27 JUNE 2015 ISSUE 294 FIRST HOLIDAY INN OPENS IN TABUK DUBAI DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM & COMMERCE MARKETING PARTNERED WITH HOMEAWAY TO PROMOTE THE EMIRATE’S VACATION HOMES TO THE WORLD AND POSITION DUBAI AS AN ATTRACTIVE DESTINATION TO HOMEAWAY TRAVELLERS. 11 AJMAN WELCOMES OPENING OF FURNISHED APARTMENTS 12 IN THIS ISSUE MARKET UPDATE 02 TECHNOLOGY 03 ACCOMMODATION 11 AIR 13 INTERNATIONAL 17 RENDEZVOUS 18 TRAVEL TALK 20 AGENT CORNER 21 TRAVEL CHANNELS 22 PHOTO ALBUM 23 DUBAI VACATION HOMES TAKE NEWS & EVENTS 24 CENTRE STAGE 7 MARKET UPDATE TRAVEL TRADE PUBLICATIONS MEA Region Underperforms in April MANAGING EDITOR Mary Kammitsi Middle East and Africa (MEA) reported negative year-over-year results in the three [email protected] major performance metrics during April, according to data compiled by STR Global. ASSISTANT EDITOR Maria Kazeli SENIOR JOURNALIST Rita Kasziba CONTRIBUTORS Ana Mladenovic Dominique Christou PRESS Maria Demetriadou Pauline Shahabian Inna Armeanu DESIGN & LAYOUT Elena Stylianou he region registered a 0.4 percent decrease in occupancy WEB & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Savvas Kammitsis to 66.2 percent, a 4.6 percent drop in average daily rate (ADR) to USD168.47 and a five percent fall in RevPAR to DIRECTORS Andreas Constantinides Morocco USD111.45. Mary Kammitsi Increases were posted only by North Africa which Tsaw a 11.4 percent growth in occupancy to 57.6 percent and a 10.2 HEADQUARTERS percent surge in RevPAR to USD51.34. T.T.W. Travel Trade Weekly LTD Notably, Egypt experienced the largest strides with occupancy P.O. Box 25255, Nicosia 1308 Cyprus rising 16 percent, whereas Morocco recorded the steepest declines Tel: +357 22 021607, Fax: +357 22 103670 in both ADR and RevPAR at 27.4 and 27.6 percent respectively. WEBSITE www.traveltradeweekly.travel EMAILS [email protected] USD32.7 Billion Investments in UAE [email protected] [email protected] Airports MENA EXCHANGE RATES Some AED120 billion (USD32.7 billion) is being poured into airport developments in the UAE where over 101 million passengers were handled in 2014. As of 26/6/2015 Currencies shown in blue are fixed against the US Dollar round 71 million of these passed through Dubai International. COUNTRY CURRENCY 1USD= As H.H. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, president, Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, explained, the vision is to turn aviation into a major Bahrain (BHD) Dinar 0.37 contributor to Dubai’s economy. Jordan (JOD) Dinar 0.71 “Dubai is working its way to be the global travel hub for the 21st Oman (OMR) Rial 0.39 century,”A remarked Al Maktoum. Qatar (QAR) Rial 3.64 By 2022, Dubai World Central will become reality and once completed, the Saudi Arabia (SAR) Riyal 3.75 world’s biggest airport will handle 220 million passengers per annum, giving a ma- UAE (AED) Dirham 3.67 jor boost to the aviation sector which is expected to generate USD88 billion to the Algeria (DZD) Dinar 98.94 emirate’s economy by 2030. Egypt (EGP) Pound 7.62 Iran (IRR) Rial 29,232.95 Iraq (IQD) Dinar 1,191.45 Kuwait (KWD) Dinar 0.30 Lebanon (LBP) Pound 1,509.39 Libya (LYD) Dinar 1.36 Morocco (MAD) Dirham 9.69 Syria (SYP) Pound 188.82 Tunisia (TND) Dinar 1.93 Yemen (YER) Rial 214.89 Dubai International 2 27 JUNE 2015 TECHNOLOGY WEEKLY NEWS Onity Launches Convenient Mobile-key nity has released its DirectKey mobile ac- The DirectKey system uses cloud-based key other access-controlled areas such as parking ga- cess solution for the hospitality industry. credentialing and Bluetooth technology, allow- rages, elevators and fitness centres. O The company developed this prod- ing guests to securely download their key to The credentials remain on the phone during uct as a cost-effective, secure and easy-to-use mo- their smartphone through the hotel’s loyalty app their stay, so a network connection is not required bile key solution for hotels of any size. for easy access to their assigned room, as well as to use the mobile key. TravelClick Launches New CRM System nnovative cloud-based solu- tion provider, TravelClick in- troduced GuestView360, an Iend-to-end customer relationship management (CRM) and e-mail marketing solution. By providing insight into guests’ stay patters, revenue and market segment, the system allows hoteliers to maximise the effective- ness of marketing campaigns and drive repeat business. The solution tracks e-mail capture and channel performance and enables users to execute highly targeted online promotion and better engage their customers, something that accord- ing to Greg Sheppard, vice presi- dent, business intelligence product management, TravelClick, is essen- tial for hoteliers. “Because GuestView360 is now available on the same platform as our business intelligence offerings, hoteliers only need to use one platform to get a wealth of infor- mation to make more informed decisions that ultimately increase revenue,” added Sheppard. 