Tag Archives: United Arab Emirates

Windmill Real Estate Lease & Management Services, a part of Uniglobe Holdings Ajman, proudly announces a strategic collaboration with Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, to bring two new hotels to Abu Dhabi under Ramada by Wyndham and Wyndham brands. As the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Abu Dhabi is a vital hub for politics, industry, culture, and commerce, contributing approximately two-thirds of the nation’s $500 billion economy. Wyndham Hotels & Resorts currently operates six properties in Abu Dhabi under brands such as Ramada, TRYP, Howard Johnson, Hawthorn Suites, and La Quinta. The upcoming Ramada by Wyndham hotel will be located in the Al Sharia area, along the main Dubai–Abu Dhabi highway, approximately 22 kilometers from Abu Dhabi International Airport and 50 kilometers from Downtown Abu Dhabi. The property will also be within 2 kilometers of the newly established Hindu Temple and the planned Abu Dhabi Cultural District. The Wyndham hotel will be located in the Ghatoot area, just 8 kilometers from the Dubai border, and around 60 kilometers from both Abu Dhabi International Airport and Downtown Dubai. Wyndham will offer a marina with docking facilities for private yachts and boats. All two hotels will undergo extensive renovations and are slated to open in 2025 and 2026. Mr. Frajus Thampi Cheruvathur of Windmill Real Estate Lease & Management Services stated , “We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, the world’s largest hotel franchise company, for our two upcoming hotels in Abu Dhabi” “In collaboration with Wyndham’s esteemed team, and our talented interior designer, Rahul Somarajan from Arcen Consultants, we are dedicated to elevating our hotels to the highest international standards. We eagerly anticipate welcoming guests under …

The Philippines will lift travel restrictions on passengers coming from 10 countries beginning September 6, Malacañang announced on Saturday.”President Rodrigo Roa Duterte approved the recommendation of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) to lift the current travel restrictions in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia starting Sept. 6, 2021,” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a statement.

The United Arab Emirates has lifted the ban on transit flights from India. Travellers will have to still submit a negative RT-PCR report of a test taken 72 hours prior to departure. Final destination approval would also have to be provided, the authority said, adding that UAE departure airports would arrange separate lounges for transiting passengers. The ban has been lifted for 10 other countries as well, including Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the United Arab Emirates, has unveiled a new safety video, filmed on location at Louvre Abu Dhabi, to give passengers across the globe, a glimpse of what attractions the capital has to offer. Terry Daly, Executive Director Guest Experience Brand & Marketing, Etihad Airways said: “Our safety video needed a refresh including the safety messaging requirements due to COVID. This new video goes beyond its main purpose of educating guests about essential safety information, it also reflects our brand and personality, while leveraging the very best of our beautiful home, Abu Dhabi.” The video is set at Louvre Abu Dhabi, with Etihad’s very own cabin crew demonstrating safety features of the aircraft and other Etihad employees acting as guests. Emirati voice-over artists were used to voice the video in English and Arabic. To further ensure a consistent guest experience, the accompanying music is part of Etihad’s new signature sound collection which is used across the airline for a variety of touch points. The sonic branding is inspired by Abu Dhabi and is an eclectic mix of Emirati and international instrumentation and arrangements, played by musicians from the UAE and around the world. Etihad’s new safety video will be progressively rolled out starting with the airline’s Boeing 787 Dreamliners in April 2021. To protect health and safety, the new video was filmed following strict COVID safety protocols, including all cast and crew having to present a negative PCR test.

A survey conducted by International Air Transport Association (IATA) at the beginning of April reveals that as many as 47% of air passengers surveyed wished to begin travelling within a month or two (by May or June). The survey, conducted across 11 countries (including India), also revealed that at least 4 per cent still continued being sceptical and did not wish to travel for the foreseeable future. Respondents for the survey were from Australia, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, India, Japan, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and the Unites States.

