Tuesday 31 December 2013

UAE Tourism is Resilient in 2014


download (2)The UAE’s tourism division is expected to be prosperous next year, buoyed by a constant increase in tourism numbers. Strong occupancy rates expected in Dubai and Abu Dhabi over the next 12 months especially following the success of the UAE’s bid to host Expo 2020.


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Bali Awaits 3.5 Million Tourists in 2014


download (1)The regional government of Bali is hopeful to draw 3.5 million travelers in 2014, a 10-percent raise from this year’s aim of 3.18 million tourists.Bali, the smallest province of Indonesia is an island that includes a few smaller neighbouring islands, notably Nusa Penida. It is situated at the westernmost end of the Lesser Sunda Islands, between Java to the west and Lombok to the east, and has its capital of Denpasar at the southern part of the island.


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The First Ever Trial Runs For Delhi Metro Phase-III Begins On Central Secretariat To Mandi House Section From Today


Delhi Metro RailThe Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) commenced the trial runs on the first section of Phase III, between Central Secretariat and Mandi House from today.The first train for the trial runs on this section was flagged off today from Central Secretariat Metro station by Dr. Sudhir Krishna, Secretary, Ministry of Urban Development & Chairman/DMRC and Mr. Mangu Singh, Managing Director/DMRC in the presence of other senior officials.


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Rajiv Chowk, Barakhamba Road Patel Chowk Metro Stations To Be Closed From 7:30 pm On 31st December


Delhi Metro RailIn view of the security restrictions in the area, entry into and exit from the Rajiv Chowk, Barakhamba Road and Patel Chowk Metro stations will be closed from 7:30 PM on New Year’s Eve, i.e., 31st December 2013.


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Hue plans inclusive tourism


Hue31.12Hue is seeking to involve residents and the private sector in developing tourism, seeking to take advantage of the area’s enormous tourism potential by promoting its heritage sites and natural beauty.


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London Gatwick to offer gesture of goodwill to passengers disrupted on Christmas Eve


Gatwick AirportGatwick Airport would like to extend its sincere apologies to all passengers who were affected by the disruptions on Christmas Eve.


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Quang Binh becomes prominent on tourist map


SonDoong16.12Over the past five years, the central province of Quang Binh has created a new image on Vietnam’s tourism map and become a favourite destination of foreign tourists. Vietnam Economic News explains what has made Quang Binh such a popular tourist destination.


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Stimulating tourism demands, increase in tourists


Du-lich-1131230In 2013, the total number of tourists coming to Phu Yen at the tourism accommodation foundations is estimated at 600,000 turns, reaching 100% of the whole year’s plan, an 20% increase against the figure of the year 2012. It’s the efforts of the Tourism sector, including the tasks of advertising, promoting and stimulating tourism that brings about the very first efficiency.


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Hanoi ranked second cheapest city for travellers


Hanoi the huc bridgeHanoi has been rated as the second cheapest city for travellers among 49 surveyed destinations worldwide by TripAdvisor, just after Sofia of Bulgaria.

This result is based on the total cost of one night stay in a four-star hotel, a dinner for two with one bottle of wine and two-way taxi fee for the distance of 3.2km.


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Crowds flock to ancient Hue imperial city


Hue04.10The golden tourism week with big discounts to attract tourists to the ancient imperial city of Hue, the central province of Thua Thien-Hue , which closed on December 30, is a big success, according to the Hue Monuments Conservation Centre.

During the week, the site welcomed nearly 30,000 tourists, including 21,300 foreigners.


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Emirates circles the globe over 18,000 times in 2013


Emirates 777-300ER Air to AirEmirates aircraft flew around the world more than 18,000 times in 2013, underlining its position as a global connector of people and places.
Figures show the airline’s fleet travelled more than 751 million kilometres throughout the year. Taking the earth’s circumference at the equator as 40,075 kilometres, this translates into the equivalent of 18,753 circumnavigations.


