A DDP PUBLICATION Pages: 20Vol. IX No. 11; November 2013

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New airport, more business ................................................................................07Sharjah roadshow gives US ties a fillip ................................................................09Qatar Airways to expand Indian operations ........................................................12

The opening will be car-ried out by Sir StuartRose, a veteran in the

business world, where almost48,000 senior travel industryprofessionals, governmentministers and internationalpress are expected to attend.

Launched last year atWorld Travel Market, theWTM Global Trends Report2012 suitably predicted somesignificant trends in the travel and tourism industry.

Simon Press, ReedTravel Exhibitions, Director,World Travel Market,explained, “The WTM GlobalTrends Report is one of thetravel & tourism industry’smost anticipated reports dueto its high success rate at pre-dicting trends for the sector.Last year’s report was no exception with a numberof the trends coming to fruition.”

WTM Global TrendsReport 2013 will be launchedon November 4 at WTM. Theevent also launches the FirstLuxury Showcase. “‘TheTaste of ILTM at WTM’ recog-nises the growing importance

of the luxury sector. The two-day event will focus onluxury UK buyers, particular-ly those who won’t attendILTM in Cannes fromDecember 2-5, 2013. It willbring the pre-scheduledappointment system andtable-top meeting structurefrom WTM’s sister event,ILTM,” he further informed.

The event provides theright platform for Millennium& Copthorne to communicatetheir brands and services to the travel trade on a global stage.

At WTM 2012,Millennium and Copthorne,Middle East focussed on com-municating the expansion ofits regional footprint acrossthe Middle East & Africa.“This year at WTM 2013, ourprimary goals will be toreview our existing partners’and accounts performance;and ensure a focus on business levels through ourkey target segments, corporate and leisure,throughout 2014,” informedNaeem Darkazally, VicePresident Sales & Marketing,Millennium & Copthorne,Middle East & Africa.

WTM, now in its 34th

year, comes at a time follow-ing the Arab Spring and otherregional events which hadboth positive and negativeimpact. “We believe WTM

2013 provides an excellentplatform to explain the trueposition of the region andarticulate many countries andgovernments with excitinglong term visions and

positive economic outlooks.We also believe it is the rightforum to restore confidencein the region to a global audience that will demon-strate further trading and

tourism opportunities in theMiddle East.”

As Iberotel Miramar AlAqah Beach Resort gears upfor WTM, it looks forward toattracting new customersfrom the UK market.

“WTM is the platformwhere we meet most of oursuppliers and new comers aswell. It is for sure a venuewhere we can grab newopportunities and sign newdeals. Hence, we participatein the event every year. Iwish this year we would beable to attract more clientsfrom the British market asrecently the number oftourists from that region vis-iting our area is not up towhat is expected,” expound-ed Ashraf Helmy, AreaGeneral Manager & BusinessDevelopment Manager,Iberotel Miramar Al AqahBeach Resort.

According to Helmy,WTM is one of the biggestexhibitions that all the bigplayers of the industry arekeen to attend. It has builtthe name and reputation andgained high importance overthe years.

The ‘must-attend’ four-day B2B annual exhibition for the worldwide travel and tourism industry is on again.The most significant global event for the travel industry, World Travel Market 2013 will be held from November4-7, at ExCeL London to network, negotiate and discover the latest industry opinion and trends.

Travel trade gears up for WTMSU S M I TA GH O S H

It is for sure avenue wherethe hotel groupcan grab newopportunitiesand sign new deals

It is the rightforum torestoreconfidence for a globalaudience inthe region

Naeem DarkazallyVice President Sales & Marketing,Millennium & Copthorne, MiddleEast & Africa

WTM GlobalTrends Reporthas a highsuccess rateat predictingtrends for the sector

Simon PressReed Travel ExhibitionsDirectorWorld Travel Market

Ashraf HelmyArea General Manager & BusinessDevelopment Manager, IberotelMiramar Al Aqah Beach Resort

Contd. on page 8

AVIATION2 TRAVTALK N O V E M B E R , 2 0 1 3

As part of Air China’sfuture expansion plan for

the Middle East, the Airlinewill increase its frequencies toDubai, said Wang Ling, SalesManager, Air China, Dubai.

“Air China has clearlyspelt out its future plans forDubai and the region, whileacknowledging competitionfrom Emirates, which fliestwice daily to China andother Middle East airlinestaking the same higher fre-quency route,” he revealed.“The Chinese national carrier offers unbeatableconnectivity within Chinawith its network spreadacross 99 cities.”

The new flight CA941departs at 17:40 hours fromBeijing and arrives at 23:15hours in Dubai on everyTuesday, Wednesday, Fridayand Sunday. New flightCA941 departs at 16:20hours from Beijing andarrives at 21:55 hours inDubai on every Monday.

CA942 departs at 01:15hours from Dubai and arrivesat 13:00 hours in Beijing onevery Monday, Wednesday,Thursday and Saturday. Newflight CA942 departs at 00:05hours from Dubai and arrivesat 11:50 hours in Beijing onevery Tuesday.

He added that the Airlinealso plans to operate its ownflights through the Dubai hubto some major cities in MiddleEast and Africa.

In view of the increasing-ly close relationship betweenChina and the Arab world, anda growing Chinese communityin the UAE, Air China will provide air transport facility toserve the travelling public.Hence, the future of Air Chinain this region is very promising.

Air China’s perform-ance on various indicatorsthis past period has beengood. Passenger load factor in2013 on its CA942 flightsfrom Dubai to Beijing standsat an impressive 92 per cent

for business and economy.Similarly, revenue for 2013went up by 13 per cent asagainst 2012 figures.

“As part of our marketingstrategy, we have been train-ing travel agents with productpresentation,” informed Ling.

“In March 2014, theAirline will again after 2013have an annual award ceremo-ny. FAM trips are on the anvilby way of promoting holidaytraffic from the UAE to China,”he added.

Air China LondonBranch will be participatingin the forthcoming WTM 13in London.

Besides, Air China alsotakes part in GIBTM as they are interested in MICE sectors.

Taking into considera-tion Dubai’s unique strategicposition and huge marketvalue, Air China is workingout long-term plans to mapthe Emirate as a strategic hubin the Middle East.

With a fifth weekly, non-stop flight between Dubai and Beijing that tookoff on October 28, 2013, Air China is now planning for an even greaterpresence in Dubai with daily flights in 2014.

Increase in Dubai-Beijing flights

SU S M I TA GH O S H

Air China hasclearly spelt out its futureplans for Dubai and theregion, whileacknowledgingcompetitionfrom Emirates

Wang Ling Sales Manager Air China Dubai branch

As part of a 10-year con-tract signed on

September 30, 2012, ARINCwas to implement a projectinvolving the design, supplyand installation of ARINC’score suite of airport passen-ger processing solutions, aswell as advanced airportoperational systems. The sys-tems went live on October 1.

These included a state-of-the-art vMUSE CommonUse Passenger ProcessingSolution (CUPPS), AirVueFlight Information DisplaySystem (FIDS) and ARINC’slatest generation AirportOperational Database (AODB)AirDB 7 system.

Speaking on the occa-sion, Sheikh Salem BinSultan Al Qassimi, Chairman,Ras Al Khaimah InternationalAirport, Department of Civil

ARINC Incorporated has completedthe implementation of operationalsystems at the airport, by utilisingvirtualisation technology.

The future is here at RAK airport

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ARINC“platform willenable RAKairport to growits passenger processingcapability

Sheikh Salem Bin Sultan AlQassimi Chairman, Ras Al Khaimah InternationalAirport, Department of Civil Aviation

Contd. on page 5

GUEST COLUMN

EDITORIAL

Green issues to betackled at WTM

World Travel Market (WTM) 2013 isfinally upon us. The opening of

this year’s Market at the new-look WTMCaptains of Industry Opening Launchwill be carried out by Sir Stuart Rose,the current chairman of online deliverycompany Ocado.

