronation, the Crown, the replica of the throne room and numerous gifts from the state dignitaries.

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Francesca Monfero Account Manager, Gulf Reps Royal Brunei Airlines, PR & Marketing Representative - the UAE

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o catch the sight of Borneo’s own Proboscis Monkey, the unusual one, with unique swollen noses, long thick white tails and orange coats with grey trousers is an excellent tour.

Brunei is interestingly small and yet has a lot to offer in terms of culture, food and nature

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ying at the confluence of the Temburong and Belalong rivers, the National Park is situated within the Batu Apoi Forest reserves.

The journey to the National Park itself is an adventure where one can go past the winding river tributaries lined up with nipah palms and mature mangrove trees.

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o visit to Brunei Darussalam is complete without the visit to Empire Hotel and Country Club, the palatial resort where both tourists and locals regularly flock to this luxurious retreat with varied cuisine, simply making the stay amazing.

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acilities expected as a six-star establishment, a variety of restaurants serving Asian and International cuisines, Empire Hotel is a destination all by itself with a retail arcade, world-class sporting complex, leisure and recreational facilities.

Desmond Acheson General Manager The Empire Hotel & Country Club Hotel

We gradually started organising more travel trade and media familiarisation trips, tapping ME market

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reviously, we didn’t have large number of visitors from the Middle East. Realising this, we gradually started organising more travel trade and media familiarisation trips, tapping the ME market and attracting fair number of

he much awaited ‘Holy Month of Ramadan and Eid’ is fast approaching and The Empire Hotel & Country Club is pleased to invite everyone to celebrate Eid Al Fitr 2012 with a royal touch. We offer special Eid Al Fitr packages (with subject to confirmation from Brunei’s Istana Nurul Iman Palace). It also includes a rare visit to the Sultan of Brunei’s official residence and the possibility to meet and greet the Sultan, as part of the yearly Eid Al Fitr celebrations,” he further informed.

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ith the rise of new markets like Middle East, China, Asia Pacific and Hongkong, the establishment looks ahead to capture more tourists. To entice these well-heeled travellers to its six-star seaside resort, the hotel is currently refurbishing rooms, investing over BND 8 million to upgrade 196 rooms to be completed by the end of 2012.

FAMILY ALBUM

JULY, 2012

TRAVTALK

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Hilton’s thanking note Hilton Worldwide National Sales Office based in Dubai held a Corporate Party in Hilton Ras Al Khaimah Resort & Spa. The Sales team came to host, thank and celebrate all their corporate clients from Ras Al Khaimah. The event was organised in the outdoor garden in the evening.

Partying with Olympics in mind The Millennium Hotel Abu Dhabi held its annual corporate party with more than 300 guests. The theme of the party this year came on time with the preparations of the Olympics. It projected the decorations of the Grand Ballroom, the entertainment and even the uniform worn by both management and staff. Ruprecht Schmitz, the General Manager of the Hotel and his team were all there to welcome the guests. Lots of prizes and raffle draws granted from the sponsors Etihad Airways, Grand Stores, Yogoday and Crystal Gallery turned the evening into a special and exciting one.

Free tickets with ‘Visit Visa’ Customers who utilise Emirates popular Visit Visa product will get an added bonus. Two lucky winners each day will receive 25,000 Skywards miles and one person will win two free

Business Class tickets to their home country, each week.

The promotion, running from June 10 to July 31, 2012, aims to highlight the core benefits of Emirates Visit Visa product, which

helps streamline the process of bringing their families to Dubai for a holiday. Emirates’ Visit Visas are available for family members and near relatives of UAE Residents who have

booked flights with Emirates for their families through local Emirates Offices in the UAE and UAE-based Travel Agents.

The offer is not applicable to tickets purchased online.

Airport check through mobiles Toulouse-Blagnac Airport in France is the world’s first airport to trial SIM-based Near Field Communication (NFC) to allow passengers to pass through the airport’s checks, controls and gates using only their mobile phones.

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TRAVTALK

NEWS

JULY, 2012

‘A World of Choice 2012-2013’ Emirates Holidays, the tour-operating arm of Emirates Airline unveiled its latest ‘A World of Choice 2012-2013’ brochure, with the introduction of eight brand new destinations, spanning six continents and featuring over 100 destinations.

Adding to the new exciting destinations like Argentina, Denmark, Ireland, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Dallas, Seattle and Vancouver, Emirates Holidays also reintroduced destinations like, Russia, Morocco, Malta and South Korea into the brochure in response to customer demand.

