Travel Industry News

Tourism expert upbeat on UAE hotel projects and tourist inflow during 2010

Dubai, 14th July 2010: A regional tourism expert has urged investors in the hotel industry to look at local hotel management companies as an alternative to international chains.

According to Youssef E. Jammal, Managing Director, B6 Catering, the local companies have now become major rivals to their international peers because of competent human resources and pertinent expertise, against global players who often lack local knowledge.

The UAE hotel management companies, in spite of being young, have achieved remarkable success, Jammal said. This is reflected in their global perspective as well as high levels of luxurious services that are on par with those of the world’s finest hotels. He said these companies were competing with international groups not only in the UAE but also in their home countries in Europe and the United States.

Jammal added: “Hotel industry in the Gulf is a magnet for international and regional investors despite global financial crisis. International companies are increasing the number of rooms and more hotel properties are still set to open in 2010.

Jammal, who runs the B6 Catering specializing in the hospitality industry, said that investors should think analytically when they select a hotel management company in terms of the capability of these companies, their record in managing hotels with cost-efficiency rather than go by big names.

The hotel industry in Dubai is a great adapter to market demand. Investment groups have started to shift their sights from real estate to hotels which offer higher and safer ROI taking into consideration that UAE is advanced in its infrastructure and hospitality services.

Jammal said new comers from the Arab region are joining the workforce of the hotel industry in Dubai as they are trilingual with reasonably cost effective salaries.

Jammal emphasized that the Gulf is more dependent now on internal tourism within the GCC. He said that the UAE continues to promote domestic tourism within the emirates by attracting citizens and residents to spend the weekends within the Emirates as well as Gulf tourists by encouraging hotels to provide incentive programs to them.

Jammal added that the domestic tourism and Gulf tourism, in addition to tourism from countries such as India and China, are boosting occupancy rates of hotels this year in the UAE

S. Korea unveils new policies to attract more foreign tourists

SEOUL, July 15th, 2010 — South Korea announced a set of sweeping measures Thursday to bolster its tourism industry, calling for the development of ecological attractions, expanding budget accommodations and easing visa rules for Chinese tourists.

President Lee Myung-bak presided over a pan-governmental tourism promotion meeting on Nami Island, a heavily visited destination 90 kilometers east of Seoul, in which new policies were unveiled to increase domestic and foreign tourists as part of the country’s efforts to create jobs, reports Yonhap.

“Our government expects these measures will help attract Chinese tourists preemptively, as they are emerging as the major customer of the world’s tourism market,” Yu In-chon, the minister of culture, sports and tourism, said in a press conference. “We also expect these plans will help boost domestic tourism and contribute to job creation.” By 2014, South Korea seeks to increase the annual number of foreign tourists to 12 million, compared to 7.8 million last year, and envisions locals will spend 14 days traveling a year on average, compared to the current nine. The growth in tourism is expected to bolster the country’s annual tourism income to US$13.5 billion from the current 9 billion and create 40,000 new jobs along the way, the ministry said.

Major strategies include developing six new quays for cruise ships on the southern resort island of Jeju, the western port city of Incheon and other coastal towns. Some 1,500 kilometers of eco-friendly trails also will be established with government support.

Visa restrictions for low- and modest-budget Chinese tourists will be considerably loosened both for individual and group tours, and all tour signs across the country will feature the Chinese and Japanese languages.

To vary and convenience accommodation, the government will seek to increase business hotels and make budget accommodations more accessible and tourist-friendly. An integrated reservation system for them will be devised.

South Korea has seen a steep increase in Chinese tourists in recent years, while the number of Japanese visitors, the major source of inbound tourism here, has been dwindling. Some 1.46 million Japanese tourists came during the first half this year, down 4 percent from the same period last year, while Chinese tourists increased by 35 percent to about 819,000.

The pan-governmental meeting, dubbed the “national employment strategy meeting,” brought together ministers of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism; the Ministry of Strategy and Finance; the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries; the Ministry of Environment; the Ministry of Homeland and Maritime Affairs; and the Ministry of Justice.