In times when there is political,social and financial crisis, the industry’stop leaders in attendance would belooking for inspiration and practicaladvice on how to run their businesses.

A high-level headline panel, ‘TheRound Table on Travel & Tourism andCarbon’, is scheduled to take up fordiscussion of carbon emissions in thetravel industry. South African Ministerof Tourism and former Minister ofEnvironment Marthinus van Schalkwykand Jumeirah President and Group CEOGerald Lawless would be part of theRound Table, to be chaired by StephenSackur, veteran BBC presenter.

It’s an industry that alreadycontributes about 5 per cent of globalCO2 emissions, with air transport aloneaccounting for 40 per cent of the sector'semissions. It will be interesting to knowif the travel industry would responsiblycommit itself in deed to a green pathgoing forward.

More so encouraging to note vanSchalkwyk’s comments made earlier thisyear, when he said the consequences ofdoing nothing would be devastatingindeed, particularly because tourism isclosely linked to the climate andenvironment itself.

WTM13 means business, and isexpected to generate more than 2 billionpounds of new business for the industry.Also, despite the economic slowdown,another ATM first, ‘A Taste of ILTM atWTM’ - a dedicated luxury showcasedoes reflect a sentiment of optimismwithin the industry.

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Publisher : SanJeet Director : Sumeera Bahl Editor : Deepa Sethi Assistant Editor (ME) : Susmita Ghosh Desk Editor : Archana Sharma Sub Editor : Ramya J.S. D’Rozario Design : Ruchi Sinha / NN MisraBusiness Development Manager : Crisna De Guzman Manager Advertising : Geetika Pathak Circulation Manager : Ashok Rana Manager Production : Anil Kharbanda

Before we came intobeing, all the hotels in

Ajman were licensed by themunicipality. They wereassessed based on buildingrules, rather than on stan-dards like guest amenities,room sizes, disabled access,furniture quality and extrassuch as health clubs.

We introduced a ratingssystem based on the one usedin Abu Dhabi since 2009. ByJuly 2013, the Emirate’shotels, which were givenbetween six and 12 monthsto meet the new standards,were all rated. So far, hotelsin the Emirate have beenmaking sure they meet allcriteria. The Emirate’s hotelratings system has inducteda great deal of transparencyin the market. We have man-aged to build the first-of-its-kind statistical hub of thetourism industry in Ajman,something which was miss-ing for the past few years.

With the ratings inplace, the added transparen-cy between us and the enduser has helped the hotels.For example, RamadaAjman’s occupancy beforethe ratings was 65-70 percent, but now it is fullybooked - 100 per cent.

The regular inspectionsnow find the hotels meetingthe standard 24x7. But again,we want more people toknow more customers.Travellers come to Ajmanmostly from Russia,Germany, GCC besides UAEnationals. It would be noexaggeration to say that themost important project wehave accomplished of late isthe ratings system.

There were no short-cutsfor us though. For the lastseven months or so, we had to

work hard on developing ourHuman Resource team andinvested heavily on it. We tookthe initiative to get the teamto understand what tourismoverall is and what the conceptof hospitality is, besidesimparting in-depth training onhow to manage events.

To start with the teamdevelopment, we managed tohire very qualified people in

sectors like director of classi-fication and liaisoning, work-ing in this industry in theUAE for the last 12 years,which will add value to theteam. We have also certifiedHR and management teamwho went to build the rest ofthe team.

The project we are cur-rently planning will be imple-mented in the first half of2014 - the Ajman TourismInvestment Map, comprising5 sectors:

1. Hospitality: Today weknow the rules and regula-tions of having our establish-ments here. But how manymore 5-star or 4-star or 3-star properties do we need.We will launch a study onwhat kind of hospitalitywould we need in 5 years’time. The investment mapwill tell us how many visitorswould be interested in whicharea? How many hotels? Aswe are a family destination,we need to diversify our busi-ness structure; importantly,we need investors.

2. Food and Beverages:We don’t have quality restau-rants. The investors needconsultancy, which we willprovide.

3. Transportation: Weare not competing with theother emirates but comple-menting them. Whatever weare missing in Dubai andSharjah, we will just comple-ment it.

4. Entertainment: Asit’s a leisure destination, weare dedicating some spotsbefore making them availablefor the investors to buildleisure and entertainmentoutside the hotel and hotel apartments.

5. Security: More prob-lems with more people.However, we plan to make it among the most secureddestinations.

In 2014, we will workeven more closely with thetravel agents and the hotels.Also, we will increase ourparticipation at events, by atleast 40 per cent. Last yearwe participated in ITB, ATMand Riyadh. This year wehave ATM, ITB, Singapore,Russia and WTM, and have planned to add two destinations every year.

Looking at the future,we have an agreement withAir Arabia which will contin-ue to promote Ajman as adestination starting with thehotels. In December 2013,the second 5-star hotel on the

beach will come up. The totalnumber of rooms we have is245, going up from 5 to 6 percent. The first quarter of2014 will see a 3-star and a5-star hotel (Fairmont), whichwill also open on the beach.Two more resorts will be coming up by the end of 2016.

In 2014, we will alsosee completion of the ratingsystem. We will have hostelratings in the first quarter of2014, then resort, touristicrestaurants, touristic trans-portation and the classifica-tion of the travel agents.

The other major projectin the pipeline includes thefirst and only-one-of-its-kinde-gateway. The project isdivided into four sections: Anofficial website, Ajman e-cal-endar showing all events onthe website, e-ratings systemand liaisoning, all of whichwill go online.

Building on our infra-structure, we are puttingrules and regulations inplace, which will give ourinvestors and end-users theright to choose their desireddestination. All this will beaccomplished in 2014.

Faisal Al Nuaimi General Manager

Ajman TourismDevelopment Department

Set up in 2012 by the Emirate’s government, Ajman Tourism DevelopmentDepartment (ATDD) got cracking on a ratings system. We, at ATDD, wouldlike to bring in transparency by giving tourists a clear idea of what itshotels and other facilities have on offer.

Charting tourism growth in Ajman

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Ramada Ajman’s occupancy beforethe ratings was 65-70 per cent, butnow it is fully booked - 100 per cent

Faisal Al NuaimiGeneral Manager, Ajman Tourism Development Department

Air Arabia increased thefrequency of flights fromNagpur to the UAE to fourtimes a week from October29. “This move highlights

the growing importance ofNagpur as an integral marketfor Air Arabia’s operations”,said Adel Ali, Group CEO,Air Arabia. Being the first

international airline to fly toNagpur, they aim to maintaina steady expansion. Theother destinations served in India are Bengaluru,

Ahmedabad, Chennai,Jaipur, Kochi, Coimbatore,Goa, Delhi, MumbaiThiruvanathapuram,Hyderabad and Kozhikode.

Air Arabia increases flights to Nagpur

AVIATION N O V E M B E R , 2 0 1 3 TRAVTALK 5

Combining spectacularbirds-eye views of Arabia

from high above withthrilling water takeoffs andlandings, an open deck bustour affording magnificentsights of Sharjah, enabletourists the unique heritageof Sharjah, added toSeawings’ network with thelaunch of Heritage Arabia.

Announcing the launch,Dr Nigel Rea, Chief

Operating Officer, Seawingsinformed, “The aim of theseaplane tours was to givepassengers a unique perspec-tive on the Arab culture andheritage displayed by thecities of the UAE.”

In addition to the spectacular tours of the UAE,Seawings extends its servicesto the meetings, incentives,conferences, and exhibitions(MICE), corporate and events market with flightscustomised as per clientrequirements.

Seawings has intro-duced the customised charterservice from the bustling Al

Majaz Waterfront to 25 destinations within the UAE,including all major airports,Al Ruwais, Sir Baniyas Islandand many more.