Offerings in popular countries such as China, Thailand, South Africa and Germany have also been expanded to provide more travel options with a wider choice of cruises, safaris, palace hotels and dedicated wellness retreats. The brochure provides details on hotel and apartment accommodation, transfers, excursions, car hire and more.

UNWTO WTTC

ME scores highest in inbound Addressing the key issues that the travel and tourism industry is facing, the industry leaders discuss the Arab springs and how the Middle East is increasing its tourism potential.

D E V I KA J E E T

I

n 2011, the tourism industry (globally) accounted for nine per cent of GDP, a total of six trillion dollars. The industry supported 255 million jobs. This means one in 12 jobs on the planet.

UNWTO forecasts reports that by the end of 2012, tourism will reach one billion international arriving tourists. One seventh of the world population will have crossed international borders as tourists in a single year.

“I believe tourism is a main pillar for economic growth. During a turbulent economic period, tourism will help find the solution. In the last 10 years political changes especially in the Middle East and North Africa have affected the region, but again tourism will help redevelop the economies. The industry is a resilient and flexible one but it’s time we come out stronger.

a halt. It is therefore that we, with a united voice, call for stability in the region and for countries to seize the opportunities that travel and tourism have to offer”, says David Scowsill, President and CEO, World Travel & Tourism Council.

Greece, last year, saw an 11 per cent growth in tourism,” says Taleb Rifai, Secretary General, World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO).

An unprecedented example of tourism growth is the Middle East. “The Middle East has had the highest growth rate for inbound world tourism for the past two decades despite security risks, natural disasters and a high oil price. The region has shown remarkable resilience during the 2008 global financial crises. But political turmoil has brought matters to

FTAs for ME Year

No. of Arrivals (in million)

2000 2005 2009 2010 2011

24.1 36.3 52.8 60.5 55.5

Taleb Rifai Secretary - General World Tourism Organisation

Tourism is a main pillar for economic growth. During a turbulent economic period, tourism will help find the solution

Source: World Tourism Organisation

David Scowsill President and CEO World Travel & Tourism Council

ME has had the highest growth rate for inbound world tourism for the past two decades despite security risks, natural disasters and a high oil price

By 2020, travel and tourism will account for 10 per cent of the global GDP, 10 trillion dollars and one in ten jobs.

“At present our industry is the third largest in the world. It is larger than automotive manufacturing, mining and chemical manufacturing. It is worth noting that with 98 million people directly employed in 2011. The industry’s leading organisations have committed to work in a coalition for the common good, through coordination communication, open sharing of information and coalescing around those key global issues where effecting change is priority,” adds Scowsill.

‘Pick and drop’ by RAK Airways RAK Airways launches a quality premier product ‘RAK Premier’ to provide a stress-free travel experience on the ground and in air. Those travelling on RAK Premier will experience chauffeured driven pick up from home, anywhere in the UAE to Ras Al Khaimah International Airport.

S U S M I TA G H O S H

A

team of RAK Airways ground staff thereafter will ensure a seamless assistance escorted through immigration and passport control, dedicated RAK Premier counters, prior to relaxed experience in the Business Class lounge followed by personalised service and ‘restaurant in air’, even on a short flight.

RAK Premier Offers A team of RAK Airways ground staff thereafter will ensure a seamless assistance escorted through immigration and passport control, dedicated RAK Premier counters, prior to relaxed experience in the Business Class lounge followed by personalised service and ‘restaurant in air’, even on a short flight

Passengers’ interest is already high following the RAK Premier roadshow at the four prominent shopping malls in Ras Al Khaimah.

John Brayford, Acting CEO, RAK Airways said, ‘‘RAK Airways offers a product, delivered with excellent service standards at a competitive rate.

RAK Premier is not only an on-board product but it also involves a lot of offers like personalised service to our Business Class customers.”

He further comments, “RAK Premier is one of several initiatives designed to drive our customer base and it will form the springboard for the airline’s expansion.

The market is very competitive as everybody seeks best service and best value.”

John Brayford, Acting CEO, RAK Airways

The airline has selected Horizon, the passenger service solution from SITA, the IT provider for the air transport industry.

“The SITA solution is very comprehensive and is backed by an investment programme at RAK Airways.

SITA has the state-of-theart technology, depth of industry expertise and local presence to work in partnership with us on this very significant implementation,” explained Brayford.

RAK Airways, the youngest airline of UAE, has carried over 2,50,000 passengers in 2011.

The company focusses more on the development of RAK Tourism and develops various tour packages with huge marketing potential. The travel trade being the most important distribution arm brings in 75 per cent of the business. The Emirate is also coming up with a unique property at the year-end.

