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Swiss-Belhotel brings special offers to Arabian Travel Market

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Swiss-Belhotel International has created exciting packages for wholesalers and tour operators that will be launched at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) taking place in Dubai from April 28 to May 1, 2019. Targeted at Middle East travelers, the group has put together a fabulous range of offers that will be available across its spectacular properties in New Zealand, Australia, the Philippines, and Indonesia.

Laurent A. Voivenel, Senior Vice President, Operations and Development for the Middle East, Africa and India, Swiss-Belhotel International, said: “We are delighted to announce the launch of these exclusive packages that have been designed to provide unique experiences along with greater benefits and value to our Middle East partners as well as customers. We have superb properties located in some of the most sought-after destinations that attract large number of travelers from our region. With the summer holiday season around the corner, ATM presents us the ideal opportunity to launch these. Moreover, this year we are very excited about the ATM Holiday Shopper that we believe is a great addition to the show.”

The Special Packages offer a diverse choice of experiences at unbeatable rates: These include the following:

  • Special Golf Packages in Indonesia at various destinations – Jakarta, Batam, Bandung, Bali, Tarakan, Belitung, Surabaya, Jayapura, and in Vietnam in Da Lat.
  • Discounted wholesale rates for hotels in New Zealand and for hotels in Australia.
  • Early Bird discounts in the busiest destination in Australia, the hotel in Sydney offers 15% discounts for booking within April with stays valid till August and 10% for bookings until August with stays valid all throughout the year.
  • In Philippines, book at Makati and get a free room upgrade; and when you book at Manila get to enjoy the amazing introductory offer including breakfast for two.

Visitors to ATM can find Swiss-Belhotel International on stand HC0825 located in Sheikh Saeed Arena in Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

eTN is a media partner for ATM.

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Dusit Princess Residences Dubai Marina opens at the end of April

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Dusit International has signed a Franchise Agreement with Al Masar Hotel Management LLC, to upgrade the former Dusit Residence Dubai Marina to the Dusit Princess Residences Dubai Marina.

Located at the Marina, a popular tourist destination and preferred residential area just off the Dubai Technology and Media Free Zone, which includes Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City and Dubai Knowledge Village, the 146-key property is currently being refurbished and will comprise Serviced Apartments, Holiday Homes and Residential units in a choice of one, two or three-bedroom configurations.

Designed to facilitate business and leisure, the upgraded property will feature meeting facilities, a fully equipped gym, a spa, a wellness-focused restaurant serving healthy and organic foods, and a bakery.

Damac Metro and Tram Stations, the Marina Mall, and The Beach Mall are all within walking distance. Attractions such as Mall of Emirates, Ski Dubai, Ibn Battuta Mall, Emirates Golf Club, Palm Jumeirah, Jumeirah Beach Park and Wild Wadi Water Park can all be reached in 10 – 15 minutes by car. The Dubai World 2020 Expo site is also only a short drive away.

“We are delighted to sign this franchise agreement with Al Masar Hotel Management LLC for Dusit Princess Residences Dubai Marina,” said Mr Lim Boon Kwee, Chief Operating Officer, Dusit International. “The comfort and convenience of the Dusit Princess brand, and the property’s prime location, make it an attractive proposition for anyone looking for a short- or long-term base in the city, especially with the Dubai Expo 2020 coming up.”

H.E. Abdulla Alnuaimi, Chairman, Al Masar Hotel Management LLC, said, “By signing this franchise agreement we can further position the property to delight residents and guests with Dusit’s unique brand of Thai-inspired gracious hospitality. And we look forward to establishing Dusit Princess Residences Dubai as the premier place to live, stay, visit and conduct business.”

Known globally for its distinctive brand of gracious hospitality inspired by authentic Thai values, Bangkok-based Dusit International opened its first hotel in the Middle East more than 15 years ago, in Dubai. Today, the company operates five hotels across the region, including three in the GCC – namely Dusit Thani Dubai, Dusit Thani Abu Dhabi, and dusitD2 Kenz Dubai. According to its plans, Dusit will have nine hotels in operation in the GCC by the end of the year.

Dusit Princess Residences Dubai will be the third Dusit-branded property in Dubai, following Dusit Thani Dubai and dusitD2 Kenz. A fourth Dusit-branded property, Dusit Princess Rijas, is slated to open in 2020.

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Heathrow zaps the airport with speedy Wi-Fi

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Heathrow has launched a fast speed Wi-Fi service at the airport. In partnership with Boingo, passengers at all Heathrow terminals are now able to enjoy the new Wi-Fi experience with up to 100 Mbps (megabytes per second) speeds.

Whether it’s booking last-minute travel insurance, pre-ordering groceries for the return home or streaming cartoons to keep children entertained, passengers will have no time limit when browsing on Wi-Fi at the airport.

