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For FREE 27 JANUARY 2018 ISSUE 429 03 WEEKLY NEWS Crystal Lagoons to Target Oman directoryoffers.traveltradedaily.com MARSEILIA GROUP AND AMLAK LE GRAND AMMAN 06 FINANCE SIGN MOU 08 OPENS MARKET UPDATE www.traveltradeweekly.travel TRAVEL TRADE PUBLICATIONS MANAGING EDITOR GLOBAL ECONOMY TO GROW Mary Kammitsi [email protected] The global economy is set to grow by almost four percent this year in purchasing PRESS Efi Rousi Maria Angelica Constantinou power parity terms adding an extra USD5 trillion to global output at current values, Athena Karsera Yiazou according to new projections in PwC’s Global Economy Watch. CONTRIBUTOR Dominique Christou DESIGN & LAYOUT Elena Stylianou WEB & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Savvas Kammitsis DIRECTORS Andreas Constantinides Mary Kammitsi HEADQUARTERS T.T.W. Travel Trade Weekly LTD P.O. Box 25255, Nicosia 1308 Cyprus Tel: +357 22 021607, Fax: +357 22 103670 WEBSITE www.traveltradeweekly.travel EMAILS [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] WORLDWIDE REPRESENTATIVES Representative for North, South & Central America, and the Caribbean: Neil Strickland GlobeTM Tel: +19542969515, [email protected] he main engines of the global economy, the US, emerging Asia and the Eurozone, are expected to contribute almost 70 percent of economic growth this year compared to their post-2000 average of around 60 percent. Representative for Indian subcontinent: Faredoon Kuka Growth in the Eurozone is predicted to be above two percent this year, as PwC expects the peripheral econo- RMA Media mies to outpace the core for the fifth consecutive year. The Netherlands is expected to lead the way with eco- Tel: +912229253735, [email protected] T nomic growth at around 2.5 percent, while the UK growth is predicted to be 1.4 percent this year. Representative for UK & Ireland and Scandinavia: David Simpson Simpson Media Tel: +447900885456, [email protected] PASSENGERS INCREASE IN MIDDLE EAST AIRPORTS MENA EXCHANGE RATES In October 2017, passenger traffic at Asia-Pacific and Middle Eastern as of 25.1.2018 airports increased by 8.1 percent and 3.3 percent respectively com- COUNTRY CURRENCY USD1= pared to the same period in 2016. Bahrain (BHD) Dinar 0.37 Jordan (JOD) Dinar 0.71 Oman (OMR) Rial 0.39 n the Middle East, passenger traffic Qatar (QAR) Rial 3.64 continued to show mixed results in Oc- Saudi Arabia (SAR) Riyal 3.75 tober 2017. Passenger traffic growth UAE (AED) Dirham 3.67 at Dubai was at 6.9 percent increase, Algeria (DZD) Dinar 113.61 I its strongest since April 2017. Doha saw Egypt (EGP) Pound 17.69 14.3 percent decrease while Muscat and Iran (IRR) Rial 36,547.26 Kuwait were the bright spots in the Mid- Iraq (IQD) Dinar 1,183.81 Kuwait (KWD) Dinar 0.30 dle East during October 2017 reporting Lebanon (LBP) Pound 1,511.01 growth of 19.4 percent and 17.2 percent Libya (LYD) Dinar 1.33 respectively. Morocco (MAD) Dirham 9.15 In terms of air freight, Asia-Pacific and Syria (SYP) Pound 515.01 Middle East grew 2.6 percent and 1.3 per- Tunisia (TND) Dinar 2.39 cent respectively in October 2017. Yemen (YER) Rial 250.32 2 27 JANUARY 2018 www.traveltradeweekly.travel WEEKLY NEWS Oman Crystal Lagoons to Target Oman CRYSTAL LAGOONS HAS IDENTIFIED OMAN’S HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM MARKET, WHICH IS EXPECTED TO SEE INVESTMENT OF UPWARDS he technology has already proven to be a major success in the GCC, par- OF USD1.7 BILLION BY 2026, ticularly in Oman, where Alargan Towell Investment Company has started ACCORDING TO THE WORLD work on a 50 ha multi-million-dollar, mixed-use development. Crystal La- goons will build a 40 ha lagoon as part of the project; the centrepiece to TRAVEL AND TOURISM three hotels, serviced apartments, a mixed-use souk and a host of other COUNCIL. Tamenities. Carlos Salas, regional director, Middle East, Crystal Lagoons, said, “Developing Oman’s tourism industry is a top priority for the government, investment is likely to see a number of recognised hospitality brands coming into the market.” Dubai Safari Welcomes UAE Dignitaries Maritime Advisory Council First Stage Completed he Dubai Maritime City Au- thority has completed the T first term of the Maritime Advisory Council which formed the initial stage for the develop- ment of an integrated framework for activating the partnership be- tween the government and pri- vate sectors. The partnership involves are- as that affect the competitiveness, attractiveness and comprehen- siveness of the maritime sector as Dubai evolves into one of the world's best maritime capitals. The two-year initial phase of hard work and close coordina- Lootah along with other members at Dubai Safari team tion among maritime