The countries that have seen the most flight bookings to India for the period around Diwali are the United States (32,828), the United Kingdom (22,663) and the United Arab Emirates (20,688) until October 14, 2019, according to an analysis conducted by Travelport. This data is derived from Travelport’s interpretation of relevant MIDT data. It reflects bookings made as of 14 October 2019 through GDS only, a channel primarily used by travel agents, for flights to India (the destination) between 24 and 30 October 2019. Additional bookings will have been made directly with airlines, which may or may not also have a GDS presence. On a volume basis, the Americas saw the most travellers flying into India (49,157; or 32% of total bookings made in the top 10 countries), followed closely by the Middle East (44,831; 29%). Europe (30,354; 19%) and the Asia Pacific (29,093; 19%) rounded out the list.

VFS Global has signed a contract with the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic for providing visa services in 10 countries including India. The other countries to get visa application centres for Slovakia via VFS Global are China, Kazakhstan, Palestine, Belarus, Russia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Egypt. The rollout of 38 visa application centres is expected to be completed by December 2018. Under the new contract, VFS Global will accept both short and long-term visa applications on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic. Chris Dix, Head – Business Development, VFS Global, said, “We are excited about our new partnership with the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic. The countries where we will be operating are markets where VFS Global has worked for several years and whose travellers are familiar with our services and expertise. We are also pleased to have the opportunity to serve our new clients in new locations, and bring applicants in these locations the same benefits and high-quality service that we have been offering our customers worldwide for the last 17 years.”

With over 10 full-inventory – franchised and operated hotels and more than 1100 rooms in 3 emirates – Dubai, Sharjah and Fujairah, OYO Hotels has launched its operations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The property is ready to offer the benefits of its full-stack technology-led hospitality model to hoteliers across the country, with room rates starting 150 dirhams. OYO plans to host guests in over 12,000 rooms, 150 Hotels and all 7 emirates across UAE by 2020. According to data from Dubai Corporation of Tourism & Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism), overall, Dubai hotel room supply is set to reach 132,000 by the end of 2019. The Dubai Tourism also forecasts the hospitality sector to experience sharp, sustained growth over the coming years, with occupied room nights set to reach 35.5 million annually in 2019, representing a 10.2 per cent compound annual growth rate over the next 24 months. Commenting on the developments, Ritesh Agarwal, Founder and CEO, OYO Hotels, said, “With over 170 countries committing to the World Expo 2020, the hospitality sector in the Middle East, and more specifically the UAE, is poised to grow substantially and with our market learnings and expertise, we are ready to tap this opportunity. We’ve been at the forefront of the budget and mid-segment hotels revolution in the markets we operate in, and can bring in our operational expertise and technology edge to the benefit of independent hotel owners. As per a recent report, Dubai alone will host over 20 million visitors and currently records approximately hotel keys per resident at 29.9 per 1,000 people.” Vartika Goel, Country Lead, OYO Hotels, UAE, said, “The country is an attractive market with sizeable internet …

Boosting bilateral engagement with India, the United Arab Emirates will open several new consular centres in India. “Under the present circumstances, if people from Chandigarh, Chennai and Hyderabad want a visa to the UAE, they have to travel to either Mumbai or Delhi or Kerala. So to prevent hardship for the people, we are soon going to open our consular and visa centres in these cities,” said Dr Ahmed Albanna, ambassador of UAE. The UAE will be investing $75 billion of its sovereign wealth fund in the country. The announcement on expanding consular footprint of UAE came even as diplomatic sources confirmed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Abu Dhabi in February 2018. Expansion of consular services of UAE will help the Indians in the country who constitute one of the largest overseas Indian populations. (Source: The Hindu)  

Tourism and air traffic in Qatar is likely to witness a significant dip following four Arab nations—Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates—severing diplomatic ties with the country over allegedly backing terror groups, including Islamic State. The four countries have not only declared to withdraw their diplomatic staff from Qatar, they have also said they plan to cut air and sea traffic to the peninsular country. While it is not clear how that would affect Qatar Airways, one of the region’s major long-haul carriers, but it could be a big jolt to the airline as well as tourism in and out of the country.