Nami Island, where the meeting took place, is seen as a hub for inbound tourism, where hundreds of thousands of tourists from Japan, China and Southeast Asian countries come to search for the places where a popular Korean drama series that was broadcast throughout Asia, “Winter Sonata,” was filmed.

“President Lee said he was deeply impressed by the complete transformation of Nami Island that was a wasteland when he visited there in 1963,” Yu, the culture minister, said.

The government has designated three major ecological tourism attractions — Suncheon Bay on the southwestern coast, Upo Swamp in the southeast and the Demilitarized Zone along the border with North Korea, where a hiking trail opened this year. A popular trail along Jeju Island’s coast, called “Olle,” will also receive state support.

China’s outbound tourism may top 100 mn journeys in 5-10 years : WTTC

BEIJING, 29th June 2010 — China’s outbound tourists may reach or top 100 million holiday journeys in the next five to ten years, predicted the 10th World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), recently held in Beijing.

The WTTC also said that China’s domestic tourists will reach 2.8 billion journeys in five to ten years and the inbound tourists to China will take about 100 million holiday journeys by then.

Both China’s domestic and outbound tourism have achieved rapid development over the past two years. In 2009, China’s domestic tourists made 1.9 billion holiday journeys. The total of inbound overnight tourist journeys reached 50 million.

Meanwhile, 47.66 million Chinese tourists traveled outbound in 2009. China has grown into the largest tourist source country in Asia.

In the first quarter of this year, the number of China’s domestic tourist journeys rose eight per cent year on year to 610 million. Domestic tourism income amounted to 343 billion yuan (US$50.470 billion), up 20 per cent year on year.

SCTDA wins ‘Most Outstanding Booth’ Award at Beijing International Tourism Expo 2010

Sharjah, June 28th, 2010 — The Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) has won the award for Most Outstanding Booth at the Beijing International Tourism Expo 2010 (BITE), which held in Beijing from 25 to 27 June 2010.
The SCTDA’s stand was chosen as the winner of the prestigious award from among 800 stands that were exhibiting across an area of over 60,000 square feet.
SCTDA representatives received the award at a grand ceremony attended by the Director General of the Chinese Tourism Authority, the General Organizer of the Exhibition, senior officials, other exhibitors as well as international media representatives.
The jury’s final decision was based on the evaluation of the show’s organizing committee, following a number of studies and assessments conducted in coordination with the Chinese Tourism Authority. The unique design of Sharjah’s stand attracted thousands of visitors and drew international media attention.
The award is the fourth of its kind to be won by the SCTDA at the event, following awards for Best Stand Design and Most Outstanding Booth over the last three years.
Commenting on the occasion, Mohamed Ali Al Noman, Director General of the SCTDA, said: “This award recognizes the SCTDA’s outstanding efforts to promote the emirate of Sharjah across a variety of local, regional and international domains. It is a mark of success for the emirate’s new identity, which has performed superbly on a local, regional and international level.
“This world class award marks a new milestone in our series of achievements and will serve as added motivation for us to continue our tireless efforts to maintain and boost Sharjah’s prominent spot on the world’s tourism map. It is our consistent commitment to maintain this momentum, under the guidance of H.H. Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qassimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah,” he continued.
The Authority’s Director General explained that the SCTDA’s presence at Asia’s leading tourism event forms part of its efforts to further strengthen Sharjah’s already established position on the world tourism map. It also helps meet the requirements of tourism development in the emirate, increases the flow of tourists into the emirate, and benefits from the huge potential of the Chinese market, which has over 20 million tourists a year – a figure that is projected to reach 100 million by 2020.
“The SCTDA seeks to make its presence at BITE a focal point in order to attract Chinese tourists to Sharjah, and is extremely optimistic of the benefit of the openness and dynamism of Chinese trade and tourism markets on the tremendous potential increase in the tourist inflow to Sharjah. This is in line with the development witnessed in the emirate’s tourism sector and the growth aspirations for the next five years,” he added.
“This is the second award for Sharjah this year, the first being the award for �Best Middle Eastern Exhibitor’, which we received at ITB 2010 – the world’s largest tourism event – earlier this year,” Al Noman said.
He stated that the SCTDA’s participation in major international exhibitions plays a significant role in increasing tourist influx into the emirate, thanks to the Authority’s efforts to highlight the emirate’s tourist attractions to international markets.
“Asian tourists accounted for 15 percent of the total number of visitors to the emirate in 2009,” he said.
On the sidelines of its participation in the Beijing International Tourism Expo, the SCTDA also participated in Expo 2010 Shanghai, the largest event of its kind in the world, which saw the participation of more than 240 countries and international organizations.

