Superlative labels like the country’s tallest, the world’s longest, and the region’s first are often used to describe ambitious new projects in the two largest and most famous cities of the United Arab Emirates – Dubai and Abu Dhabi. But the country’s fourth largest emirate and fifth most populous now wants tourists to start thinking […]
AirArabia becomes the latest airline to offer off-site airport check-in in downtown Dubai
Air Arabia has opened a new off-site flight check-in office in downtown Dubai to allow those flying with the low-cost carrier to check their luggage and pick up boarding passes up to 24 hours prior to their scheduled departure. The airline already operates 11 similar locations throughout the UAE, including in Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, Ajman, […]
GCC countries team up to form Cruise Arabia alliance to bolster nascent industry
Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, and Oman have partnered up to from a new mutual support organization to help develop ports of call along the Arabian Gulf and enhance the region’s leisure cruising infrastructure. The alliance, which was formalized through a Memorandum of Understanding and announced at ITB Berlin, aims to scale up investments in port […]
DXB passenger numbers show strong bounce-back while tourism arrivals set record
Dubai Airports, the operator of what is now the the busiest international airport in thew world according to figures from global travel data provider OAG, has reported that its outperformed its own 2019 passenger numbers in 2023. In total, Dubai International Airport (DXB) handled 86.9 million passengers last year, 600,000 more than it did in […]
Emirates Airlines embraces the metaverse for advanced cabin crew training
In a groundbreaking move for the airline industry, Dubai-based Emirates Airlines announced its plans to leverage the metaverse for cabin crew training. This innovative approach was unveiled by Adel Ahmed Al Redha, Chief Operating Officer of Emirates, during the recent Dubai Metaverse Assembly hosted at the Museum of the Future. The globally recognized event gathered […]
The ship Queen Elizabeth 2 to be relaunched as Dubai’s newest floating hotel
The famous luxury ocean liner Queen Elizabeth II, which has been docked in Dubai since it was decommissioned from service with Cunard in 2008, is now to become a commercially managed hotel property under Accor’s MGallery Hotel Collection brand. Dubai’s state-owned PCFC Hotels (Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation) first began operating the ship as […]
Ras al Khaima welcomes the UAE’s first casino in deal with Las Vegas-based Wynn Resorts
In a first for the UAE, the emirate of Ras al Khaima will create a new Department of Entertainment and Gaming Regulation within its existing Tourism Development Authority to oversee what they are calling “integrated resorts,” or developments that will feature casinos and gaming. Gambling has thus far been banned across the UAE, so the […]
Dubai’s Burj Al Arab launches new guided tours open to the general public
For the first time since it opened its gilded doors 21 year ago, the hotel that bills itself as the world’s only “7-star” hotel is offering something for those who cannot afford to shell out enough dinars for a luxurious over-the-top stay here. The property just announced that it will begin offering tours to the […]
Dubai tourism arrivals are bouncing back big in 2021 following pandemic-defying numbers in 2020
The tiny Gulf emirate that packs a big punch continues to defy expectations as it reported welcoming 1.67 million international visitors in the first third of 2021, according to the Dubai Tourism Annual Visitor Report 2020. While Indians made up nearly 30% of those arrival numbers, visitors from Russia and Eastern Europe made up just […]
Arabian Travel Market takes 2020 show virtual, moves live event to 2021
Organizers of the annual Arabian Travel Market (ATM) have announced that the planned 2020 exhibition and conference will now become a virtual event to be held online June 1-3, 2020 while the next live in-person event will take place May 16-19, 2021 at the Dubai World Trade Center. Founded 1995 and originally hosted at the […]