“The unique experienceof flying in a seaplane combined with the conven-ience and flexibility offeredby the Seawings’ networkmade their charter a covetedinclusion to any group orMICE itinerary,” Rea added.

Each Seawings tourincludes flying several hun-dred feet above ground in aCessna 208 amphibian air-craft having a comfortableair-conditioned cabin withluxury leather seats, eachwith their own large viewingwindow. The Heritage Arabiasightseeing package alongwith the seaplane charterservice comprises a 30-minute tour departing fromDubai Creek Golf and YachtClub and culminating at AlMajaz Waterfront.

Promoting the cultural aspect of Arabia, sightseeing tours of Sharjah werelaunched in late September, called Heritage Arabia. In association withthe Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq), the aerialexcursions were by Seawings, UAE’s luxury seaplane operator.

Aerial trips add to Sharjah’s appeal

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Dr Nigel Rea Chief Operating OfficerSeawings

The seaplanetours givepassengers auniqueperspective onthe Arab culture

Aviation expressed his confidence that the ARINCsystems would make the airport hi-tech, efficient and integrated.

“The ARINC platformwill enable RAK Airport to grow its passenger processing capability andintroduce additional leadingedge technologies likeARINC’s remote check-in and bag drop solutions,” he said.

The installation ofvMuse/CUPPS, L-DCS, AirVue(FIDS), AirDB (AODB),InfoHub and Multi-Channelat the airport will equip theairport with future intelli-gence that will change theway in which people use ittoday. When operational inthe next few months, this willbe the first off-site hotelcheck-in and bag drop in the region.

The vMUSE platformgives RAK Airport the ability to support all current and future airline applicationswhich comply to IATA standards.

AirVue FIDS allows RAKAirport to provide real-timeflight information to passengers blended with richmultimedia content such aspromotional videos and liveTV streaming.

The AirDB 7 implemen-tation in RAK is the first global implementation ofARINC’s next generationAODB which gives RAKAirport the ability to plan andtrack operational data andenhance automation of datafeeds to key operationalteams across the airport.

With these technolo-gies, RAK Airport will attainits goal of being a fully auto-mated, integrated airport.All of these systems, andmore, are hosted in a fullyvirtual environment whichprovides RAK Airport withthe ability to easily expandin the future without the need to invest in more hardware.

The ARINC and RAKAirport teams worked seamlessly together to suc-cessfully deliver the systems,Al Qassimi concluded.

RAK airport adoptshi-tech systemsContd. from page 2

FAMILY ALBUM6 TRAVTALK N O V E M B E R , 2 0 1 3

Experience the flavour of Hong KongAl Rais Holidays in collaboration with the Hong Kong Tourism Board had organised a travel event, ‘Al Rais Explore and Experience Consumer Travel Event’to promote Asia’s World City, Hong Kong at Mirdif City Centre, Dubai from October 3-5. The promotional event featured Hong Kong’s key attractions - OceanPark, Hong Kong Disneyland, Ngong Ping 360, Big Bus Tours and Madame Tussauds. The event was specially organised to attract tourists to visit the destinationin Eid Al Adha in October and the upcoming winter school break holidays, including Christmas and New Year celebrations.

With the world’s biggesttravel trade exhibition

(WTM) round the corner,Pullman Dubai Deira CityCentre, part of Accor’supscale hotel brand, is gear-ing up for participation at thepremier London event.

“With UK being animportant market, the exhi-bition is expected to put theluxury hotel at par with itscounterparts after beingaccorded the 5-star status byDTCM (Dubai Department ofTourism and CommerceMarketing),” stated LaurentChaudet, General Manager,Pullman Dubai Deira CityCentre Hotel.

The hotel has been ren-ovated to meet the expecta-tions of upscale guests, whileoffering them a five-star expe-rience. The renovation wascompleted in October and a909 sq m of meeting spacewas opened to reposition thehotel as a leading business and

leisure centre in Deira.Pullman is also high on environmental issues. To showsolidarity for the cause, thehotel has also implementedAccor’s environmental policy(Planet 21) in the rooms, F&B and offices.

“Pullman has seen somegood business this year.

With the support of travelagents who brought in 30 percent of the businessin 2013, the luxuryhotel has seen aconsiderableincrease in revenuecompared to 2012.

Now, with a swankyproduct in hand, Pullmanplans to organise familiarisa-tion trips and orientation programmes for local andoverseas partners to bring inmore business,” he added.

The Pullman DubaiDeira City Centre hotel hasemerged as a property gearedtowards staging innovativemeetings, events and confer-ences following an overhaulof its facilities. The hotel’srefurbishment is a step fur-ther in developing the prod-uct and to implement theglobal brand promise. It iscontinuing to expand in theworld’s main tourist hubs,while intending to put thespotlight on a new approachto top-end hospitality.

Recently upgraded to 5-star category, Pullmann DubaiDeira City Centre is all set to participate in WTM 2013,while targetting UK, an important source market.

Focussing on the UK market

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Laurent ChaudetGeneral Manager, Pullman Dubai DeiraCity Centre Hotel

After a successful partici-pation at Arab Travel

Market (ATM) and at fairs inRussia and Madrid, WTM isexpected to be the busiest forDubai and Oman, both,because of the stability theyoffer, and look forward to witness good times.

“Dubai’s second inter-national airport, which is dueto open to passengers onOctober 27, ushers in ‘a newera’,” asserted Tarek Lotfy,General Manager, GoldenTulip Al Barsha, Dubai.“There will be a new windowof business in this part ofDubai,” he stresses, pointingout to the past trends whentourists and the businessmove in whenever a new airport opens up newareas of a destination.

“Additional 20 to 30 percent business can be expect-ed to accrue as a result of theairport opening,” he added.

Talking of 2013, he saidthe year had been good thusfar, with an increase of almost25 to 30 per cent business, thereason being new airlines tar-getting Dubai.

There are direct flightsfrom European cities, whichwas not the case before.Another factor that will posi-tively impact Dubai’s hospital-ity sector is new projects com-ing to the Emirate as a resultof the present unrest in theMiddle East – a trend that willcontinue for a couple of yearsat least, Lotfy believes.

Hotels which are aknown brand, offer qualityservices, maintain their rela-tionship with clients andretain repeat customers, willflourish to the detriment oflocal brands who cannot mar-ket themselves globally.

Golden Tulip Al Barsha,Dubai did good business dur-ing the summer, mainlythrough traffic from KSA,

The commissioning of Dubai’s new Jebel Ali Airport hasseen business boom for Golden Tulip Al Barsha withairlines that will be flying in for the first time.

New airport, more business

SU S M I TA GH O S H

Additional 20 to 30 per centbusiness can beexpected toaccrue as aresult of theopening ofDubai’s newJebel Ali Airport

Tarek Lotfy General Manager Golden Tulip Al Barsha, Dubai

Contd. on page 9

HOTELS N O V E M B E R , 2 0 1 3 TRAVTALK 7

COVER STORY8 TRAVTALK N O V E M B E R , 2 0 1 3

Emaar Hospitality Groupwill once again showcase itsnumerous properties at theannual World Travel Market2013 under the DubaiDepartment of Tourism &Commerce Marketing’s(DTCM) stand. The Group par-ticipates in WTM every year.

“With the city’s hospi-tality industry recordingrobust growth, platforms likeWorld Travel Market enablebrands like The AddressHotels + Resorts and VidaHotels and Resorts, to reachout to a discerning clientele.Today, visitors are looking foran all-encompassing hotelexperience that provides awholesome culinary journey,superb options for relaxationand world-class amenities toconduct business. These fac-tors are the core of TheAddress Hotels + Resorts.

We continue to build on ourofferings to meet the fullspectrum of hospitalityneeds,” elucidated SeemaPande, Group Director ofSales & Marketing, TheAddress Hotels + Resorts.