27 JUNE 2015 3 WEEKLY NEWS Abu Dhabi Celebrates Two Airlines to Spend USD5.6 Recognitions Trillion on Aircraft Abu Dhabi’s most popular tourist attraction and the destination’s growing ow-cost carriers and airlines in devel- status as a leading tourism hub have been recognised in two global oping and emerging markets are set independent travel surveys. L to drive commercial aircraft sales to USD5.6 trillion over the next 20 years. According to Boeing, over the next two decades, 38,050 new aircraft will be needed, meaning that by the end of the forecast period, the commercial airplane fleet will double from 21,600 airplanes in 2014 to 43,560 in 2034. he Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque has been ranked in Trip- The single-aisle market will remain the Advisor’s 2015 Travellers’ Choice Awards as the world’s fastest-growing and largest segment, re- T fourth most popular landmark attraction. It welcomed quiring 26,730 airplanes, and about 35 per- 4.3 million travellers and worshippers in 2014, making it the cent of these will serve low-cost carriers. single most visited tourism spot in the emirate. During the period under review, pas- Meanwhile, the growing popularity of the destination’s at- senger traffic will continue to grow at tractions, experiences and hospitality sector have also been about 4.9 percent per year and by 2034, recognised in the MasterCard Global Destination Cities Index, more than seven billion passengers will be Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Grand Sheikh Zayed ranking as the third fastest-growing city overall between 2009 flying annually. and this year. 4 27 JUNE 2015 WEEKLY NEWS XX British Films Inspire Travellers from Bahrain Abu Dhabi Summer to the UK Season Promoted in Dubai bu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) Ahosted a meeting between representatives of the capital’s top hotels and some of the biggest des- tination management companies in London Dubai and the Northern Emirates. The main aim of the programme was to showcase the best deals and of- fers available throughout the summer he Harry Potter movie franchise is still encouraging travellers from Bahrain months and discuss ways to cooperate to visit the UK, according to a recent survey conducted by British Airways over the Abu Dhabi Summer Season. T which showed that one in four Bahraini residents is inspired by the movies As Mubarak Al Nuaimi, director of to travel to the European country. promotions and overseas offices, TCA Harry Potter was closely followed by the quintessentially British James Bond Abu Dhabi, noted, the organisation series, with 23 percent, and in third place came Sherlock Holmes, based in London. is poised to extensively promote the Paolo De Renzis, area commercial manager, Middle East and Central Asia, Brit- emirate as a destination of distinction ish Airways, said, “Our flights from Bahrain to London are one of the most popular and venue for exceptional entertain- routes within the Middle East and as always, we will be offering the best of British ment. hospitality that our customers have come to expect on all our flights.” Dubai Welcomes Quantum of the Seas Quantum of the Seas he first ship in Royal Caribbean Interna- tional’s advanced ship class, Quantum of T the Seas, has docked in Dubai in late May, as part of a 53-day global voyage from New York to Shanghai. Royal Caribbean International, in collabora- tion with Dubai Department of Tourism & Com- merce Marketing, commemorated the inaugural call of the ship at the Dubai Cruise Terminal in Port Rashid with a welcome reception followed by the traditional plaques and keys ceremony. The ship spans 18 decks, encompasses 168,666 gross registered tonnes, carries 4,180 guests at double occupancy and features 2,090 staterooms. 6 27 JUNE 2015 WEEKLY NEWS Omani Dutch Embassy DUBAI VACATION HOMES Outsources Visa TAKE CENTRE STAGE Services he Embassy of the Neth- Dubai Department erlands in Oman has out- of Tourism & T sourced its visa application Commerce service in Muscat to VFS Global. The office now issues visas for Marketing partnered the Netherlands and the Carib- with HomeAway bean parts of the Kingdom, as well to promote the as Belgium, Luxembourg, Estonia, he tourism body will work closely with the vacation rental Hungary, Poland, Sweden and emirate’s vacation specialist to strengthen the sector in the emirate and pro- Switzerland. homes to the world vide support to the many licensed establishments that H.E. Barbara Joziasse, ambas- and position Dubai operate there. sador to Oman, Netherlands, said, as an attractive As Issam Kazim, CEO, Dubai Corporation for Tourism & “Provision of high quality and ef- TCommerce Marketing, noted, the introduction of legislation regarding ficient service in outsourcing is ut- destination the operation of vacation homes in Dubai in December 2013 has re- most essential, especially at a time to HomeAway sulted in the broadening of the destination’s accommodation offering.