Middle East and North Africa Edition
June 25, Issue 85
sulaymaNiyah WElcomEs thE First iNtErNatioNal hotEl
The government of Ras Al Khaimah has awarded Al Hamra Fort Hotel and Beach Resort’s management agreement to Hilton Hotels & Resorts.
The iraqi city of sulaymaniyah is set to welcome its first international four-star hotel with the launch of Faruk group holding’s copthorne hotel Baranan, due to open in the fourth quarter of the year.
5 EmiratEs to Fly to Baghdad Emirates is set to make its debut in Baghdad with the launch of scheduled flights to the airline’s second destination in iraq, effective from November 13.
8 In This Issue Market Update Weekly News Accommodation News Air Travel News International Who’s Moved Travel Talk Agents’ Corner Travel Channels Rendezvous Events JuNE 25, 2011
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Hilton to Manage
RAK Hotel
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www.traveltradeweekly.travel
TRAVEL TRADE WEEKLY Managing Editor mary Kammitsi mary@traveltradeweekly.travel Journalists rita Kasziba duncan macrae marianna Keen
Hilton to Manage RAK Hotel The government of Ras Al Khaimah has awarded Al Hamra Fort Hotel and Beach Resort’s management agreement to Hilton Hotels & Resorts.
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he property is located 25km from ras al Khaimah (raK) and a 45-minute drive from Design & Layout dubai international airport. Elina Pericleous h.h. sheikh mohammed bin Sales & Marketing saud bin saqr al Qasimi, crown prince of raK, dimitris Thomaidis commented that the partnership will further maria demetriadou improve the emirate’s hospitality industry. Directors “as a leading international hotel management group andreas constantinides operating several successful brands, hilton has the mary Kammitsi track-record and the global infrastructure to Headquarters maximise the value of our investment. We believe P.o. Box 25255 this property will emerge as one of raK’s top Nicosia 1308 cyprus resorts and will contribute to attracting leisure tel: +35722820888 Fax: +35722318958 travellers to the emirate. al hamra Fort hotel and Beach resort is a unique and visually stunning Website www.traveltradeweekly.travel resort without pretence that welcomed guest from around the world. Now we are thrilled to be Emails partnering with hilton because their recognised info@traveltradeweekly.travel editorial@traveltradeweekly.travel dedication to excellence, unparalleled service and sales@traveltradeweekly.travel exquisite taste is complimented with their strong commitment towards raK in the past. This new founded partnership will only further cement our
position as leaders in hospitality and tourism development.” The property, consists of 266 rooms, including 183 villas, overlooking the gulf, with its private beach stretching 1.5km along the coast. other amenities include 11 dining outlets, a spa, a fitness centre, tennis courts, a mini golf, a kids’ club, a golf academy and a convention centre. it will shortly undergo intensive renovation, noted Victor louis, chief operating officer, raK hotels and tourism development authority. “right now hilton is carrying out the implementation of the brand and the company’s soPs, connecting the property to the centralised system of reservation and sales. construction contracts for the resort renovation are being awarded now and work will commence shortly.” The government of raK, which has intensively worked to upgrade the emirate’s hospitality industry is to plunge usd100’s of millions into further hotel and tourism projects in a bid to quadruple its visitor count and achieve its long-term goal of tourism related revenues to account for 20 percent of the income by 2021.
Adagio to Acquire Citéa and Become European Leader in Extended Stay Segment MENA Exchange Rates Accurate as of 24/6/2011 currencies shown in red are fixed against the us dollar COUNTRY uaE (aEd) Egypt (EgP) saudi arabia (sar) lebanon (lBP) Bahrain (Bhd) Jordan ( Jod) syria (syP) Kuwait (KWd) Qatar (Qar) oman (omr) tunisia (tNd) morocco (mad) iran (irr) yemen (yEr) algeria (dZd) libya (lyd)
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CURRENCY dirham Pound riyal Pound dinar dinar Pound dinar riyal rial dinar dirham riyal rial dinar dinar
1USD= 3.67 5.96 3.75 1,514.5 0.37 0.71 47.45 0.27 3.64 0.38 1.38 7.94 11,075 216.75 72.24 1.22
In a two stage agreement, Pierre & Vacances/center Parcs group will acquire 100 percent participation in citéa, the extended stay brand, which will then be sold to adagio. Pierre & Vacances/center Parcs and lamy (Nexity group) have signed an agreement to purchase 50 percent of citéa, which will also include other third party investors. The acquisition will bring the participation of Pierre & Vacances/center Parcs in citéa to 100 percent. in a second stage, Pierre & Vacances/center Parcs group will sell 100 percent of citéa to adagio. By the end of this operation, which will be finalised at the end of June, adagio will manage 84 aparthotels in Europe. today, adagio has 35 properties located in the centres of main cities in France, Belgium, germany, austria, italy and switzerland. after the acquisition, it will become the European leader in the aparthotel sector, with almost 10,000 apartments, generating a business volume of around Eur160 million. Both adagio and citéa properties will be covered under the brand adagio, but a new brand label will differentiate the properties and positioning of citéa. adagio’s development plan will be focused in Europe, russia and the middle East. By 2015, the company plans to manage around 130 aparthotels. JuNE 25, 2011
Controversial Bahrain Grand Prix Cancelled Following months of strain, Bahrain Grand Prix organisers have decided to withdraw from staging a round of the 2011 FIA Formula One World Championship.
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he sakhir race was originally scheduled as a march season-opener, but was postponed due to the ongoing turmoil in the Kingdom. The organisers’ final decision follows Fia World motor sport council’s suggestion to reinstate the grand Prix on october 30, which sparked criticism from various parties about safety, stability and the prolonged season. in response to concerns, Bahrain has officially confirmed that the race will not go ahead this year, cited Zayed alzayani, chairman, Bahrain international circuit. “Whilst Bahrain would have been delighted to see the grand Prix progress on october 30 in-line with the world motor sport council’s decision, it has been made clear that this fixture cannot progress and we fully respect that decision. Bahrain has always sought to play a positive role in the continued
Zayed Alzayani
development of Formula one. Bahrain has absolutely no desire to see a race which further extends the calendar season detract from the enjoyment of Formula one for drivers, teams and supporters. We want our role in Formula one to continue to be as positive and constructive as it has always been. Therefore, in the best interest
of the sport, we will not pursue the rescheduling of the race this season.” Bahrain grand Prix has long played a vital role in the Kingdom’s tourism industry, by attracting 100,000 visitors, supporting 3,000 jobs and generating around usd500 million, some 2.5 percent of the Kingdom’s gdP.
Event Focuses on Investment in Mecca An event which aims to provide a business-to-business networking platform that supports public and private investment initiatives in the mecca region took place on June 19-21, attended by key stakeholders of ongoing development activities. Future makkah, which was held at the Jeddah centre for Forums and Events, featured an exhibition, the Future makkah development Forum, and an indepth workshop. it responds to saudi arabia’s recently unveiled makkah development Plan that will allocate over sar100 billion (usd2.1 billion) to projects encompassing the infrastructure, utilities, investment, financing, real estate and tourism sectors. JuNE 25, 2011
Prior to the event, hussain al harithy, co-owner, National Exhibitions company, which organised the event along with iir middle East, commented on the snowballing economy in mecca and the potential to learn from such exhibitions. “The government’s development strategy for the mecca region is expected to gain more momentum moving forward and Future makkah will certainly be a critically important vehicle to gain strategic insight and have a better understanding of the unique demands and emerging opportunities within the region’s business and investment landscape.” The event’s exhibition segment included
more than 5,000 local, regional and international investors, high net-worth individuals, government and municipality companies, and construction, infrastructure and utility companies. abdul rahman a. Fakieh, chairman of board, Jabal omar development, one of the platinum sponsors of the event, commented on ongoing work that is expected to provide a wide choice to mecca’s visitors. “We are now pursuing development projects that consist of sixstar, five-star, four-star and three-star hotels, residential villas, and multi-storey commercial facilities that will cater to the increasing number of pilgrims and umra performers coming to mecca.” 3
- Accommodation
Sulaymaniyah Welcomes the First International Hotel The Iraqi city of Sulaymaniyah is set to welcome its first international four-star hotel with the launch of Faruk Group Holding’s Copthorne Hotel Baranan, due to open in the fourth quarter of the year.