“WTM serves as theultimate platform thatenables hospitality brands toshowcase their differences,both among visitors as wellas within the industry, allow-ing delegates to gain a deeperinsight into the functioningof multi-property brands,”she further stated.

Aiming to consolidateits growing reputation in thekey European markets, theGrand Millennium Dubai willjoin the Dubai team on theDepartment of Tourism &Commerce Marketing desti-nation stand at WTM 2013.

According to PeterMansourian, GeneralManager, Grand MillenniumDubai, the event is a vitalplatform to showcase thefacilities of the hotel. “Whilethere have been high expec-tations from developing mar-kets like South America,China and Russia in recent

years, it is interesting to notethat the UK remains one ofthe most important feedermarkets to the hospitalitybusiness in Dubai.”

Golden Sands HotelApartments will use WTM toget feedback from existingpartners on trends in theregion, discuss their promo-

tions during the season andcement relationships withWTM contacts, travel pro-fessionals and the traveltrade media from more than

187 countries expected this year.

Nives Deininger,Director of Sales, GoldenSands Hotel Apartmentsasserted, “During WTM, wewill re-emphasise the attraction of Golden SandsHotel Apartments as a budgethotel apartments catering toboth business and leisure trav-ellers, whether group or indi-vidual. We will also meet ourexisting partners to strengthenthe relations and recognisetheir loyal support by extend-ing special services, offeringpreferred rates, especially nowthat new hotel apartments areopening in locations like DubaiMarina and Al Barsha. Wewant to maintain our share ofthe UK market and furtherincrease it by attracting new partners.”

Deininger added, “Wehave already seen good volume of demand for thewinter season and have even increased allocationswith some key partners.Maintaining strong relation-ships with major players inthe tourism sector is the keyto long-term success.”

WTM: A world of opportunity for allContd. from page 1

Launched last year, theWTM Global TrendsReport suitably predictedsignificant trends in thetravel & tourism industry

Industry Trends

Maintainingstrongrelationshipswith majorplayers intourism is thekey to long-termsuccess

UK remainsone of the most importantfeeder marketsfor hospitalitybusiness in Dubai

Peter MansourianGeneral ManagerGrand Millennium Dubai

WTM serves asthe ultimateplatform thatenableshospitalitybrands toshowcase their USPs

Seema PandeGroup Director of Sales & Marketing,The Address Hotels + Resorts

Nives DeiningerDirector of SalesGolden Sands Hotel Apartments

NTO N O V E M B E R , 2 0 1 3 TRAVTALK 9

Organised by the SharjahInvestment and

Development Authority(Shurooq), under the slogan'Sharjah - PromisingOpportunities, GlobalHorizons,' the SharjahRoadshow in the USA, ranfrom September 30 to October4, started with a busyWashington DC schedule.

The first day's activitiesincluded a video screeningabout Sharjah and the mostimportant investment offer-ings in the Emirate. SheikhSultan bin Ahmed AlQassimi, Chairman, SharjahMedia Centre headed theSharjah delegation.

Representatives from theSharjah Commerce andTourism DevelopmentAuthority (SCTDA), SharjahMuseums Department (SMD),Shurooq and the USA RegionalTrade Centre (USARTC) tookpart in a meeting. It was withrepresentatives of Sister Cities

International (SCI), includingPresident and CEO Mary Kaneand other senior officials.

Led by Mohammed AliAl Noman, Chairman,SCTDA, the Sharjah delega-tion also included Khalid AlMidfa, Director General,SCTDA and Manal Ataya,Director General, SMD. Themeeting explored ways toactivate joint work with theSCI and improve cooperationto serve their common goals.

Hana Al Suwaidi,Director General, Environmentand Protected Areas Authority(EPAA), and delegates fromthe authority met withMarshall Jones, SeniorConservation Advisor at theSmithsonian Conservatory andBiology Institute to discussways of joint cooperation andthe exchange of expertise indeveloping protected areas.

Sharjah Investment andDevelopment Authority

(Shurooq) and SharjahChamber of Commerce andIndustry (SCCI) have signedfour separate MoU with US-based authorities. It aimedstrengthening commercialties, developing reciprocalcooperation and expandingstrategic partnerships in termsof trade exchange betweenSharjah and the USA.

Commenting on theRoadshow, Sheikh Sultan binAhmed Al Qasimi said,

"It has seen a series of fruitful and constructivemeetings with our Americancounterparts during whichSharjah's uniqueofferings andopportunities invarious sectorswere highlighted.”

The Sharjah delegatesdelivered presentationsdetailing the Emirate's various sectors of invest-ment, development and business opportunities, manyincentives and advantages itaffords foreign investors, andits investor-friendly climateand legislature.

The meeting also provided an invaluableopportunity for Sharjah dele-gates to network with theirAmerican counterparts.

To strengthen co-operation in various spheres, including tourism, the biggest foray of Sharjahinto the US is the Sharjah Roadshow. It saw more than 20 corporations and government bodiestaking part in a five-day tour of Washington DC and New York City.

Sharjah roadshow gives US ties a fillip

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Members of the Sharjah delegation at the roadshow in the US. The delegation included Mohammed Ali Al Noman,Chairman, SCTDA, Khalid Al Midfa, Director General, SCTDA and Manal Ataya, Director General, SMD.

Europe, particularly from theUK. Besides, the hotel did significantly well in theRussian and in the EastEuropean markets.

With 49 hotels in theMiddle East, including 11 inDubai, the group is addingtwo more in the Emirate inthe first quarter of 2014.

There is one hotel onthe anvil in Bahrain andanother in Muscat to thealready five in Oman. Whiletwo hotels were added inAlgeria, one hotel was addedto the brand in KSA in 2013.And 2014 may see announce-ments of other hotels openingup as well.

The Group works intandem with the travelagents in roadshows. Also,there is close co-operationwith tour operators fromwhom more than 60 per centof business is expected during winter.

Committed to sustain-ability and the environment,the Group is participating ingreen events, among which itis the major sponsor for theGreen Hotels event in Dubaicoming November.

Growth plansfor 2014Contd. from page 7

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The campaign is anendeavour of India

Tourism for the travellers tomake the Indian Himalayas a365-day destination. Thisunique product is yet to bepromoted in the national andinternational markets.

According to the well-known American moun-taineer Conrad Anker, "Indiamay not have the highestpeaks in the Himalayanrange, but it has the most dif-ficult ones."

“India Tourism hopesthat this new campaign willbring the Indian Himalayas onthe world tourism map,”

expressed Vikas Rustagi,Regional Director (West Asia& Africa), India Tourism,Dubai. “An incredible tourismproduct, the Indian Himalayas,can attract both domestic andinternational tourists, interest-ed in soft and hard adventures,the flora and fauna of The Himalayas and theHimalayan culture.”

The Indian Himalayasextends over Jammu andKashmir, Himachal Pradesh,Uttar Pradesh, Sikkim andArunachal Pradesh. It’s aninitiative to spread awareness

that 73 per cent of theHimalayan range lies in India.

Efforts would be madeto brand, promote and market the Indian Himalayasand to develop the Himalayasas a preferred tourist destination amongst both the domestic and the foreign travellers.

“The AdventureTour OperatorsAssociation of India (ATOAI) iscollaborating withIndia Tourism inthis campaign,

and they have designedspecial adventure pro-grammes running over thenext 777 days started sinceSeptember 27, 2013,”informed Rustagi.The cam-paign will attract more inter-national travellers to Indiaduring the lean summermonths making India a year-round destination.

Recently launched, ‘777 days of the Indian Himalayas’campaign, by the Government of India, is designed toattract both the national and international travellers.

Boosting Himalayan tourism

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Vikas RustagiRegional Director (West Asia & Africa)India Tourism, Dubai

Colm McLoughlin honoured At the 25th Annual American Celtic Ball, held in the Pierre Hotel, New York on October 9th, ColmMcLoughlin, the Executive Vice Chairman of Dubai Duty Free, was presented with the Sir MichaelSmurfit Business Achievement Award. He was recognised for his dynamic leadership at the helm ofDubai Duty Free for the past 30 years, during which the business grew from an annual turnover ofUS$20 million to an expected US$1.8 billion this year.