DEWA signs a Memorandum of Understanding with Dubai Courts

Dubai, 27 June 2010 – Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) signed a memorandum of understanding with Dubai Courts in line with Dubai Government’s vision to establish the city as a premier knowledge, finance, economy, and tourism hub. The MOU aims to disseminate the environmental awareness and the culture of conservation in the electricity and water consumption between the two concerned parties The agreement was signed at Dubai Courts headquarters by Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer MD ‘&’ CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) and Dr. Ahmed Saeed bin Hazeem, Director-General of Dubai Courts, in the presence of a number of senior officials from both sides.
HE Al Tayer said that the signing of the agreement is in line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, to improve the performance of government departments and institutions by simplifying procedures and laws that contribute in raising public services performance levels.
“The MOU will concentrate the efforts on raising environmental awareness and the culture of conservation in the electricity and water consumption among Dubai Courts’ staff and its customers, and support their innovative and creative exchange of knowledge, experience and studies related to environmental activities and the conservation of natural resources by means of lectures, seminars, distribution of brochures , publications and testing the consumption of electricity and water technically,” he noted.
“DEWA has implemented several energy conservation programs with different categories of clients during 2009 and we achieved good results in reducing the electricity consumption by more than 201 million kWh, in addition to one billion and 38 million gallons of water, with a total amount of AED 97 million. We expect, after this MOU goes into effect, remarkable energy savings at Dubai Courts’ in a way that serves our common aspirations,” Al Tayer added.
“The MOU will promote the cooperation with the Dubai Courts and the joint efforts to improve the performance of operations at its facilities to achieve the greatest possible savings in the consumption of electricity and water as well as implementing an integrated system of communication between the parties,” he concluded.
Dubai Courts, from her end will follow-up action to achieve the greatest possible savings in the consumption of electricity and water, and wasted water resulting from the misuse of water resources, as well as the dissemination of legal knowledge among DEWA’s employees by all available means which include the activation of an electronic link to exchange information and knowledge in order to streamline procedures comprising the legal principles approved by the Dubai’s Court of Cassation and family counseling.
In his turn, Dr. Ahmed Saeed bin Hazeem, Director-General of Dubai Courts hailed the significant role played by the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority in disseminating the conservation culture among the community members.
“The MOU reflects DEWA’s responsibility and confirms in return Dubai Courts engagement with its community members while educating them on legal matters to facilitate their work,” he pointed out.
“In line with the clauses of the MOU Dubai Courts will organize of a series of educational sessions in various legal fields that take into account the needs of the staff in order to familiarize them with the legal issues. In addition we will hold meetings on a regular basis with representatives from DEWA to raise awareness on the legal subjects” he added.
Dubai Courts’ Director General stressed on the common goals and objectives of both parties which need concerted efforts.
“We need to join forces in order to realize Dubai’s Government vision to establish the city as a regional center of money, business , tourism and knowledge in and ensure customers’ satisfaction This MOU will also strengthen the principle of community partnership to achieve our common strategic objectives” he added.
Bin Hazeem thanked DEWA for its cooperation throughout this MOU by raising the conservation and environmental awareness among Dubai Courts’ employees in various ways.
“We consider that a common responsibility that every community member should abide by it to achieve a conservation in expenditure and consumption, thus ensuring resources conservation in the UAE and contributing in the reduction of the excessive wastage and striking an environmental balance,” he concluded.