stakehold- ers, has led to the creation of new ussain Nasser Lootah, director general, Dubai Municipality, along with other members of the Dubai Safari team features of the Maritime Advisory welcomed the UAE dignitaries and VIPs to Dubai Safari. As part of the visit, Lootah hosted a tour of the 119 ha Council which is emerging as one H park, including stops at the Arabian Village, African Village as well as the open Safari Village, in addition to what of the most important strategic is hailed to be UAE’s largest walk-through aviary, which is home to more than 25 species of birds. initiatives under the umbrella of “It was our honour to host them and give them a tour of the various villages and activities that make Dubai Safari the Dubai Maritime sector strat- a must-visit experience for both UAE residents as well as visitors from around the world. We are delighted by their egy. positive response and extend our deepest gratitude for their constant support and guidance,” said Lootah. 27 JANUARY 2018 3 AIRPORTS www.traveltradeweekly.travel JCDecaux Partners with Dubai Airports ubai Duty Free, Dubai Airports and JCDecaux an- nounced a partnership introducing a new Drive- D to-Store, data driven advertising offer at Dubai International Airport on January 01. This collaboration aims at building a new eco-sys- tem based on advertising, airport and travel retail data in order to deliver an optimised advertising schedul- ing system and boost campaign efficiency. Data is cur- rently changing the selling process and becomes a key element in defining the value of the media proposition. The advertising offer will enhance the impact and the efficiency of the existing media proposition at Dubai International Airport. Through a new data eco- system, the right advertising message will be displayed at the right time, in the right location to the right audi- Dubai Duty Free ence. Bahrain Air- port Company Dubai Airports Awarded Five Stars Celebrates Jet Airways .H. Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed sessment process conducted under the aegis Anniversary Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, crown prince, of the prime minister’s office. H Dubai, unveiled classification plates “We are honoured to receive this recogni- rating the Al Majlis VIP Service and Terminal tion for the quality of the service we provide 3 at Dubai International as five-star service to millions of customers that travel though ahrain Airport Company, facilities under the Global Star Rating Pro- our facilities each year. This acknowledge- operator and managing gramme. ment will go a long way in encouraging em- B body of Bahrain Interna- Launched in 2012, the programme as- ployees of Dubai Airports and our stakehold- tional Airport, celebrated the sesses and measures the performance of er to ensure the consistent delivery of quality 10th anniversary of its part- each department’s service centre on a scale customer service across the airport,” said Al nership with Jet Airways. A of two to seven stars, through an official as- Maktoum. ceremony was held at Bahrain International Airport to mark the occasion, which was at- tended by senior officials from Bahrain Airport Company and Jet Airways. “Our partnership with Jet Airways has been one of our most fruitful, helping us rein- force the Kingdom’s position as a hub for airlines in the re- gion. It has also played an im- portant role in strengthening bilateral relations between Bahrain and India. We are con- fident that our continued as- sociation with Jet Airways will bring many more successes in the future,” said Ayman Zainal, chief operating officer, Bahrain Airport Company. Dubai International Airport 4 27 JANUARY 2018 www.traveltradeweekly.travel TECHNOLOGY Knowcross Partners Klook Launches Visa and Dynamics with INTEREL to Mobile Pass for Airport Unveil Wallet Card Enhance Guest Experience Express Train nowcross has announced the integration isa and Dynamics unveiled the Dynamics of its guest request management system look has announced the rollout of a Wallet Card, a connected payment card, K with INTEREL, the guest room manage- QR-code enabled Mobile Pass for Hong V at the Consumer Electronics Show, which ment systems provider for the hospitality indus- K Kong Airport Express. The new feature began on January 09 and ran until January 12. try. will further bridge the ever present gap be- The Visa-branded version of the Wallet Card With this integration, guest requests made tween online and offline, offering travellers is the same size and shape as a normal Visa from the INTEREL glass switches in the room can a more convenient way to access Hong Kong credit or debit card, yet it incorporates multiple be processed identically to requests made from Airport Express.