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World’s deepest submerged tunnel to connect Asia and Europe

tunnelIstanbul has been at the economic focal point between Asia and the West for a long time. Running almost 200 feet below the surface of that narrow channel of water, the 8.5-mile long railway now holds the claim to “the world’s deepest submerged tunnel.” Istanbul city officials hope the Marmaray tunnel, capable of transporting up to 1.5 million passengers a day, will help ease the flow of traffic from the two existing bridges on either side of the city. Another future hope is to make the tunnel a permanent part of the train route for rail travel between China and Western Europe.


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Indian Ocean Vanilla Islands receives great publicity in Germany


Seychelles Tourism BoardReise Preise, the German Magazine that guides holiday makers have recognized the Indian Ocean Vanilla Islands and helped the visibility of these islands.


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Sussex’s railway recovering from Christmas storms – Network Rail


Network RailNetwork Rail’s routes through Sussex are recovering from damage caused by the recent storms.

Two landslips at Redhill and Coulsdon, caused by last week’s rain storms, have been repaired along with flood and fire damage to the track at West Croydon, and flooding near Balcombe.


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Gulf Air and Oracle Corporation Finalize Key Technology Upgrade


Gulf Air and Oracle Corporation Finalize Key Technology UpgradeIn a meeting between Gulf Air’s A/CEO Mr. Maher AlMusallam of the national carrier, ORACLE Corporation Vice President Mr. Abdul Rahman Al Thehaiban and Gulf Air’s Director of Information Technology Dr. Jassim Haji, all parties celebrated a landmark achievement as Gulf Air became one of the first airlines to successfully complete the Oracle E-Business suite upgrade to R12 using the national carrier’s in-house IT capabilities.


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Tencreek Holiday Park has special plans to welcome 2014


trelawne-manor-holiday (1)On New Year’s Eve Tencreek Holiday Park is getting busy. Looe is well-known for being one of the best places in the UK to usher New Year, 2014. Tencreek is all set to hosting a memorable party.


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World Travel Awards Oberoi Gurgaon as the World’s leading Luxury Hotel, 2013


oberon-travel-awards-2011The World Travel Awards The Oberoi, Gurgaon as the World’s Leading Luxury Hotel, 2013 for the third consecutive year. This was announced at the Grand Final Gala Ceremony held in Doha, Qatar.

Kapil Chopra, President, The Oberoi Group  said that It is indeed a moment of pride for us that the Oberoi, Gurgaon has been voted World’s Leading Luxury Hotel, 2013 for the third consecutive year.


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Sofia and Hanoi ranked as the cheapest cities for travellers worldwide


sofia-bulgariaIn a recently published survey by TripAdvisor on 49 destinations, Sofia of Bulgaria were ranked as the cheapest cities for travellers worldwide. Hanoi has been rated as the second cheapest city for travellers among 49 surveyed destinations just after Sofia of Bulgaria.


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Seven airlifted in Scotland due to heavy floods


flood_at_lesmahagowThe New Year will begin on a stormy note in the UK after seven people had to be airlifted to safety when heavy rain caused flooding in Scotland.

The rescued people contained four children who were rescued from a farmhouse near Closeburn in Thornhill, Dumfries and Galloway, by a Royal Navy helicopter after rain forced families to be evacuated from dozens of homes and caused major road disruption.


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Train carrying crude oil collides in North Dakota causing massive explosion


North DakotaA BNSF train carrying crude oil in North Dakota has collided with another train causing massive alert among the citizens living nearby setting off a series of explosions that left at least 10 cars ablaze.

Five powerful explosions were heard by the local residents just a mile outside the small town of Casselton after a westbound train carrying soybeans derailed and an eastbound 104-car train hauling crude oil ran into it. There have been no reports of injury so far.


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The International Coalition of Tourism Partners release New Year Statement of reflection and consolidation


ictp-logoThe International Coalition of Tourism Partners said that they have spent the past 2 years in shaping and building models of a grassroots organization for destinations and their stakeholders committed to Green Growth and Quality.


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Book your ‘All-Inclusive Holiday’ in 2014/15 with Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines


Fred.olsen CruiseFred. Olsen Cruise Lines has launched a new brochure, called ‘All-Inclusive Holidays’, targeted specifically at the ‘yet to cruise’ market. The brochure has simple, all-inclusive pricing, based on one cabin type, and tackles some of the perceived challenges of cruise head on, using more familiar mainstream cruise vocabulary, such as ‘Ocean View Room’, rather than ‘Outside Cabin’.