Abu Dhabi to host World Green Tourism Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi, 27th June 2010 – World Green Tourism Abu Dhabi, the international conference and exhibition being held in the UAE capital this November, has won the patronage of Sheikh Sultan bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, Chairman of Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority.
Sheikh Sultan, a noted promoter of sustainability practices, will also deliver the opening address at the inaugural event which will be held at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) from November 22-24.
“We in Abu Dhabi are building an industry to make a difference on a number of levels – economically, to our social fabric and to the preservation of our cultural heritage and natural assets – in short, we are working not just for immediate benefits, but for the future. We are ensuring the efforts of today are sustained for the long-term, and this event will help ensure our initiatives are recognised and replicated across the public and private sectors in Abu Dhabi, regionally and across the globe. We also recognise that we still have much to learn and the presence of so many industry leaders will offer valuable insight to help us achieve our goals,” said Sheikh Sultan.
“We look forward also to discovering the latest sustainability techniques and methodologies which we anticipate being promoted at the World Green Tourism Abu Dhabi exhibition -it will be a window to future practices.” Having chaired ADTA since its 2004 inception, Sheikh Sultan has promoted sustainability as a core value for the organisation as it works to develop Abu Dhabi into a world-class destination which has grown from receiving 960,000 hotel guests in 2004 to 1.54 million last year and to being recommended by Lonely Planet and Frommer’s in their respective Top Ten recommended destinations to visit in 2010. He also chairs the Al Ain Wildlife Park ‘&’ Resort, a World Green Tourism Abu Dhabi Gold Sponsor.
ADTA has established its own Environmental Health and Safety Management System (EHSMS) which has become a world-first in being on the only one of its kind which embraces an entire tourism segment. Focussing initially on the hospitality sector it calls on accommodation providers to design their own EHSMS systems with annual targets for water, energy and waste-to-landfill savings.
World Green Tourism Abu Dhabi is designed to give travel and tourism industry leaders and investors greater insights into sustainability within the sector and how it can be used to enhance business outcomes. It is being organised by the UAE’s Streamline Marketing Group (SMG).
“Sheikh Sultan will set the tone for an event which we believe will have a tangible impact on the way tourism-related functions are managed in this region,” said Rick Theobald, Event Director, SMG. “Through his different roles encompassing government, tourism, investment and development, Sheikh Sultan has helped shaped Abu Dhabi’s transformation into a leading tourism destination in an environmentally, socially and culturally aware manner.”

Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority’s Senior Management Trains in Singapore

Abu Dhabi, June 21st, 2010 — Managers and Directors of Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) have undergoing five days training at Singapore’s Civil Service College as part of the tourism body’s leadership development programme.

Some 27 senior ADTA staff, including 11 women managers, completed the �Moving from Managing to Leading’, course which focussed on key leadership and management issues and allowed the team to experience the successful Singaporean approach.

“This is part of a comprehensive programme to develop and upgrade the skills and knowledge of our UAE national management team. A lot of attention is directed to training our young UAE national managers and directors because they constitute 71% of ADTA’s management,” Mubarak Hamad Al Muhairi, Director General ADTA explained. “The training is putting the MoU signed with Singapore 18 months ago into action.” “Singapore is something of a role model as the country has achieved international success in economic and resource development, has fostered a strong tourism economy and is constantly upgrading its human resources skills.” The Dean of the Civil Service College, Lionel Yeo said the presence of the Abu Dhabi delegation in the Lion City underlines deepening bilateral ties in the training arena.

“This programme has been tailored to ADTA’s needs and covers issues such as human resource management strategies, change management concepts, leadership methodologies and communication techniques,” he explained.

“Over the past months, ADTA has organised several short training courses in co-operation with distinguished universities and international institutions to develop and upgrade the skills of its staff across various departments. We are implementing long term training courses for all our employees to raise their performance output and develop their work skills,” explained Khaled Al Hashemi, ADTA’s Human Resources Director

Flydubai adds new Boeing to fleet

Dubai, 17th June 2010 – flydubai’s ninth Boeing 737-800NG touched down at Dubai International Airport Terminal 2 last night, marking another on-time aircraft delivery in less than 13 months of operation.

