Tourism signals recovery for Dubai
DUBAI, 28 April 2011 – The International Monetary Fund said Wednesday the economy of debt-laden Dubai was expected to expand by nearly 3% this year, on the back of robust trade, logistics and tourism sectors.
“The recovery is taking hold, and we see the growth rate for Dubai this year just a little bit shy of 3%,” said Masood Ahmed, the director of the IMF’s Middle East and Central Asia Department.
“Things that are driving that process (of recovery) are the improvement in trade, logistics and tourism, all of which are doing better,” he told AFP upon the release of the IMF’s Regional Economic Outlook in Dubai.
Etihad partners with Arabian Smile Holidays
April 20, 2011 by Rapeepat Mantanarat
Filed under News, Tour Operators
BANGKOK, 20 April 2011— Arabian Smile Holidays, a GCC-specialised tour operator and Abu Dhabi-based airline Etihad Airways have jointly launched a tour series combining UAE and European destinations using Etihad’s network.
Usually airlines allow passengers to stopover at Abu Dhabi or Dubai for a short break during a trip to their final destination. However, that is usually for individual travellers, while tour group passengers are often excluded from stopovers on the way to Europe.
The ‘Abu Dhabi and Beyond by Arabian Smile’ offers four programmes that combine a stop in Abu Dhabi or Dubai (combination of both possible) with a European destination — Paris, Milan or London –- for four to two days depending on the tour itinerary.
Dubai reviews airport plan
December 8, 2010 by TTRweekly Staff
Filed under News
DUBAI, 8 December 2010 – Dubai Airports said on Tuesday it may delay the scheduled March launch of a passenger terminal at a new airport, as it unveiled plans to expand its old airport’s capacity to 90 million passengers by 2018.
“We are currently reviewing the master plan for the new airport,” Dubai Airports CEO, Paul Griffiths, told reporters.
“With everything going on time and according to schedule, we are reviewing the opening date for the new terminal and we may push it a little just to get everything right,” he said. Read more
Dubai might privatise public firms
DUBAI, 29 November 2010 – Debt-laden Dubai is looking into a possible privatisation of public sector firms and offloading international assets, but is waiting for the right time for a good return, officials said Sunday.
“We continue to work to diversify our financing sources and broaden the space for participation in the wealth of our economy,” said Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum, the head of Dubai’s Supreme Fiscal Committee.
“We continue to work on opening the door for public subscription in some of our large companies,” he added in a meeting with the media titled “Dubai economic update forum.”
Tourism to help Dubai’s recovery
DUBAI, 26 November 2010 – A year after scaring global markets over its debt crisis, Dubai still has a huge legacy of debt to deal with over the medium term, and is leaning on its core economic sectors for recovery.
The focus in the city-state has shifted to the traditionally strong sectors of trade, logistics and tourism in order to recover slowly from a crisis caused primarily by a boom-to-bust real estate frenzy.
Financial markets woke up in the red last year, 26 November, after Dubai signalled its need for a standstill on debt payments by its largest conglomerate, Dubai World.
Emirates flies to Madrid
August 6, 2010 by Rapeepat Mantanarat
Filed under News
Bangkok, 6 August 2010 – Emirates has inaugurated a daily service to Madrid, the capital city of Spain. Passengers from Thailand change aircraft in Dubai with around a one and a half hour connecting time.
As the Madrid flight departs Dubai at 0725, the best flight out of four daily services ex- Bangkok in order to achieve a seamless connection at Dubai is EK 419 departing at 0240 and arriving at 0545.