The Carlson Rezidor HotelGroup adds two hotels totheir growing portfolio inSaudi Arabia. The mid-mar-ket Park Inn by RadissonRiyadh (170 rooms) is sched-uled to open in Q1 2016; andthe upper upscale RadissonBlu Hotel, Jeddah Al

Salamah (142 rooms) willwelcome the first guests inQ2 2015. The Park Inn byRadisson Riyadh has anexcellent location on Al AhsaStreet, in the heart ofRiyadh’s established busi-ness district. It is located just2.5 km away from the exist-

ing Radisson Blu Hotel,Riyadh creating profitablesynergies. The new RadissonBlu Hotel, Jeddah AlSalamah is located in the AlSalamah district just 9kmfrom the city’s expandingKing Abdulaziz InternationalAirport to the north.

Saudi Arabia to get 2 new hotels

Tourists can enjoyexpeditions in the IndianHimalayas in all seasons,with adventure sports likewhite water rafting,mountain trekking andskiing

All-Year Destination

In relatively brief time span,Qatar Airways has quickly

established a reputation forinnovation, quality and excel-lence in every aspect. Thisnational carrier of the Stateof Qatar has become the onlymajor airline from the Gulf to

date to join any of the globalairline alliances.

Besides being named asthe Best Airline in the MiddleEast for the seventh year in arow, the Premium Terminalat Doha International Airportwas named as Best PremiumService Airport for the thirdconsecutive year in 2013.

With the recent integra-tion of Malaysia Airlines intoOneworld in February 2013and the future membershipof Sri Lankan by early nextyear, Oneworld is rapidlyleaving its print in the entireAsia/Pacific region.

Qatar Airways currentlyholds 4.4 per cent of theIndian market with bilateraltraffic rights of 24,000 seatsevery week. It awaits wordfrom MoCA on a request toincrease that number to72,000. The Airline has seenrapid growth in just 16 yearsof operation, currently oper-ating a modern fleet of 127

aircraft to 128 key businessand leisure destinationsacross Europe, Middle East,Africa, Asia-Pacific, NorthAmerica and South America.

“As a global brand,Qatar Airways is known forsetting new industry benchmarks and productinnovations to furtherenhance the travel experi-ence for our customers. Withan expanding network cover-ing six continents, India isone of our key networks,” dis-cussed Henry Moses,Country Manager, India,Qatar Airways highlightingIndia with regard to QatarAirways’ growing potential ofIndia as an aviation market.In addition, its strategies totap the growth, importanceof travel agents as distribu-tion channel and the Airlines’plan for this market in coming years.

“In this highly compet-itive environment, it gives a

great sense of pride to havewitnessed the unprecedentedexpansion of the Airline -consecutive growth from amodest regional carrier to aworld leader in the airlineindustry. By 2015, our fleetsize will rise to more than170 aircraft covering a globalnetwork of destinations thatwill also increase to over170,” he further informed.

The entry into theworld’s leading quality air-line alliance will be a gamechanger for meeting thegrowing air travel demand. It will enable passengers toenjoy a truly global networkas some of the best namesin the industry are a part ofthe alliance. In addition, itgives a competitive edgethat comes from being partof this global alliance, with higher frequency andbetter connections whichoffer travel conveniencethrough alliance hubsaround the world.

Qatar Airways onOctober 2, further expandedits operations in Saudi Arabia with the launch ofscheduled flights to Ta'if - theAirline’s sixth destination inthe Kingdom.

Discussing the impor-tance of India as a market forQatar Airways, Moses confid-ed, “India is one of the veryimportant regions in QatarAirways’ global network. TheAirline is expanding strategi-cally and India is a vital partof our growth and expansionplans. Since 2004, whenQatar Airways only operatedto four cities in India, theAirline has graduallyincreased capacity and desti-nations across the country,the number of destinationshave increased to 12 citieswith 95 flights per weekwhich connect various desti-nations in Europe, MiddleEast, North and SouthAmerica via Doha.”

Qatar Airways joined the global Oneworld Alliance officially on October 30, 2013. It completed its Oneworldimplementation programme in just one year, whereas other carriers take around 18 months on an average afterreceiving an invitation to join the airline alliance, making its induction one of the fastest in Oneworld’s history.

Qatar Airways to expand Indian operations

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The Airline has seen rapidgrowth in just 16 years ofoperation, currentlyoperating a modern fleet of127 aircraft to 128 keybusiness and leisuredestinations across Europe,Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific, North America andSouth America. The Airlinehas an extensive reach inIndia with 95 flights everyweek from 12 cities whichfurther connect variousdestinations in Europe,Middle East, North andSouth America via Doha.

Did You KnowHenry Moses Country ManagerIndia, Qatar Airways

By 2015, our fleetsize will rise tomore than 170aircraft coveringa global networkof destinationsthat will also beover 170

Contd. on page 14

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The company has beenappointed a preferred

operator for Disney CruiseLine in the GCC region. AlTayer Travel Agency is,therefore, responsible forexpanding the awareness ofDisney Cruise Line besidesDisneyland Paris. It is theconvenience and flexibility oftheir products, that makesthem stand out.

“We will launchDisney Cruiselinefor the next seasona little earlier as wehave noticed that a certain set ofpeople book earlyfor the cruise,”

informed ManuMehrotra, General Manager,Al Tayer Travel Agency.

Stating that the Disneycruiseline was being brought

again to the Mediterranean,he revealed that they wouldbe sailing from Barcelona andVenice. “They were enhanc-ing the itineraries andincreasing the number of sail-ings, a reason behind theirsuccess story,” he added.

Al Tayer Travel Agencyhad expanded their leisureteam. In addition to theiroffices on Sheikh Zayed Road,Media City, Deira, theyopened another office in AbuDhabi a year ago. The officeis fully operational, growing

and expanding, much liketheir growth pattern whichshowed a 35 per centincrease in 2013 as comparedto 2012. Among the productson offer are rail travel optionsfrom other geographicalareas, including AMTRAK inAmerica and Eurail.

The underlying factorstheir tour packages offer areconvenience and flexibility totheir customers. One can tai-lor-make a package and theoptions are limitless. One canenjoy a 14-day tour to France,Italy and Switzerland,England, or choose to travelto only a few select destina-tions.

“Other travel agents buyfrom us. They have the flexi-bility to choose the airlines, thedifferent starred hotels to stayat… everything is possible. It’sa combination of tailor-madepackages, the best part beingthe customer has to planwhere he/she wants to go,” he concluded.

From international travel products to holidays acrossEurope, and now their latest offering - Disney CruiseLines - Al Tayer Travel Agency has a variety on offer.

Disney Cruise Line in GCC

SU S M I TA GH O S H

Manu Mehrotra General ManagerAl Tayer Travel Agency

“We have grown fromstrength to strength

over the past four years withour turnover remarkably ris-ing over 35 per cent. Thetime was ripe for an associa-tion with ATPI as this willallow us to experience furthersuccess and expand our busi-ness in the UAE and through-out the Gulf region,” saidWilliam Horsley, GeneralManager, Al-Futtaim Travel.

He added, “This part-nership will supplement Al-Futtaim Travel and its UAEcustomer base with a world-wide office network, thusproviding us with seamlesstravel management servicesacross many countries withATPI’s advanced technologyand unrivalled travel man-agement expertise.”

According to ATPIGroup, it’s a very importantpartnership. Al-Futtaim Traveland the ATPI Group share

many of the same values andthere is a strong culturalalliance between the organi-sations. The appointment ofthis latest network partner ispart of the on-going globalexpansion addressing the sector focussing their clientslike energy, shipping andfinancial sectors.

