Middle East > Tourism

Tourism in Middle East

  • UNWTO: International tourism – strongest half-year results since 2010

    AFGHANISTAN, 2017/09/09 Destinations worldwide welcomed 598 million international tourists in the initial six months of 2017, some 36 million additional than in the same period of 2016. At 6%, increase was well above the trend of recent years, making the current January-June period the strongest half-year since 2010. Visitor numbers reported by destinations around the world reflect strong request for international travel in the initial half of 2017, according to the new UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. Worldwide, international tourist arrivals (overnight visitors) increased by 6% compared to the same six-month period last year, well above the sustained and consistent trend of 4% or higher increase since 2010. This represents the strongest half-year in seven years.

  • Tourism as the cornerstone of Bahrain’s diversification plans

    BAHRAIN, 2017/06/15 “This is the time to look at Bahrain,” Jarad Bachar, Executive Director, Bahrain Economic Development Board [EDB], had his agenda sorted when I caught up with him at the bustling Arabian Travel Market last week. True to his role, Jarad brought more than just his skills and experience to the table. He has been in the region for nine years, having worked with Dubai’s tourism body and as strategic advisor to the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Abu Dhabi Commission for Tourism.

  • Positive momentum established in Jordan’s tourism industry

    JORDAN, 2017/04/16 Year-end tourism figures released by the Jordanian authorities suggest the sector is stabilising next a contraction across a number of indicators in 2015, with several government initiatives expected to facilitate further improvements this year. Visitor arrivals hit 6.4m in 2016, up 33.5% on the previous year, according to the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (MoTA). This increase was half driven by increase in overnight stays, which reached 3.8m for solo travellers and 314,000 for groups – increases of 19.9% and 5.7%, respectively. In addition to welcoming additional visitors, the kingdom as well witnessed a additional diverse visitor portfolio throughout 2016.

  • Kuwait sharpens focus on expanding tourism sector

    KUWAIT, 2017/04/15 Investment in Kuwait’s tourism industry is set to increase over the next decade, as the government moves to speed up construction of a new international airport terminal and several major hotel chains work to expand operations in the capital city. Airport construction Last month the government announced it had cut the completion time for a new terminal at Kuwait International Airport (KIA) from six years to four, moving the deadline forward to 2020. Emad Al Jalawi, director general for aviation safety and air transportation affairs, told the press in August the airport handled 11m passengers in 2015 and was expecting this to have risen to 12m in 2016. Designed for 6m passengers annually, KIA’s existing facilities are operating well beyond capacity.

  • loop shows the prospects of the luxury travel industry

    WORLD, 2017/03/05 In a few days. the luxury travel equitable loop opens its doors in Frankfurt am Major. From March 26-29, 2017, Frankfurt will transform into a mecca for the international luxury tourism industry. Germany's only luxury exhibition “loop - Luxury on our Planet” opens the floor for 100 international renowned hoteliers, hotel owners and providers of tourist luxury products to meet with 100 interested buyers from the German-speaking market. “loop brings the right people together at the right place and creates a vibrant community for travel agencies and even small niche operators and providers. The concept of the exhibition is designed to increase sales and compress time resources. In order to reach the same number of personal appointments as at the equitable, suppliers and retailers would normally require six months and would generate enormous travel expenses,” says Astrid Oberhummer, Founder and Organizer of loop.

  • Qatar Airways in Uganda: Five years and counting

    UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, 2016/11/11 Five years ago, Qatar Airways commenced daily passenger flights from Doha to Entebbe, and on to Kigali, using Airbus A320 aircraft on the route. In addition there is the route, served with an Airbus A330F, which instantly operates a dedicated cargo service three times a week. At the time, in 2011, the airline's new hub - Hamad International Airport, was in the early stages of construction. Since again, HIA has been completed and became one of the world's leading hub airports, with over 30 million passengers handled last year by presently. Qatar Airways itself too has grown in leaps and bounds, today flying to some 150 destinations worldwide with a fleet of presently 191 aircraft in service, a number however rising rapidly, as orders worth around $90 billion are pending, and additional planes are delivered each month.

  • Prime Minister of Bahrain, Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa to Acquire 60% of Kempinski Hotels

    BAHRAIN, 2016/07/10 In an exclusive interview with hotelandrest.com, an inside source unveiled details regarding ongoing negotiations between the Prime Minister of Bahrain Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, who currently owns 20% of Kempinski Hotels, and the international hotel group Kempinski Hotels. Present negotiations discuss King of Thailand, Bhumibol Adulyadej who currently holds 80% ownership of the hotelier group to sell a majority of his shares for an estimated price of 1 billion Euros. Following the negotiations, King Bhumibol Adulyadej will continue to hold 20% ownership in Kempinski Hotels.

  • Morocco Bids to Replace Turkey, Egypt as Russian Tourist Destination

    EGYPT, 2016/04/03 The North African kingdom wants to quintuple the number of Russian tourists within three years. 31 March 2016 Additional nations are seeking to exploit Egypt’s and Turkey’s tourism woes by making inroads into the Russian sun-and-sand package tour business. Morocco has joined the race, revealing plans to attract far larger numbers of Russian tourists, Moroccan Minister of Tourism Lahcen Haddad says. “Russia offers us a large opportunity. We want to increase the number of arrivals from Russia by 400 %, from 40,000 per year to 200,000 per year, over three years,” Haddad says as reported by Bloomberg.

  • Meetings industry comes together in Arabia for important event

    UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, 2016/01/08 “The industry in the Gulf region is growing and certainly Dubai 2020 is having an impact on international buyers looking to place business at ibtm arabia. But the focus of this event is about creating a community, providing a one-to-one ratio of buyer to supplier and to mutually match the appointments, which means both buyers and suppliers can select who they want to meet,” said Shinu Pillai, Exhibition Manager of ibtm arabia, commenting on the upcoming event. This year, ibtm arabia 2016 will take place from February 9-11 at The Jumeirah at Etihad Towers on the famous promenade of Abu Dhabi with views of the Arabian Gulf and Cityscape.

  • The best luxe experiences for budget travellers

    WORLD, 2015/11/12 For holidaymakers, there’s nothing more satisfying than finding a solid bargain while travelling on a tight budget.
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