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ocated in the tourist district of sulaymaniyah, within proximity to some of the most favoured sights, the hotel’s built-up area covers 9,198m2. Besides 72 guest rooms, the seven-storey property features six suites, eight service rooms and seven elevators, as well as an all day dining restaurant, cigar bar, a duplex entertainment centre and meeting rooms.
Faruk mustafa rasool, chairman, Faruk group holding, which has invested more than usd400 million in the hospitality industry, commented on the new addition to the company’s portfolio. “The development of the hospitality sector is an
important factor as Faruk group holding has always been in the forefront of our country’s development. launching copthorne hotel is another step in our strategic expansion plans as iraq’s largest and most respected private company.”
Mercure Cements Presence in Abu Dhabi Accor has strengthened the presence of its mercure brand in abu dhabi by rebranding Novotel abu dhabi city centre to mercure abu dhabi city centre. The rebranding, effective June 1, marks another step in accor’s strategy of streamlining and harmonising the company’s brand portfolio. The 215-room hotel portrays the core characteristics of the upper midscale brand, noted christophe landais, managing director, middle East, accor. “The mercure abu dhabi city centre is the latest addition to accor’s current network of 18 mercure properties in the middle East and offers a warm atmosphere with a classical spirit and comfortable living spaces all at great value for money.” mercure’s portfolio is comprised of 700 hotels in 49 countries, of which middle Eastern properties account for 18 with 3,187 rooms. JuNE 25, 2011
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- Air Travel
airberlin Increases Codeshare Agreement with oneworld Associates airberlin has expanded its codeshare agreement with oneworld partners, which has been described as the most important decision the airline has made since its public offering, initiated in 2006.
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oachim hunold, cEo, airberlin, remarked on the importance of international alliances to advancement in the industry. “international networking offers a huge opportunity for growth. Therefore, we have already concluded codeshare agreements with american airlines, Finnair and s7. The contracts with iberia and British airways will follow shortly.” on June 20, airberlin's most recent transatlantic flight – between Berlin and New york codeshared with american
airlines. “although the cost of becoming a member of the oneworld alliance will run in the lower two-digit millions, in the long term, under normal circumstances, we are expecting clear annual additional returns that
exceed this one-time cost,” added hunold. airberlin passengers will be able to earn bonus miles on all flights operated by the 13 oneworld partners, and will be able to check through to 900 airports in 150 countries.
Bahrain-Lebanon Route Re-opened Gulf Air, the state-run national carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain, has resumed its flights between Bahrain and lebanon. The flights restarted operation on June 12 after being suspended in late march over statements made by hezbollah against authorities. The carrier now flies a daily flight from Bahrain to lebanon and could increase the frequency of flights depending on passenger demand. samer majali, cEo, gulf air, was thrilled to reintroduce the service between the countries. “We are delighted to be able to resume our flights to Beirut; this is great news for our customers, Beirut has always been a popular destination on our network.” JuNE 25, 2011
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- Air News
Emirates to Fly to Baghdad Emirates is set to make its debut in Baghdad with the launch of scheduled flights to the airline’s second destination in Iraq, effective from November 13.
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he capital city of iraq will be served with fourflights-a-week from the carrier’s dubai hub on Wednesdays, Fridays, saturdays and sundays. The new route, which will be operated by an airbus 330 in a three class configuration, will bridge the gap of services to the largest city of iraq and will provide passengers with seamless connectivity to the airline’s expanding route map, noted h. h. sheikh ahmed bin saeed al maktoum, chairman and chief executive, Emirates airline and group. “Baghdad is a strategically important destination for Emirates. its geographical
location, coupled with the fact that few international carriers operate there, makes it the perfect destination for us to tap into and drive revenue from. With more than five million residents in Baghdad, and its surrounding districts, this new service will provide them with direct access to our vast global network.” The new destination will mark Emirates’ second route to iraq. The carrier commenced four-flights-a-week to Basra earlier this year and operates offices in both Basra and Baghdad. “our launch into Basra, iraq in February this year has been a resounding success with flights operating in both directions at capacity. in the four months since we began
operations in iraq thousands of passengers have flown with Emirates between Basra and dubai seeing the route perform well above expectations,” al maktoum added. The route will further respond to growing demand for services between the two countries with the traffic expected to come from a wide variety of sources, including industry and government personnel from Baghdad and nationals residing outside of iraq. Baghdad will represent Emirates’ fifth international destination to launch this year, with Basra and geneva already operational and copenhagen and st. Petersburg joining the carrier’s global network on august 1 and November 1 respectively.
Cyprus Airways to Codeshare with Virgin Atlantic Cyprus Airways has signed a codeshare agreement with Virgin atlantic that will enable the airlines to offer simpler travel and greater choice on routings between the uK, us and cyprus. as of July 25, customers will be able to purchase single itineraries to connect between larnaca airport in cyprus and a variety of Virgin atlantic’s us destinations.
Bus Service Makes Dubai International Airport More Accessible flydubai has announced the launch of a dedicated bus service for customers wishing to travel from abu dhabi and al ain to dubai international airport’s terminal 2. The service, which began on June 15, will operate four times a day to abu dhabi and three times a day to al ain. ghaith al ghaith, cEo, flydubai, expressed that this is a first step in making the airline’s hub in terminal 2 more accessible to passengers across the uaE. 8
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- International
Aloft Launches Second NYC Hotel Starwood Hotels & Resorts has unveiled its second Aloft branded property in New York City (NYC) with the opening of Aloft New York Brooklyn.
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he latest addition to the brand’s portfolio brings contemporary style along with affordable prices to the city’s scene, emphasised Brian mcguinness, senior vice president, specialty select brands, starwood.
“With its creative style and energetic vibe, Brooklyn will make a perfect home for aloft, and we’re excited to expand our New york footprint with our debut property in the borough. For the gen y-minded aloft guest, who brings a real appreciation of what’s next in design and tech, a Brooklyn location
makes an ideal home base for exploring New york, and we’re eager to share it with them.” With its two-storey lobby atrium, with bar and scenic views of the manhattan and Brooklyn skylines, the 176-room hotel reflects the city’s vibrant atmosphere, commented rick day, chief operating officer, real hospitality group, the property’s service provider. “We are excited to open our second starwood hotel in Brooklyn. The aloft brand is a great match for the explosive growth in this area.”
First Midscale Extended -Stay Hotel Opens in New Orleans InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) opened the candlewood suites avondaleNew orleans on June 16, marking the first midscale extended-stay hotel in the Westbank of the area. The 83-room, three-storey property is situated close to louis armstrong New orleans international airport, Ernest N. morial convention centre and downtown New orleans. The hotel caters for a wide ranging clientele, commented gina laBarre, vice president, americas Brand management, ihg. “The amenities that a candlewood suites offers, such as full kitchens, comfortable living areas and free laundry and housekeeping services, will appeal to guests whether they're visiting for business or leisure.” The new hotel is the seventh candlewood suites in louisiana and the second in the New orleans area. 10
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Luigi Romaniello
Mouna Moussi
luigi romaniello has been appointed as managing director of rosewood abu dhabi. he will be responsible for the operation of the new hotel and its signature restaurants and spa. romaniello began his career at grand Kempinski hotel in dallas, us, before joining stouffer hotels in austin. he then moved to michigan to amway hotel corporation’s flagship amway grand Plaza hotel. later he was promoted to executive assistant manager of Peter island resort in the British Virgin islands. romaniello has joined rosewood in 1999 as resident manager of caneel Bay, us Virgin islands, before moving to rosewood crescent hotel, dallas, to take on the role of hotel manager. in 2007, he was promoted to managing director of mansion on Peachtree, a rosewood hotel and residence in atlanta, georgia. he has more than 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry, and has played a major role in the successful launch of a number of properties. rosewood abu dhabi, located on sowwah island, the core of the emirate’s new central Business district, is due to open in Luigi Romaniello summer 2012.
mouna moussi has joined travelport’s middle East and africa management team. moussi is taking on the role of senior business manager at the global distribution system (gds) provider’s airline services group. Based in Beirut, she has been tasked to handle key airline relationships across the middle East and North africa, with Mouna Moussi particular focus on the levant and maghreb countries. she will be responsible for managing existing airline relationships and indentifying new commercial and partnership opportunities with carriers operating in the region. having worked with various airline-related organisations for more than 12 years, moussi brings in-depth knowledge and a wealth of experience to her new role. Previously she was executive director of sabre airline solutions and helped to raise the international profile of the arab air carriers organisation (aaco) and its member airlines.
Bert Plas Bert Plas has been appointed as general manager of the new sofitel Bahrain Zallaq Thalassa sea & spa. having worked in various places around the globe, including switzerland, canada, turkey, the caribbean, south america and Egypt, Plas brings solid expertise to his new role. Previously he was with intercontinental hotels Bert Plas group, delta hotel and resorts and le meridien hotels and resorts before joining sofitel in 2009. Besides speaking four languages, he is also an active member in several associations and social clubs and takes part in corporate social programmes. JuNE 25, 2011
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Albert Pozo
Abdulrazaq Al Raisi
Vice president multinational business and corporate travel, Amadeus “The middle East market is based mainly upon air travel due to the large expatriate populations. although the internet penetration in the region is higher than world average, its impact on booking generations has been low due to various reasons – one being the large labour force that still requires face-to-face dealings at travel agencies and non-credit card payment options, and the fact that customers prefer face to face interactions whilst booking their travel.”
The Middle East market is based mainly upon air travel due to the large expatriate populations
Abdulrazaq Al Raisi
Albert Pozo
Chief Commercial Officer, Oman Air "oman air's first class service offers unprecedented levels of luxury and the addition of our lounge-to-aircraft limousine service will provide even greater comfort and convenience.
Oman Air's first class service offers unprecedented levels of luxury
Travel Talk is your space – this is a casual forum for travel industry professionals to discuss current issues and share stories. We want to hear from you, so send your comments, questions, frustrations and observations to editorial@traveltradeweekly.travel
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Agent’s Insight Name: Ibrahim Abu Zannad Position: Marketing Manager Company: Al Jazeerah Travel & Tourism Location: Jordan Jordan
Who are you? my name is ibrahim abu Zannad and i am the marketing manager at al Jazeerah travel & tourism, which is considered to be the number one tour operator in Jordan specialising in both inbound and outbound travel.
Foras Tourism Debuts in Dubai Foras International Investment, the investment arm of the organisation of the islamic conference (oic), has launched its latest initiative, Foras tourism. headquartered in dubai, Foras tourism is to act as the main wholesaler of the 57 oic member countries, which, with a massive community of nearly 1.5 billion, compose 21.4 percent of the world population, located in major areas. The name, Foras, which in arabic means ‘opportunities’, alludes to the company’s straightforward vision to become the primary tourism services supplier in the region for travellers, travel agents, dmc’s and tour operators, insurance companies and ground handler and services providers, to further intensify the sector’s productivity and the brotherhood among oic member countries. in the first phase of its operation, Foras tourism’s scope of work will focus on the uaE, indonesia, iran, Kuwait, malaysia, morocco, Qatar, saudi arabia, turkey, Jordan, lebanon and Egypt, before tapping into other key markets as part of the company’s vast expansion strategy. in august, Foras tourism will launch an integrated configurable, complex and dynamic virtual online travel platform to provide real time information and transaction capabilities via the internet, with flexible payment methods and high personal information and privacy protection. The personalised services aim to facilitate browsing, requesting and booking and will enable users to access various travel offerings, contents and application, while, at the same time saving cost and time.
What is your favourite thing about working in the travel industry? discovering new destinations. This job gives me the opportunity to travel a lot and meet new people from many different cultures.
When is the best time to visit Jordan? i would suggest scheduling a trip between april and september.
Where would you like to travel to for your next holiday? The maldives is my most desired destination at the moment.
Why should people come to you for travel advice? as our slogan states, ‘we create memories’ and that is a fact. We are truly committed to our job and provide high-level services to make sure that our customers will recommend the agency to their friends and colleagues.
As our slogan states, ‘we create memories’ and that is a fact JuNE 25, 2011
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UNWTO Offers Tunisia Tourism Boost The Tunisian government and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) have signed a partnership agreement under which UNWTO will support the country’s tourism development.
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NWto will provide tunisia with up-to-date market intelligence on tourism movements and trends as well as guidance on tourism policy. local officials will be trained on the latest marketing tools. uNWto will also asses the country’s tourism education and training needs, linking tunisian tourism institutions with uNWto certified universities around the world. mehdi houas, minister of tourism, tunisia, highlighted the importance of support from the international community to his country and
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particularly its tourism industry. “tourism in tunisia is fully operational and open for business, and we need the support of the international community to communicate this reality. This agreement is an important step towards the reinforcement of tourism in tunisia in key areas such as marketing, quality and human resource development.” taleb rifai, secretary-general, uNWto, commented that the partnership will help accelerate the return of international tourists to tunisia in the short-term. “international tourists are gradually returning to tunisia. as they do so, uNWto will be providing tunisia with
technical support and assistance to sustainably reinforce this tourism recovery, one of the country’s principal sources of income, jobs and development.”
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Q & A with Karim El Sanadily In light of turbulence in the MENA region, trends have altered and airlines are adapting their strategies to exploit the best opportunities and areas with potential. Karim El Sanadily, general manager GCC, Lebanon, Pakistan, Austrian Airlines, tells travel trade Weekly how the airline has responded to changes in the market and what eorts it has taken to ensure quality that will keep broad ranging customers satisfied. Travel Trade Weekly: Austrian Airlines returned to Baghdad after 21 years, reincorporating the Vienna-Baghdad route into its scheduled flight programme from June 8 onwards. What factors inclined the airline to resume services there? Karim El Sanadily: We have already been flying successfully to Erbil for many years. Baghdad is now the second destination we opened in iraq. Why we did this is easy to explain: Baghdad is an important destination in the middle East which is an important market for austrian airlines. We fly to a total of 12 destinations in this region, including Baghdad. We put a strong focus on the middle East and see potential for future growth.
Travel Trade Weekly: What other services to the Middle East or to North Africa will be added in the near future and what is the strategy behind decisions? Karim El Sanadily: as an airline, we are always evaluating destinations. at the moment our focus is on observing the current situation and the current developments in the middle East.
Travel Trade Weekly: Which of your services do you think most appeal to consumers from the MENA region? Karim El Sanadily: one is our hub in Vienna. We oer flights from Vienna onwards to around 130 destinations worldwide. Vienna is in a geographically ideal position for passengers travelling from and to Europe. We have a very strong presence in the East European markets with 46 destinations. Then second: transferring in Vienna is really easy because there is a minimum connection time of only 25 JuNE 25, 2011
minutes. Third: we have a very high standard of service onboard our flights with do&co catering. We have won several airline awards that prove the high quality we have on board. i think that people in the mENa region particularly appreciate our service on board. Finally: the miles & more Programme. With miles & more we have the biggest frequent flyer programme in Europe with more than 20 millions members worldwide and more than 400 airline and non-airline-partners.
Karim El Sanadily
Travel Trade Weekly: What change in demand have Austrian Airlines operations to the MENA region experienced due to widespread unrest across the region? Karim El Sanadily: We reduced
Travel Trade Weekly: How do you believe that the rapid growth of Gulf carriers impacts the industry? If you perceive any threats, how do you think these are best overcome? Karim El Sanadily: We have
approximately one third of our flights to the middle East in this summer flight period. This means about 15 flights less per week due to the political instability in some countries which lead to the drop in demand.
competition all over the world on all our destinations. This is part of the airline business. in the middle East region the commercial growth and potential in the aviation industry are positively growing, which can accommodate all carriers and bring about healthy competition.
Our focus is on observing the current situation
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Increased Attendance at The Hotel Show More than 14,800 people attended The hotel show 2011, which took place at the dubai World trade centre on may 17-19. The unaudited figures, which have just been released, represent a 40 percent increase in visitor numbers year-on-year. Frederique maurell, exhibition director, The hotel show, noted that a substantial amount of business took place at the event. “importantly, 38 percent of visitors were looking for new suppliers this year and more than 28 percent of those surveyed placed orders in excess of one million dollars.” industry analysts estimate that usd6 billion worth of hotel-related projects, mainly in saudi arabia, Qatar and the uaE, are due for completion within the next two years, in a concerted effort to diversify their economies away from hydrocarbon receipts. companies representing 420 brands from more than 45 countries occupied 20,000m2 of exhibition space, covering operating equipment and supplies, interiors and design, outdoor and resort experience and security and technology. roberto garcia, sales area manager, andreu World, spain, commented that the event provided an ideal opportunity meet business people face-to-face. “This is the perfect platform to talk to professionals from the area who are too busy to travel to Europe. it’s a good place to come and source materials for middle East projects.”
Indonesia Expects More Middle Eastern Tourists Indonesia’s tourism board has set its sights on a further boost in tourist interest after its successful exhibition at the arabian travel market, which took place this may. The country, made up of more than 17,500 islands, expects the middle East, particularly the uaE, to be an increasingly important growth area for its tourism sector. The number of uaE visitors to indonesia increased by more than 30 percent between 2009 and 2010, climbing to more than 4,900 from 3,760, according to data from the National statistical Bureau. sapta Nirwandar, director general of tourism marketing, ministry of culture and tourism, indonesia, anticipates that visitor numbers from the middle East will continue to rise. “Even though visitor numbers from the uaE are still relatively low when compared with other markets, we believe that through further ongoing cooperation between both the public and private sectors of indonesia and the uaE, visitors from the Emirates and other parts of the region will continue to increase year to year.” overall, indonesia’s international visitor arrivals by the end of 2010 reached more than seven million, an increase of almost nine percent from 2009.
Events Sports and Events Tourism Exchange Cape Town, South Africa, July 27 - 29, 2011 (www.sportsandevents.co.za) an event that focuses on south africa’s facilities and services for all top level international events and the exchange between sports tourism and the events industry.
Top Resa, International French Travel Market Paris, France, September 20-23, 2011 (www.iftm.fr) an international travel and tourism trade fair for networking, doing business, innovating and keeping abreast of market developments. Cityscape Dubai
China Incentive, Business Travel and Meetings Exhibition Beijing, China, August 30-September 1, 2011 (www.cibtm.com) a leading event for the meetings, incentives, business travel and events industry in china and asia.
Dubai, UAE, September 26-29, 2011 (www.cityscape.ae) a business-to-business networking exhibition and conference for emerging real estate markets globally.
PATA Travel Mart New Delhi, India, September 6-9, 2011 (www.pata.org) asia Pacific’s premier travel trade show with networking and contracting opportunities.
CIS Travel Market St. Petersburg, Russia, October 12-14, 2011 (www.restec.ru) an event focusing on the cis countries with airlines, tour operators, travel agencies, accommodation providers and tourist associations
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