It’s a joint enterprisebetween the ATPI Group,which has over 60 officesworldwide and successfuloperations in corporate travel, shipping and energytravel, corporate event management and travel tech-nology and Al-Futtaim Travel,a leading corporate and retailtravel management compa-nies in the UAE.

To expand its footprint regionally, Al-Futtaim Travelrecently signed a partnership agreement with ATPIGroup, a leading travel management company.

Al-Futtaim ties up with ATPI

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The time was ripe for anassociationwith ATPI asthis will allowthe agency toexpand business in the UAE

William Horsley General ManagerAl-Futtaim Travel

Al-Futtaim Travel and theATPI Group share many ofthe same values and thereis a strong cultural alliancebetween the organisations

Stronger Bond

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Thai Fest tantalises tastebuds in UAEThe Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) recently held ‘The Amazing Tastes of Thailand Fest 2013’ at 13-participating restaurants across the UAE. Throughoutthe week-long Thai Food Festival, UAE residents and visitors had the opportunity to win dining vouchers from all participating restaurants. The event wasattended by local UAE celebrities and personalities to showcase their culinary expertise together with acclaimed Thai chefs in Dubai.

The Indian network cov-ers daily flights to Mumbai,Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Goa,Hyderabad, Kozhikode,Tiruvananthapuram, Kolkata,Chennai, Bengaluru, with 11-flights-a-week to Kochi anddouble daily to the capital,New Delhi.

Qatar Airways hasrecently increased the capac-ity of flights from Kochi. TheAirbus-330 will be opera-tional on all 11 frequencies toand from Kochi connecting tomore than 125 destinationsaround the world via its hubin Doha. Moving forward, theAirline plans to seek morecapacity in India, increasefrequency on existing routesand recruit more people from India.

“We have exhausted allthe traffic routes allotted bythe Government of India. We

hope Indian Civil Aviationauthorities will give addition-al access to Gulf carriers inIndia and if that happens, wewould like to operate moreflights to cater to thedemands of global traffic,” hefurther stated.

The Indian aviation sec-tor has evolved significantlyin the last decade with the airtraffic growing over threetimes in the past decade. Fortravellers from India, whichis one of our most importantmarkets, there is significanttraffic in various categories,especially in the VFR traffic(Visiting Friends andRelatives), followed by busi-ness and leisure.

The Airline deals withhigh ATF prices and heavilytaxed Indian aviation sector.At the moment, every dollarincrease in oil price hits theoperational performance of

Qatar Airways. However, tocounter this it keeps invest-ing in new-generation aircraft like the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

Newer aircraft will alsohelp in reducing carbon emis-sion and that’s why QatarAirways has one of the indus-try’s youngest fleets with anaverage aircraft age underfour years. Qatar Airways iswell connected with all itsbusiness partners as they arean important segment for theaviation industry.

The national airline ofthe State of Qatar frequentlyorganises premium familiari-sation trips to the most exoticdestinations in the world togive them a luxurious experience. This enablesthem to educate their clien-tele further about QatarAirways and its highest levelsof service standards.

Seeking Govt. support in India

Al Bustan Centre andResidence recently hostedtravel agents from OasisTravel from Ukraine. Thevisit has been coordinated byVoyage Tours of Dubai.

Eslam, Asst., SalesManager headed the group’stour of the property. Theywere introduced to the vari-

ous services and facilitiesoffered by the property.

Oasis Travel, along withVoyage Tours, has been playing a significant role inpromoting Dubai in theUkraine market successfully,and sees a strong potential inUkraine’s leisure travel mar-ket. Emirates Airline recently

announced its services toKiev which commences onJanuary 2014, and will provide convenient globalconnections via Dubai toUkraine’s population of 45 million.

The property conductsFAM trips to affirm its com-mitment to CIS tour agents.

FAM trip for Ukrainian agents

Contd. from page 12

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The new agreement willensure, content from

Jazeera Airways, continue tobe available exclusively toTravelport GDS users inKuwait. It will be preferredaccess to the carrier’s bestinventory and fares.

In addition to the newcontent deal, Jazeera Airwayswill also subscribe toTravelport Sponsored FlightsAdvertising. Its an advertis-ing tool that enables carriersto place flights in a separatearea above the neutral dis-play on the travel agent’s

availability results screen foroptimum visibility.

This industry first solution can promote newdestinations or expandedservice on existing routes,market reduced or promo-tional fares and offer alterna-tive airport choices.

“Travelport’s agree-ment with Jazeera Airwaysprovides a level of agencyaccess to the airline that isunmatched by any otherGDSs,” informed Will Owen

Hughes, Senior Director,Supplier Services, Travelport,Middle East and Africa.

“Working with low-cost carriers is the key part of ourbusiness strategy

and this enhancedagreement will allow JazeeraAirways to take full advan-tage of Travelport’s globalreach, take their business tothe next level,” he added.

According to JazeeraAirways, this new agreementwill enable them to continuebuilding strong partnershipwith the travel industryacross the region. It will alsooffer travellers better accessto enhance competitive faresthrough their local agent.Having solid distributionstrategy is a key element,continuing strategic growthacross the Middle East andTravelport is the best partner,helped achieve it.

Global Distribution Systems provider, Travelport andKuwait-based Jazeera Airways announced on October 7,2013, the renewal of a global full content agreement.

Strengthening joint venture

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Will Owen HughesSenior Director, Supplier Services,Travelport, Middle East and Africa

The opening day saw thou-sands of visitors enjoying

a range of cultural and enter-tainment facilities, with visi-tors receiving raffle drawcoupons for an Audi A4 andrefreshments courtesy theGlobal Village management.

At a press conferencebefore the opening day,Ahmad Hussain bin Essa,Executive Director, OperationsGlobal Village informed,

“The team is ready to unleashspectacular 148days of world-classattractions,

12,000 entertainmentshows, fantastic dining,shopping and family fun fea-turing a wide range of brandnew activities for visitorsfrom the UAE, the regionand around the world.” EidAl Adha festival runningfrom October 10-19, saw

the Park being open forextended hours: from 4pmto 2am throughout the Eidseason, further extended to3am on the first and secondday of Eid. Each festive daysaw record crowds throngingthe Park.

“Global Village’s 18th

season running for 148 dayshas an exciting line-up ofinnovative new events andattractions. And what’s more,this season has more prizesthan ever before to be won,”he further stated.

Many of the entertain-ment offerings will be makingtheir Middle East debut -including Chinese circus per-formers, UK street artistesand regular fun-packed andcolourful parades, coupledwith fireworks, fountainswith a ‘son et lumiere’ showfeaturing fire effects andmuch more.

The Global Village hasintroduced this season abrand new funfair conceptcalled ‘Fantasy Island’, fea-turing 36 rides and skillgames with instant rewards.Brought to Global Village byUK fairground specialist oper-ator Mellors, it will featurethemed wooden decking anddeliver a classic ‘ConeyIsland’ fairground atmos-phere that has never beenseen before in the region.

This year there will be30 pavilions with more than65 countries representedfrom every continent. France,Germany and Italy will havepavilions this season.

The 18th edition of Global Village opened its doors tovisitors on October 5, 2013, with entrance free for thefirst day of the new season.

A sure-shot crowd-puller

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Ahmad Hussain bin EssaExecutive DirectorOperations Global Village

Travelpor t has opened anew office in Abu Dhabiwith the new premises inShining Tower, Khalidia.More than 50 Travelpor tcustomers, industrypar tners and staffgathered for the officialopening.

New Office

Ramada Ajman gets green awardRamada Hotel & Suites Ajman was presented with the Wyndham Green Award during the WyndhamHotel Group’s Global Conference held in Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas on October13. The award recognised the proper ty’s commitment to sustaining the environment through itsvarious initiatives. Bani Haddad, Regional Vice-President for Middle East and Africa, Wyndham HotelGroup, accepted the award on behalf of Ramada Ajman during the event.