The new service uses Passpoint1 technology to deliver a next generation, secure Wi-Fi experience and will enable travellers to seamlessly roam between Wi-Fi and cellular for a better-connected experience. Investments have been made to upgrade the wireless network across the airport, ensuring bandwidth capacity, and Boingo has installed two new high-speed internet links at the airport as part of the service overhaul.

Passengers who are already members of the Heathrow Rewards loyalty programme can earn 100 points by signing in to the new Wi-Fi with their Rewards account.

John Arbuckle, Head of Property at Heathrow said, “Whether passengers are streaming, browsing or working on the go, we’re excited to improve their connectivity experience with the latest generation of Boingo’s award-winning Wi-Fi. This is just one of many initiatives that Heathrow has invested in to serve and delight our 80 million passengers, making Heathrow a world-class airport”.

Dawn Callahan, Chief Marketing Officer at Boingo said, “Passpoint is a Wi-Fi game changer that facilitates a seamless, secure and fast connected experience for Heathrow passengers. We’re proud to introduce the technology at the busiest airport in Europe and launch easy-to-use, high-speed Wi-Fi that travellers now expect.”

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Emirates flying travelers to Zagreb this summer

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Zagreb is a city with a rich history and culture and is known for its 18th century architecture. It is a major draw for tourists in the summer, and to accommodate the higher demand for travel to this popular tourist destination, Emirates airline will begin service this summer.

The airline will utilize the Boeing 777-300ER for the route that will operate to Zagreb until October 26, 2019. Partner airline flydubai will then begin to operate during the winter season. The strategic partnership between both airlines ensures capacity is deployed to best serve customer demand.

Flight EK 129 will depart Dubai at 8:30 and arrive in Zagreb at 12:35 local time, utilizing a Boeing 777-300ER. The return flight, EK 130 will depart Zagreb at 15:25 and arrive in Dubai at 23:00 local time. Due to the planned upgrade works on the southern runway at DXB from April 16 until May 30, 2019, Emirates’ flights to Zagreb will operate 4 times weekly on Saturday, Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. From May 31, 2019 onwards, the route will be operated as a daily service.

In Zagreb, visitors can discover the upper and lower town areas that hold some of the world’s most iconic cathedrals and museums. Travelers can also discover popular Croatian cities located on the Dalmatian Coast, such as Split and Dubrovnik. Emirates’ partner airline, flydubai, offers travelers flight options to Dubrovnik twice a week on Sunday and Thursday. Flight FZ 719 departs Dubai at 9:00 and arrives in Zagreb at 13:00 local time.

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Grange Pen to get a J$960 million infrastructural upgrade

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The Jamaica Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) is investing a little under $J1 billion for the Resort Squatter Settlements Upgrade Project for the community of Grange Pen in St. James.

The Housing Agency of Jamaica (HAJ) will oversee the infrastructural upgrade for the regularization of 535 households in the community. This is equivalent to approximately 8000 square feet per lot.

Speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony for the project on March 29, Tourism Minister and Member of Parliament for the area, Hon. Edmund Bartlett said the project was started in 2010 as part of the then Government’s mission to provide housing solutions for workers in the tourism industry through the TEF.

“We are going to be building a level of development that you have never seen before in this parish…We have proposals for participants, RFPs [request for proposals]out for public-private participation for us to build those houses for the people – primarily workers of the tourism industry,” said the Minister.

The general scope of works, which will take place over a 24-month period, includes: road scribing and paving, draining infrastructure, construction of a sewage treatment plant, water supply connection to the National Water Commission, electricity distribution, and land titling.

A highway will also be created from Grange Pen through Barrett Hall to Greenwood, signaling the next phase of the development for the area. The Minister also shared that upon completion, the community of Grange Pen will be renamed.

In his first ever public address as Minister of Economic Growth and Job Creation, with responsibility for housing, Senator the Hon. Pearnel Charles Junior added that, “it is perhaps everyone’s dream to own their own home…It is my responsibility now to be the one to ensure that I drive the processes of accountability to make sure that we are providing the housing that is necessary to all communities across this country.”

He also stated that it is the Government’s goal to provide for low to middle income earners by “giving them improved access to mortgages, so that they can be able to go through the financing that is required to access the housing that will be provided across communities.”

The Tourism Minister also announced that a major development is in the works for Lilliput which will have significant economic benefits for the people in Montego Bay.

“We have concluded much discussions, the purchase of the land has been completed in phase 1 and phase 2 is also being completed with the Rolling’s family. We will have close to 4000 additional rooms which will require a level of service from the people in this area.

The way forward for us is an integrated, involved and inclusive tourism where the hotel developments and the communities are going to be one in the same,” said Minister Bartlett.

Chairman of the HAJ Norman Brown and Councillor Anthony Murray from the St James Municipal Corporation welcomed the development project in Grange Pen as in important initiative which will drastically transform the community.

As part of efforts to improve the look and feel of the product, the Ministry of Tourism, through the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) has so far invested J$6 billion in Montego Bay and its environs. The work carried out by the TEF includes road rehabilitation, drain cleaning and housing solutions.

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