Welcoming visitors from around the globe, His Excellency Sultan bin Rashid Al Khater, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, inaugurated the Qatar Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai on October 1st. The opening was attended by General Commissioners from GCC participating countries as well as a number of dignitaries, officials and partners. Following the inauguration, His Excellency toured the Qatar Pavilion which highlights the country’s achievements across various fields, showcases the most pioneering projects that are being developed in accordance with the National Vision 2030, and spotlights Qatar as the upcoming host of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. He also visited the pavilions of participating GCC countries, where each country’s most prominent achievements were showcased. The Qatar Pavilion was designed by internationally-renowned architect, Santiago Calatrava, who represented a modern interpretation of the four elements presented in the Coat of Arms of Qatar. Its architectural composition draws inspiration from the two crossed and curved swords, encompassing a Dhow and island with two palm trees, that are at the core of the national emblem of the state of Qatar. Santiago Calatrava said, “We are honoured to have been chosen for the design of the Qatar Pavilion at Expo 2020. Our relationship with the State of Qatar and its people lies very close to our heart. The Qatar Pavilion’s design draws inspiration from the four elements represented on the Coat of Arms of Qatar and pays tribute to the nation’s cultural heritage.” The coinciding pair of buildings of the Qatar Pavilion consist of two main galleries of exhibition spaces. Gallery 1 serves as an introductory space and invites visitors to explore the past, present, and future of Qatar through visual arts, sound …

Etihad Airways is giving all its guests travelling into or via Abu Dhabi a complimentary ticket to Expo 2020 Dubai that will take place between 1 October, 2021 and 31, March 2022. Visitors can enjoy a visit to Expo and also explore the attractions in Abu Dhabi. The special promotion under the ‘Exponential Abu Dhabi’ campaign will run until 31 March 2022. Expo 2020 is just a 45-minute drive from Abu Dhabi. The city now welcomes fully vaccinated travellers without the need to quarantine.

According to the results of the SAP Concur study, Indian business travellers (99%) want to resume work travel within the next 12 months. Nearly 78% of business professionals surveyed in India were eager to start a journey, and according to the study, the percentage was much higher than the global average. About 84% of Indian business professionals felt that their inability to extend travel would hurt them both professionally and personally. Respondents from India said that most business activities such as new deal sign ups, (47%), customer additions (41%) and contract renewals (43%) would be adversely affected if their organizations did not increase business travel.

According to the sector’s hiring data unveiled by job site Indeed, job postings and clicks were down by 14% in August 2021 as compared to August 2020. Further, when compared to a pre-pandemic August 2019, hiring activity has witnessed a sharp 62% decline, while job seekers’ interest also plummeted as clicks for these jobs saw a de-growth of 36%. While hiring activity in the sector spiked between November 2020 and January 2021, it immediately began to fall from February 2021, as international and domestic travel was severely impacted due to the second wave of the pandemic. Though clicks seemed to have witnessed a gradual recovery after July, they still witnessed a 48% decline between February 2021 and August 2021. Job postings also witnessed a continuous decline, registering 30% degrowth between February 2021 and August 2021. A city-wise analysis found that Delhi NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru led sectoral hiring, while the maximum number of travel and tourism job aspirants emerged from Delhi NCR, Chandigarh, and Kolkata.

The base camp of Siachen glacier, the world’s highest and coldest battlefield, was opened on Monday for domestic tourists on the occasion of World Tourism Day. The step has been taken to boost tourism in Ladakh and give people a window to appreciate the tough work done by army jawans and engineers in extreme weather and inhospitable terrains. Secretary Tourism, Ladakh, Mehboob Ali Khan, flagged-off a cleanliness drive from the tourist reception centre. The department of tourism, Leh, also organised a cleanliness drive along with various stakeholders of the tourism industry such as All Ladakh Tour Operators Association (ALTOA), All Ladakh Hotels and Guest Houses Association (ALHGHA), Ladakh Mountain Guide Association (LMGA) and others.

Switzerland Tourism will conduct a webinar on Thursday, 30th September, 2021 with Interlaken Tourism. Interlaken is an extremely popular and sought after holiday destination, as well as a hub for adventure activities. The webinar will give attendees an insight into the various tourism offerings available in and around Interlaken for Indian guests across the year. To register, contact jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or 9650196532.

Arvind Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism (MOT), announced that the MOT has launched the Responsible Traveller Campaign on the occasion of World Tourism Day. “The campaign will be activated throughout the country, with some part of it already active on social media. It is important that the development through tourism is sustainable, responsible and inclusive. This crisis is an opportunity to rethink about the sector and its contribution to the people and planet,” he said.

Under the banner of AlUla Moments, AlUla’s events calendar published today highlights four festivals including Winter at Tantora which is back by popular demand and celebrates heritage, AlUla Skies, AlUla Arts and AlUla’s Wellness Festival.  The festivals will offer curated experiences of art, culture, music, nature, wellness, equestrian, gastronomy and astronomy. The events will include free and ticketed experiences, with tickets and information available at experiencealula.com. The four distinct festivals will commence on 21 December and run through to 30 March against the backdrop of AlUla’s many timeless wonders. Musical performances will also be back in AlUla with Maraya taking centre stage again as the venue for regional and international acts starting from this October. Winter at Tantora, the very first music and arts festival in the Kingdom returns – now in a six-week format. A stunning Candlelit Symphonic Concert at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Hegra will set the tone for the festival season as the opening event.  Equestrian events will include the eagerly awaited new haute couture horse fashion event, Ikmah Fashion Calvary, the return of the competitive Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Endurance Race and the oh-so-chic AlUla Desert Polo. A new Citrus Festival will celebrate AlUla produce and the Harrat Observation Deck with Back to Black restaurant will offer stunning sunrise and sunset views of AlUla from the top of the Harrat Uwayrid. Archaeology and cultural workshops will be introduced at the heritage sites, there will be live immersion shows at AlUla Old Town and in the oasis. Winter at Tantora will run from 21 December to 12 February. From February 2021, the AlUla Arts festival will bring together exhibitions and encounters created by …

The Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI) has become the first Indian hospitality association to be awarded both the ISO 9001:2015 as well as the ISO 27001:2013 certifications. Sherry Bhatia, President, HRAWI, says, “This accreditation is assurance that we have robust, clearly-defined procedures in place across all areas including handling of documents and data, strong business continuity processes, back-up plan, risk analysis and mitigation (Risk Management), communications security, office security, incident management, compliance and monitoring. To maintain the validity of the certification, HRAWI will perform regular audits to ensure compliance and identify areas of improvement.”

IndiGo recently conducted a familiarisation tour for top 10 agents of Indore to Gwalior to help the trade promote Gwalior as a new tourist destination. Also part of the group was TK Jose, TAFI Chairman (MP Chapter). They stayed at the Neemrana Heritage hotel.