Etihad Airways hasexpanded its codeshareagreement with Korean Air,South Korea’s largest airline,to include six new destina-tions. The new arrange-ments augment the airlines’existing codeshare servicesbetween Abu Dhabi andSeoul Incheon. JamesHogan, President and ChiefExecutive Officer, EtihadAirways, said the expandedcodeshare with Korean Airwould enable both airlines to

grow their networks in amutually beneficial way andbroaden their appeal toworld travellers.

The three new codesharedestinations will enhanceEtihad Airways’ business andleisure travel offering to theAsia Pacific and NorthAmerica. The flights toHonolulu and Vancouver, inparticular, will provide con-venient one-stop access fromAbu Dhabi to these two des-tinations. Increasing inter-

national visitors to AbuDhabi is key to enabling eco-nomic growth in the Emirateand helping realise theGovernment’s visionary AbuDhabi 2030 plan.

“We forecast this trendwill continue with the open-ing of new routes from Asiaand North America,” headded. The airlines com-menced codeshare opera-tions between Abu Dhabiand Seoul Incheon on July22, 2013.

Etihad & Korean Air boost ties

HOTELS1 6 TRAVTALK N O V E M B E R , 2 0 1 3

It has fabulous facilities fortravellers, especially from

the UK, which is the numberone market for the hotel.

The event is being usedfor reacquainting themselveswith their partners fromwithin the industry andupdating them on the hotel’sproducts and services.

This is the third yearthat the hotel is participatingat one of the most significantB2B events that is being heldin London from November 4to 7, 2013.

“Participating at WTM is central for thehotel’s marketingstrategy, as the UK is its top market,followed by Indiaand the GCC in that order,”

informed Scott Butcher,General Manager, Park RegisKris Kin Hotel Dubai.

Since the beginning of2013, Park Regis Kris KinHotel Dubai has been work-ing on managing its excel-lence programme, tuning andrefining the hotel’s servicedelivery and guest experi-ence.

“Staywell HospitalityGroup, which runs the hotel,”Butcher added, “is in discussion with a number ofparties to expand the group’spresence in the Middle East.”

These talks, as they arecarried forward, represent anumber of exciting opportuni-ties in the Middle East region.

An area, which ParkRegis Kris Kin Hotel Dubai ispassionate about, is its com-mitment to sustainability andthe environment, one of thehot topics to be discussed atthis year’s WTM.

Meetings are regularlyheld to review the progress

of this preparation and setnew green targets. Forinstance, in 2013, the hotelhas seen a 9 per cent reduc-tion in energy usage over2012.

“Coming to business,”Butcher stated, “the travelagents have always been avery significant part of ourgrowth story, with approxi-mately 23 per cent of thetotal business this year beingcontributed by them. Whencompared to 2012, there hasbeen an increase in business

from travel agents to theextent of 12 per cent.”

In recognition of thevital role that travel agentsplay, Park Regis Kris KinHotel Dubai has been contin-ually running familiarisationtrips to the hotel for agents,the results of which speak for them with year-on-yeargrowth.

The hotel has a long-term approach togrowth, which when tiedwith Staywell HospitalityGroup’s expansion plans inother regions, its manage-ment believes, will enhance the hotel’s profilesignificantly.

Joining the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce MarketingDelegation at the World Travel Market in London, Park Regis Kris Kin HotelDubai is promoting and highlighting its convenient location in Dubai.

Stressing on green issues at WTM

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Delighted to be back atWTM 2013 in London,

the exhibition is being usedas an opportunity to meet thehotel’s existing partners andto build relationships withprospective ones. “UK is a keymarket and WTM serves as aperfect platform to explorenew opportunities,” statedHossam Kamal, GeneralManager, Fujairah RotanaResort and Spa.

The property has a verydiverse guest segment. It hasbeen especially popular withguests from Russia, Ukraine,Germany and the UK, withlocal residents making a beeline for the resort on theweekends and during longer holidays.

The resort feels that it isimperative for the traveltrade industry to understandthe uniqueness of its product, besides experiencingfirst-hand the high standardsof service that it has to offer.

Familiarisation trips aretherefore arranged for travel

agents to ensure a wholesomeexperience of the resort.

“Travel agencies havebeen instrumental in its busi-ness growth. In 2013, over

65 per cent of business waschanneled via travel agenciesthrough tour operators/DMCs, which is expected togrow to 70 per cent in 2014,”he added.

On issues regarding theenvironment, as with the restof the hospitality industry,which has become innatelyaware of sustainability of theenvironment, Fujairah RotanaResort and Spa is currentlyworking on an elaborate util-ity reduction plan targettingnon-renewable energy,including water, electricityand other energy like LPG.

A food waste reductionprogramme aims to reducegeneral food waste, which inturn goes as land fill and intoa recycling agenda.

A step towards greeninitiatives also includes activeparticipation on occasions likeWorld Environment Day,besides working closely withthe local government andcivic body to protect theaquatic eco system.

“Sustainability is theresort’s stated priority and itis working towards closely

monitoring food waste andreuse of clean bed linen tohelp water conservation,”asserted Kamal.

Going forward, thehotel aims to deliver a betterguest experience, with newproduct inclusions for amemorable stay.

A new gymnasium withstate-of-the art facilities wasrecently added, affording a stunning view of the beau-tiful Hajar Mountains.

Fujairah Rotana Resort and Spa aims to position itself as the best familyresort in the UAE. Extensive plans are in place to create a thorough familyconcept, targetting both the local market and international visitors.

Repositioning as a family resort

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Scott Butcher General ManagerPark Regis Kris Kin Hotel Dubai

Gloria Hotels and Resortsoperate Gloria Hotel and

Yassat Gloria HotelApartments in Dubai.

“The hotel apartmentsaddressed the need to makelong stay viable,” explainedFreddy Farid, Area GeneralManager, Gloria Hotels andResorts. “The concept of thehotel apartment becamemore required for the last fewyears due to the comfort itprovides as well as the sav-ings on cost for companies. Inthe UAE, where people needto stay on a monthly, evenyearly basis, hotel apart-ments is a logical choice foraccommodation,” he added.

According to him, thetwo properties, which openedrespectively in 2010 and2012, have achieved occu-pancy projections of over 85per cent year-to-date. Thenumber of units (over 2000units) exceeded expectationswith the occupancy figures.

The hotel apartments’guests are mostly travellersand holiday-makers from

Germany, Russian, China andthe Gulf Cooperating Councilas well.

These unique hotelapartments offer guests awide range of rooms, suitesand apartments to suit allneeds. The executive suitesavailable in Gloria Hotel arelocated on the first three lev-els of the hotel and provideits guests with five-star expe-rience like access to the exec-utive lounge on the 41st floor,breakfast and snack through-out the day and dedicatedbutlers with check-in/check-out reception desk. Both theproperties offer a wide rangeof restaurants and cafes.

Hotel apartments will be in for thelong haul in the Gulf because it hasbecome a preferred option for bothleisure and business clients.

Hotel apartmentsare here to stay

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Freddy Farid Area General Manager Gloria Hotels and Resorts

The hotel is currentlyworking on an utilityreduction plan targettingnon-renewable energy,including water, electricityand other energy like LPG

A food waste reductionprogramme aims toreduce general food waste,which goes as land fill andinto a recycling agenda

A step towards greeninitiatives also includesactive participation onoccasions like WorldEnvironment Day

Eco-Friendly Plan

Gulf Air, Bahrain’s nation-al carrier has added sevenadditional flights to its exist-ing schedule to Riyadh in theKingdom of Saudi Arabia tomeet increasing passengerdemand. Starting fromOctober 27, the Airline willoperate one extra frequencyper day from Bahrain to theSaudi capital, increasing thenumber of weekly flightsbetween the two destina-tions from 21 to 28.