The brand new aircraft will go straight into service on the latest flydubai route, the Dubai-Istanbul service. The on-time delivery demonstrates flydubai’s commitment to expanding its network of services by not deferring any orders and continuing towards the target of 13 delivered aircraft by the end of 2010.

flydubai CEO, Ghaith Al Ghaith said: “The arrival of a ninth aircraft is testament to the planning and hard work of the team and shows flydubai’s dedication to providing the highest standards of safety, reliability and quality by investing in the expansion of our fleet of next generation aircraft.” Since operations began on June 1 2009, flydubai has used its aircraft to great effect, operating almost 8,000 flights with 85 per cent departing on time. In May alone, Dubai’s first low cost airline operated 1,000 flights recording an on-time performance of 92 per cent.

Air Arabia increases its service to Amman, Damascus & Alexandria

Sharjah, June 15, 2010 Air Arabia, the first and largest low-cost carrier (LCC) in the Middle East and North Africa, announced today that it will offer additional flights throughout June and July 2010 between the carrier’s first hub in Sharjah to Amman, Damascus and Alexandria. The increased service is in response to increasing seasonal demand for low-cost travel services across the Middle East.

Additional flights to Amman will operate on June 21, June 26, June 29 and July 3. Additional flights to Damascus will operate on June 24, June 27, July 1 and July 4, while additional flights to Alexandria will operate on June 21, June 23, June 28 and June 30, respectively.

Flights from Sharjah to Amman will depart at 14:45 and arrive the same day at 16:50, while Sharjah to Damascus will depart at 10:45 and arrive at 12:55 the same day. Flights from Sharjah to Alexandria Al Nozha will depart 09:20 and arrive 12:10 the same day.

“We are pleased to expand our service to Amman, Damascus and Alexandria this summer, in line with increased demand from our customers,” said Sherif Attia, Chief Operating Officer of Air Arabia’s Sharjah hub. “Air Arabia focuses on putting its customers’ needs first, and our latest initiative to increase the frequency of service to popular destinations will surely enhance the level of convenience for our customers.” Air Arabia currently operates return flights between Sharjah and Amman seven times a week, Sharjah and Damascus eleven times a week, and Sharjah and Alexandria twenty-one times a week.

flydubai does the double with flights to Istanbul and Assiut

Dubai, Apr 11th, 2010 (WAM)–Just two weeks after launching GCC routes Muscat and Kuwait City, flydubai, Dubai’s first low cost airline, has announced further two routes – Assiut in Egypt and Istanbul, Turkey – to bring the airline’s network to 15 destinations.

Priced from just AED350, flights to Assiut, the largest town in Upper Egypt, are three times per week and start on Monday, May 24.

Travellers will be able to visit Istanbul, European Capital of Culture 2010, with flydubai’s uncomplicated, low fare service for as little as AED450 from Thursday, June 17. Flights to Istanbul will be five times per week.

Ghaith Al Ghaith, CEO of flydubai said: “The addition of these new routes is in line with our commitment to make travel to key destinations in this region more accessible and more affordable.

“These two routes are excellent examples of the type of destinations flydubai is committed to serving. Assiut currently has very few direct links to the UAE, so by offering this destination we are fulfilling our promise to make travel a little less complex, a little less stressful and a little less expensive.

“Although Istanbul is well known to many there is such a demand for short breaks to the city and to the country in general that we anticipate strong demand for our quality, low cost service.” The largest town in southern Egypt, Assiut is known for its agriculture, especially grain and cotton. It is also home to one of the country’s largest universities and has much to offer tourists. Steeped in heritage, Assiut was founded in the Pharaonic era and is located 400km south of Cairo.

flydubai’s new service to Istanbul will allow even more travellers from the Gulf to enjoy the stimulating diversity of Turkey’s most famous city, and it will contribute to the growing trade relationship between Turkey and the UAE, valued at around US$9 billion.

The flydubai model is simple, with customers paying only for the services they want to receive. The ticket price includes all taxes and one piece of hand baggage, weighing up to 10kg, per passenger.