RAK Airways launches ‘RAK Premier’ ‘RAK Premier’, a superior quality premier product was launched on June 5, 2012. RAK Airways has provided a stress-free travel experience on the ground and in air.

MOVEMENTS

JULY, 2012

TRAVTALK

15

IATA Sydney

Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts Singapore

Etihad Airways South Africa

Alan Joyce is the new Chairman of the IATA Board of Governors.

He is also the CEO and Managing Director of Qantas Airways. A 24-year veteran of the airline industry, Joyce has led Qantas since November 2008. He was the CEO of Jetstar from 2003 to 2008. Prior to that, he spent over 15 years in leadership positions at Qantas, Ansett and Aer Lingus. He is the third Qantas CEO to serve as the Chairman of IATA’s Board of Governors.

Abid Butt has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer

Xenia Adamou has been promoted as the new General

of Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts. He has a legacy of experience with Banyan Tree, having served as the Area General Manager for the Group’s flagship resort, Banyan Tree Phuket, over ten years ago, followed by his appointment as the first Vice President of Operations from 2000 – 2002. In his most recent position, he was the Vice President for Asset Management of Host Hotels & Resorts in the United States.

Manager for Etihad Airways in South Africa. Previously, she held the position of Sales Manager for the past four years. She also spent over 30 years with South African Airways where she built an extensive career in a number of senior manager positions in sales and marketing. Adamou also speaks Afrikaans and Greek. In her present profile, she will be responsible to continue business for the airline in South Africa.

ibis Amman Jordan

Holiday Inn Dubai – Al Barsha Dubai

China

Eric Seso is the new General Manager for ibis Amman in Jordan.

JS Anand joins the Holiday Inn Dubai – Al Barsha as the new

He is a 41-year old Belgian national, who has held various managerial positions within Accor Middle East. Seso will be responsible for managing all aspects of the 158room ibis Amman’s operations. Prior to this, he was the General Manager for ibis Madrid Aeropuerto Barajas since 2006. He has an extensive experience in managing ibis hotels across Europe for over 20 years.

General Manager for the property. Hailing from India and having Canadian citizenship, he holds a diploma in Hotel Management as well as Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Commerce certification before starting his career in hospitality as part of the opening team at the Goa Marriott, India, where he was appointed as Director of Sales & Marketing and also worked with brands like The Oberoi & The Leela.

Cove Rotana Resort Ras Al Khaimah

Hilton Ras Al Khaimah and DoubleTree

by Hilton Ras Al Khaimah Ras Al Khaimah

Andreas Mueller has been appointed as the new General Manager for the Cove Rotana Resort in Ras Al Khaimah. He has worked with some leading brands in the hospitality industry in South Africa, Thailand, United Kingdom, India, Mauritius and the Middle East. In this present role, Mueller is responsible for directing the overall management and operations for The Cove Rotana to meet the stringent Rotana standards.

Mohammad Sawaf is appointed as the new Executive Sous Chef for both Hilton Ras Al Khaimah and DoubleTree by Hilton Ras Al Khaimah.

Sawaf’s stint with Hilton Ras Al Khaimah dates back to 2001 and from the start he has been a key player in the success of the Hotel. In 2011, he was a part of the successful opening team for the new DoubleTree Hotel. He will continue to take full control of both Hotel & Doubletree kitchen operations.

Remco Althuis has been appointed as the new General Manager for Etihad Airways in China. He is an aviation specialist with more than 19 years of experience in sales and revenue management, marketing, e-commerce and ground operations for KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.

For the past six years, he has been stationed in Chengdu, Guangzhou and Shanghai. Most recently he held the position of Regional Manager for Air France-KLM in eastern China.

Brazil Juan Torres is appointed as the new General Manager for Etihad Airways in Brazil. Torres takes up the position in Sao Paulo following two years as General Manager in Japan. Prior to this, he worked for the airline in the Philippines where he was based for three years as the General Manager. Before joining Etihad Airways, he was with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines where he held a number of positions as General Manager and Regional General Manager in different parts of the world.

Showcasing Sharjah in Turkey

Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qassimi, Chairman, Sharjah Media Corporation attended a conference on ‘Turkey: The World's Trade Bridge 2012’, upon the invitation of the organisers – the Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists (TUSCON). The delegation’s participation came on the sidelines of its visit to Turkey for examining the country’s media landscape. During the visit, the delegation met with the Turkish President Abdullah Gul and presented the English translation of the book ‘Taking the Reins’ authored by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah.