Category: Middle East

The World Travel Awards (WTA) has recognized the UAE’s most-loved waterpark as the best in the world. Yas Waterworld Abu Dhabi, the unique Emirati waterpark on Yas Island, was awarded the title ‘World’s Leading Waterpark’ at the World Travel Awards gala this week. Abu Dhabi’s iconic waterpark racked up more votes than its fellow nominees, which included globally renowned waterparks such as Orlando’s Typhoon Lagoon, and Spain’s Siam Park. Bianca Sammut, General Manager of Yas Waterworld, accepted the award during the Grand Final Gala Ceremony, held on December 1 in Lisbon, Portugal. “We love this park, and to have that ... Read more

Israeli tourism sector has been showing a growing trend during the year 2018. Nearly 4 million visitors have visited the historical country, since the beginning of the year. Around 389,000 tourists visited Israel in November alone, as per reports. There has been persistent growth in tourism over the past two years and the authorities are expecting record number of tourists this year, if the trend continues. It is expected to have around four million visitors by the end of the year. The country has hosted around 3.8 million tourists during the period January – November 2018, which is 14 per ... Read more

Agoda and Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah sign MoU to achieve vision 2030 goal of 30 million pilgrims Agoda, one of the world’s fastest growing online travel agents (OTA), and Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) supporting the Kingdom’s vision of 2030 goal to increase its capacity to over 30 million pilgrims by utilizing Agoda’s technology and travel expertise, marketing platform capabilities, intelligence tools and resources. The agreement was signed on Monday 3 December, 2018 by H E Dr Mohammad Saleh bin Taher Benten, the Saudi minister of Hajj and ... Read more

Graphical representation of the Bullet train passing through the floating pipeline Travelling between Mumbai and Fujairah in just 2 hours is something that cannot be possible in our wild imaginations. However, UAE’s National Advisor Bureau Limited has come up with a concept to traverse the distance of 2000 kilometers in 2 hours by underwater train, speeding through floating pipes. As per report of a local daily, the new futuristic project aims to connect India’s Mumbai with UAE’s Fujairah with an underwater bullet train that will run in floating tunnels. Proposed Railway Station in Fujairah “With this underwater railway link, the ... Read more

Emirates, Etihad, flydubai, Air Arabia and Al Fursan took to the skies in unison on December 2, 2018 to celebrate the UAE’s 47th National Day, as well as commemorate the legacy and values of HH Sheikh Zayed. The late founding father of the UAE dedicated his life and leadership to unify and shape a better collective future for the nation, and today’s formation flight is a soaring display of unity as all four carriers showcase the UAE’s aviation success story to the nation and world. The spectacular flypast – a world-first and a UAE civil aviation milestone – involved over ... Read more

Sharjah is the perfect example of a place where the past meets the present and the cultural values and heritage are truly a part of everyday life; and as a tourist one can truly immerse in its art, science, values and traditions. Sharjah Commerce & Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) in association with FitZup organized an expedition for renowned TV celebrities and fitness enthusiasts- Kanchi Singh, Rohan Mehra, Helly Shah, Tanya Sharma and Abigail Pande, merging travel and fitness to arrive at the intriguing concept of fitness tours. These well-known celebrities became the faces of the “Say Sharjah!” campaign. FitZup, along ... Read more

Make your dream of flying come true at the magical iFLY, defy gravity in a controlled environment with skill, style and courage. Installed in City Centre Mirdif, it is the world’s first double vertical wind tunnel, open for everyone over age of 3, the safe and well controlled environment at iFLY Dubai promises you a memorable experience. Being attached to the City Centre Mirdif mall, iFLY sets new boundaries in the vertical wind tunnel industry and is the world’s first tunnel to achieve this feat and being designed to be raised 3 meters in the air, to give you a ... Read more

Emirates made a clean sweep this week with award wins across multiple countries – from Russia and Belgium to the UAE – a testament to the airline’s consistent delivery of industry-leading travel experiences for its diverse customer base, and its commitment to investing in innovative products that will ensure its customers fly better. Emirates was named ‘Best Airline in the World’ and ‘Best Airline in the Middle East’ at the prestigious 2018 ULTRAs. In a vote taken by over 500,000 readers of The Telegraph’s luxury travel magazines Ultratravel UK and Ultratravel Middle East, the awards recognise the world’s best providers ... Read more

Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE), an agency of Dubai Tourism, has announced that this year’s Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) will be extended by an extra week, now running from 26 December 2018 until 2 February 2019. Back for the 24th edition, this year’s shopping extravaganza will be the longest in its successful history, bringing shoppers even more exciting events, promotions and opportunities to enjoy rewarding shopping experiences across the city. Bargain-hunters will enjoy additional retail sales, deals and discounts from a diverse range of top global brands, along with mega raffles and more chances to win life-changing prizes from ... Read more

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, has received the prestigious Fatima Bint Mubarak Award for Motherhood & Childhood in the category of ‘Best Initiative in the Support of Mother and Child’s Healthy Lifestyle’ for its Flying Nanny programme, which was announced last night at Emirates Palace. The award ceremony marked International Children’s day on November 20 to recognise excellence and creativity within the fields of motherhood and childhood in the UAE. Flying Nannies were introduced by Etihad Airways in September 2013, and are on-board to provide an extra pair of hands and to allow parents more personal time ... Read more

Dubai Tourism expects a steady growth of 13 to 15 per cent in Indian tourist visits in the state. As per reports, India remained the top source market for Dubai during the year 2017 and it is expected to be a crucial contributor to their targeted 20 million international visitations by 2020. “The priority is to get the messaging tailor-made for each market in India to attract every segment of travellers to Dubai,” said Khalid Al Awar, Manager – India & Pakistan (International Operations), Dubai Tourism. He was interacting with the media in an informal chat on the side-lines of ... Read more

Israel Tourism has set a new record for tourist arrival in the current year. It was announced by the The Ministry of Tourism on Friday. 3.6 million tourists have visited Israel during the year 2017. This follows a record set in October 2018 for the most visitors and pilgrims to Israel in one month – nearly 500,000, which broke the previous all-time incoming tourism set in April 2018 by almost 20 per cent. The Tourism Ministry expects the number of visitors to the Holy Land to exceed 4 million by the end of the year, with the domestic tourism industry ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: Emirates24/7 Operations at Kuwait International Airport have come to a halt as weather conditions remain unstable and heavy downpour continues. “All flights departing from Kuwait international airport are suspended ‘Precautionary’, and arriving flights will be redirected to Dubai international airport, Bahrain international airport and Dammam airport” the Kuwaiti civil aviation said in a statement by state news agency KUNA. Photo Courtesy: Emirates 24/7 Flights were redirected to Saudi Arabia’s Dammam and Riyadh airports, and to Bahrain’s airport as well. The volatility in weather conditions is expected to continue until Friday, the report said. Kuwait is currently witnessing unstable weather ... Read more

Gulf Air, the national carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain, and Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, are set to explore deeper cooperation following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at the Bahrain International Airshow. MOU scope includes provision for joint codeshare operations as preferred partners between and beyond hubs; development of commercial agreements to enhance guest experience; coordinated Engineering and Cargo services in Abu Dhabi and Manama; plans to offer reciprocal ‘earn and burn’ on frequent flyer programmes. The wide-ranging MOU covers scope to introduce joint codeshare operations between Abu Dhabi and Manama, ... Read more

Radisson Collection has opened the Nofa Resort Riyadh, a Radisson Collection Hotel in Saudi Arabia. Built in African style, the resort has 57 bungalows and villas overlooking Nofa Wildlife Park. Nofa Resort Riyadh features three on-site restaurants – the Tswalu restaurant, Butcher’s Den and Al Fresco restaurant. Tswalu restaurant features African-style interiors, serves international cuisine for breakfast, lunch and dinner whereas the Butcher’s Den features grilled specialties, outdoor terrace seating and lake views. Al Fresco serves Italian classics including stone-fired pizzas. The hotel also features a tailored private dining service for special occasions or business events. Guests can also enjoy the Hookah Lounge, a tea ... Read more