Passengers have the option to purchase checked-in baggage in advance at just AED60 for the first piece and AED150 for the second, weighing up to 32kgs, subject to availability. Checked baggage at the airport is also strictly subject to availability and passengers are advised to book online early to secure the space, as only pre-purchased baggage can be guaranteed

GCAA announces the completion of Human Factors in Aviation course.

Dubai, 6th April 2010 (WAM): The General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) announced the completion of a Human Factors in Aviation course conducted in Dubai. The internal course was delivered by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), headquarted in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

The course was facilitated by Captain Jose Raul Sosa Riera who is an expert in aviation human factors training and an IATA certified instructor. Captain Sosa Riera has more than 30 years in the aviation industry including extensive professional experience in human factors, safety management systems and training.

The course was attended by 24 GCAA participants representing various regulatory, investigative, and navigation service departments within the Authority. The course covered areas such as human factors theory, human factors models, human factors as it relates to Safety Management Systems, and relevant information from the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) human factors programs.

Etihad Airways does not face any challenge like other Int’l Airlines,James Hogan

Kyoto, March 30th, 2010 (WAM) — James Hogan, CEO of Etihad Airways, has said the Airlines is not hit by global financial crisis and UAE is a major tourist attraction for Japanese visitors.

He added that the first flight from Abu Dhabi International Airport to Narita Airport in Tokyo was operated last Saturday, and five weekly direct flights will be operated from Abu Dhabi to Tokyo.

Book your flight to tokyo via Emirates

He pointed out that global aviation sector has been hit hard by the sharp drop experienced in tourism because of the global financial crisis and H1N1 disease.

Hogan stressed that Etihad Airways, which started working in 2003 and operates flights to 60 destinations worldwide, does not face challenges and problems alike American, European and Japanese airlines, pointing to the new fleet and saying that the company has a “clean budget.” He added that there are about 350 Japanese companies operating in UAE and about 8000 Japanese have visited Abu Dhabi during the year 2009, while the number of Japanese visitors increased during January and February this year, by 12 per cent over the same period during the previous year, according to the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority.

Emirates A380 to serve Manchester from 1st September

DUBAI, March 30th, 2010: Manchester will become the most northerly point on the world’s A380 network after Emirates Airlines revealed its latest plans for the superjumbo. A 517-seat version of the giant aircraft will serve Manchester from 1st September – as the airline marks a double decade of service to the city.

The A380 will replace Boeing 777 aircraft on EK017 from Dubai and EK018 out of Manchester. At the same time, Manchester will become the world’s first regional airport to have a regular A380 service.

“Manchester has become one of the strongest performers in our growing network of regional gateways. Our customers value our commitment to a regional network at a time when other airlines are abandoning them. We are delighted to give our Manchester customers the very best available in the shape of the Emirates’ A380, which, without doubt, has revolutionised flying,” Salem Obaidalla, Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Europe ‘&’ Russian Federation, said.

Manchester Airport’s Managing Director, Andrew Cornish, said, “Emirates Airlines‘ decision to operate daily A380 services between Manchester and Dubai represents an historic moment for this airport and the region that we serve. We have invested close to ?10m (Dhs54.8m) in upgrading the airfield and terminal, both to accommodate the aircraft itself and to create a fitting environment for Emirates’ customers, whether it is at check-in, using the airline’s executive lounge or at the gate area.” Emirates is currently operating eight A380s. They serve London Heathrow, Toronto, Paris, Jeddah, Bangkok, Seoul, Sydney and Auckland

Travel agent arrested in credit fraud

Travel agent arrested in credit fraud
A Winnipeg travel agency owner already facing numerous credit card fraud charges has been arrested again.

Read more on The Winnipeg Sun via Yahoo! Canada News

Marriott International Adds Two Brands to Pegasus Solutions Global Commission Processing

Marriott International Adds Two Brands to Pegasus Solutions Global Commission Processing
SCOTTSDALE, DALLAS and LONDON (March 29, 2010) – Marriott International, Inc. (NYSE: MAR) has expanded its relationship with Pegasus Solutions with the addition of two brands to the company’s agent-preferred Global Commission Processing Services , including Marriott ExecuStay, and the Autograph Collection.

Read more on dBusinessNews.com