How This Luxurious Dinner In The Desert Became Dubai’s Latest Craze

Hopping between Gulf countries could soon be as easy as traveling through Europe's Schengen Area: just flash your passport at the entry point and seamlessly travel from one country to the next—no extra paper work required.

Skift reported recently that Saudi’s Vision 2030 is too expensive for tourists: If it eventually wants 70 million international visitors, it’s going to need more supply of hotels that don’t cost thousands of dollars a day. 

After a remarkable development in travel & tourism, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are committed to build consistency across the region while remaining unique and authentic, as shown by Connecting Travel Insight Report 2024, powered by Mabrian travel intelligence.

Half the fun of having points and miles is finding creative ways to use them and smart ways to earn them. Right now, two of the best travel rewards cards, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, both have sign-up bonuses of 75,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.

Following fruitful discussions with Senior Executives of Emirates Airline, Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett says plans are underway to include Jamaica as one of the hubs for the airline in the Caribbean. Emirates Airline, based in Dubai, is one of the world’s fastest growing airlines that connects its customers to a network of over 150 destinations.

Two online tour marketplaces say Dubai is far surpassing its pre-pandemic popularity. The city now ranks alongside Paris and Rome as a tourism hotspot.

The sun-drenched sepia photograph shows a dapper European, handkerchief in pocket, cigarette in hand, sitting among a row of men dressed in bisht and keffiyeh. The moment was captured during Jacques Cartier's first visit to the Persian Gulf in 1911, on his way back to London from Delhi—part of a sales trip encouraged by his father, Alfred, then the head of Cartier. The decline of the Ottoman Empire and the 1905 Persian Constitutional Revolution had flooded Europe's artistic centers with new influences, forging an aesthetic then known as “the Muslim arts.” Eager to learn more, Jacques spent four months traveling throughout Asia and the Middle East, rifling through bazaars and emporiums and mixing with high society.

Experts shone a spotlight on the Middle East’s travel investment ecosystem at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2024, which concludes today, Thursday 9 May at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) until Thursday 9 May. Panellists speaking during the exhibition’s entrepreneurship summit said levels of industry funding are growing in the region but that more needs to be done to support travel startups. The Middle East’s contribution to global travel revenues currently stands at approximately 5%, which is comparable to the proportion of international startup funding it is attracting, according to data from McKinsey & Company. While levels of investment have increased significantly in the wake of the global Covid-19 pandemic, speakers noted that funding for regional travel entrepreneurs is growing from a relatively low base.

Egypt will showcase its commitment to enhancing the tourist experience and attracting new visitors from the UAE, GCC, and globally by highlighting the country’s tourism potential, forthcoming projects, and future initiatives at Arabian Travel Market 2024 (ATM) in Dubai as it looks to build on the record 15 million tourists welcomed in 2023.

Experience Abu Dhabi secured the Best Stand Design Award (over 150m2) at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2024, which will run at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) until Thursday 9 May. The exhibitor’s stand was praised by ATM’s independent panel of judges for its flowing design, innovative use of greenery and excellent visibility from the show floor.

The head of Saudi Arabian tourism wants Taylor Swift to bring her tour to the Middle East. Of course he does; Swift’s Eras tour has a proven track record of boosting economies wherever it goes.

Azerbaijan’s tourism offerings take center stage at the prestigious Arabian Travel Market 2024 (ATM Dubai 2024), which commenced today. Considered a key event for the Middle East tourism market, ATM Dubai 2024 serves as a platform for fruitful B2B meetings aimed at fostering collaboration between local and foreign industry stakeholders.