This decision reinforcesthe Airline’s strategy ofstrengthening its core net-work and maximising con-venience for its customers.Passengers travellingbetween Riyadh andBahrain who wish to con-duct their business andreturn home the same day,now have even more flexi-bility to do so. Furthermore,passengers travelling

onwards via Bahrain toother destinations in theMiddle East, Europe andAsia, through Gulf Air andbeyond to North Americawith codeshare partnerAmerican Airlines, nowhave access to more conven-ient connections.

Maher Salman AlMusallam, Acting ChiefExecutive Officer, Gulf Airsaid, “The introduction ofadditional flights betweenRiyadh and Bahrain empha-sises the importance weattach to Saudi Arabia, oneof our key markets, and ourbusiness strategy to concen-trate on high-demand point-to-point routes to ensure ourcore customer base is servedeffectively and efficiently.Customers from Riyadh nowhave over 200 weekly con-nections in less than threehours via Bahrain.”

Gulf Air increasesflights to Riyadh

Meetings are regularly heldto review the progress ofthis preparation and setnew green targets

In 2013, the hotel has seena 9 per cent reduction inenergy usage over 2012

Green Targets

In 2013, over 65 per cent ofbusiness waschanneled viatravel agencies,which isexpected to hit 70per cent in 2014

Hossam Kamal General Manager Fujairah Rotana Resort and Spa

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The Xclusive Group playshost to travellers from

regions and continents acrossthe world, ranging fromEurope to USA, and Asia,Middle East, Africa and alsothe CIS countries.

“The forte of theGroup is tointroduce differentthemed apartmentsand hotels thatdeliver to theirguests not only amemorable stay buta choice of differentfacilities that areexpected from atruly world-classhotel,”

informed Nischay Dheer,Group General Manager,Xclusive Group of Hotels.

The concept of a hotelapartment, that caters to its

guests both the freedom ofstaying in one’s own apart-ment and the flexibility thata hotel affords, has beencatching on of late.

Looking at the increasein demand of such a concept,the Xclusive Group of Hotelshas added two more newproperties in its portfolio thisyear, the Xclusive Casa HotelApartments and the XclusiveClover Hotel Apartments. “Inaddition to these two, we areintroducing two more prop-erties in 2014,” added Dheer.

The current year hasstarted on a steady note, withthe Group’s properties main-taining an occupancy rate of87 per cent, quite similar tothat in 2012. However, dailyaverage rate has seen a rise,in comparison to 2012.

“The travel trade playsa very important role in promoting a destination,”Dheer mentioned, “We, representing the Group, too,have benefited from theircontribution. In 2013, business through travelagents saw a 7 per centincrease as compared to thatin 2012. The Group has various incentive packagesfor agents, including famil-iarisation trips for foreigntravel agents.”

Future plans includeadding more room keys in thecoming years at differentlocations in the UAE, whileadhering to the XclusiveGroup’s motto of deliveringto its guests a ‘home awaywhen away’.

Offering themed facilities while catering to a melting potof different tastes that hail from across the world is whatmakes Dubai’s Xclusive Group of Hotels unique.

Home away from home

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Nischay DheerGroup General ManagerXclusive Group of Hotels

German agents visit SharjahOn October 6, a German delegation representing 10 leading tour operators arrived on a private visitto Sharjah and Khorfakkan. Khalid Jasim Al Midfa, Director General, Sharjah Commerce and TourismDevelopment Authority underlined the Authority's keenness to step up the promotion of the Emiratein the crucial German tourism market, as Germany is one of the Emirate's strategic tourism markets.

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JA Oasis Beach Tower Dubai Torsten Obermann is the new General Manager of JAOasis Beach Tower. In his new role, he will have the

responsibility for the overall day-to-day operations as well as playing

a key role in the development oflong-term strategic direction ofthe property. A German national,Obermann has been with JAResorts & Hotels for four years.

He has over 20 years’ experience,and has worked with brands such

as Accor (Mercure) in Germany,Crowne Plaza and Marriott in the

USA, and The Dolder Grandin Switzerland.

Seven Tides Dubai Rony Valeny has been appointed as the Executive ManagingDirector of Seven Tides. He previously worked with the DeloitteMiddle East Financial Advisory Practice,where he headed up the Technology,Media & Telecommunicationsdivision for the region following a decade withPricewaterhouseCoopers in London.In his new role, Valeny will define andexecute the strategic direction of SevenTides’ global portfolio with a specificremit to develop and supportstakeholder relationships.

Amadeus Dubai David Doctor is the Vice President, Western Europe, theMiddle East and Africa of Amadeus. In his new role, he willlead commercial activities in Amadeus’home Western European marketswhere the company has a strongbase as well as in the excitinggrowth markets of the Middle Eastand Africa. He first joined Amadeusin 1999 as Market Manager forWestern Europe, and was appointedas Director for WesternEurope in 2003.

Emirates Grand Hotel Dubai Tarek Aouini is the Hotel Manager of Emirates Grand Hotel.A Tunisian national, Aouini brings 13 years of hospitalityexperience. Prior to joining EmiratesGrand Hotel, he was working asDirector of Rooms in Dusit ThaniDubai and Dusit Hotels andResorts in Bangkok, Thailand andserved as Front Office Manager insuccessful pre-opening of threehotels. He speaks Arabic, English,French, Italian and German.He will be responsiblefor the overall strategicplanning, setting andachieving sales targets.

Al Ghurair Rayhaan & Al GhurairArjaan by Rotana UAE Timur Ilgaz has joined Al Ghurair Rayhaan & Al GhurairArjaan by Rotana as General Manager. He brings with himmore than 27 years of experience inthe field, and holds a BusinessAdministration degree. He hasworked in different countries suchas Turkey, Canada, CzechRepublic, Kazakhstan and UAE.Prior to his appointment, Ilgazheaded the pre-opening team ofAmwaj Rotana Jumeirah Beach-Dubai, and was the GeneralManager of the hotel.

JA Ocean View Hotel Dubai Otto Kurzendorfer will take over as the General Manager atthe JA Ocean View Hotel. He has extensive experience of the

industry in Asia, where he openedinternationally branded hotels. AGerman native, Kurzendorfer comesfrom a F&B background withexperience across all hotel

departments, and a 24-year career withpositions in the Bahamas, Germany,

Damascus, Qatar, UK and the Chinesemain hotel locations, Shanghai and Sanya

working mainly for Starwood andInterContinental Hotels Group.

Hilton Worldwide Jordan Kamel Ajami has been appointed as Hilton Worldwide’s firstCountry Manager for Jordan. A hospitality industry veteran, hebrings over three decades of experienceto the newly created role, the mostsenior for Hilton Worldwide in Jordan.Ajami will oversee all operationalmatters and support HiltonWorldwide’s growth plans inexploring new opportunities in Jordan.His experience and knowledge will beinvaluable in this newleadership role.

Dusit International Dubai Sameh Shawkat takes over the position of RegionalDirector of Sales and Marketing - Middle East and Africa, ofDusit International. He will be based inthe Dubai regional office. Shawkatwill focus on building and fosteringrelationships with key clients. AnEgyptian national, he was formerlythe Regional Director of Sales forHilton Hotels (Egypt), followed by atenure with Hyatt Hotels and Resortsin Saudi Arabia as Regional Director ofSales (Middle East), and mostrecently as ExecutiveAssistant Manager,Sales and Marketingat Grand Hyatt Doha.

Sofitel Al Khobar The Corniche Dubai Fares Yactine is the General Manager of Sofitel Al KhobarThe Corniche. Bringing with him 13 years of extensive

hospitality experience in the Middle East,Yactine will oversee the day-to-dayoperations of the proper ty. Hepreviously worked with SofitelThalassa Sea and Spa in theKingdom of Bahrain, where he wasthe Hotel Manager for over two

years. Yactine has also workedin Spain, Lebanon andBahrain.