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Tourism in Seychelles: an overview as the end of the year approaches – Minister St.Ange speaks


SeychellesAs 2013 winds to a close, Seychelles as a whole has an opportunity to look back over yet another good year for tourism.

At home, Seychelles continues to conduct a significant reorganization of how the tourism infrastructure works, and by the time that the Tourism Board moves to its new offices in Victoria sometime during the first quarter of the year, the country shall be looking at operations more focused on marketing and filling the knowledge gap about the islands as a tourism destination.


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Hilton Hurghada Plaza celebrates its bio diversity in 2014


hilton-hurghada-plaza-hurghada-egypt-holidays-2014-1Hilton Hurghada Plaza located not far from the colorful markets of downtown Hurghada on Egypt`s Red Sea coast, offers an extraordinary range of vacation experiences. From snorkeling, diving with turtles and dolphins, to exploring the islands of the Red Sea, it is all there. Or back on land, off-road treks across the Egyptian Desert followed by a sunset dinner among the dunes.


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Seychelles tourism looks back over another positive year


seychelles2“We managed the tourism industry with passion. The style of leadership we believe in showed depth, uniqueness and an island style for Seychelles,” Minister St.Ange, Minister responsible for Tourism and Culture in Seychelles, said in reply to a question by foreign press on the state of Seychelles tourism.

As 2013 winds to a close, Seychelles as a whole has an opportunity to look back over yet another good year for tourism.


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Fregate Island Private in the Seychelles now boasts of a spectacular revamped Rock Spa


Minister of tourism SeychellesDr Abhilash Haridas, the Spa Manager of the spectacular revamped Rock Spa at the Fregate Island Private of the Seychelles can be proud when he welcomes guests at his facilities.


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Youth involvement is the key factor for developing the tourism industry in the US says Parliamentary Secretary


Senator Sandiford-GarnerYouth involvement in the tourism sector is the key factor in sustaining the industry. Creating greater awareness among people through youth is the best way to attract people. A government official observed.


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New Orleans’ tourism industry to get a major boost in 2014 says Mayor Landrieu


New_OrleansMayor Mitch Landrieu noted the tremendous success of the cultural economy and tourism sectors in 2013 as the city hosted world-class events, received global tourism accolades, attracted major film projects and made significant updates to municipal operations to improve the permitting process for event operators.


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Pop the corks and sound the fanfare… Eurostar celebrates two record breaking passenger milestones

EurostarEurostar added one more reason to celebrates this holiday season as the international high-speed rail operator passed two significant and record breaking passenger milestones. Coinciding with the start of its twentieth year of operation, 2013 has seen Eurostar carry, for the first time, 10 million passengers in a single year.


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John Wayne Airport Releases Passenger Survey Results


John Wayne AirportJohn Wayne Airport (JWA) is pleased to announce the results of its 2013 Passenger Survey. The biannual survey, conducted to measure traveler preferences and satisfaction, found that JWA continues to earn very high approval ratings from visitors and Orange County residents. Survey respondents gave the highest marks in the areas of safety, customer service and cleanliness of the Airport.


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Silicon Valley’s Airport Marks Eleventh Consecutive Month of Passenger Growth


Flysanjose AirportMineta San José International Airport (SJC) served 719,282 departing and arriving passengers in November 2013, a 2.7 percent increase compared to the same month last year.

This is the eleventh consecutive month of year-over-year increased passenger traffic, for an overall calendar year-to-date increase of 5.0 percent.


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Taiwan: Rising Favored Tourist Destination


In the progressing competitive global tourism industry, the most successful participants are those using value-added products to target niche markets. This means for the ROC government, promoting Taiwan’s array of unique cultural assets in such a way that the island is viewed as an experience, not just a destination. As Taiwan continues to appear as a top-flight travel experience, ongoing government efforts aimed at promoting the nation’s diverse range of attractions are guaranteeing it a place at the head table in global tourism stakes.


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Extravagance Brands Raise Competition for Roaming Consumers


Well known luxury brands are accelerating the battle for travelling shoppers with more exclusive shops at airports and on cruise ships, beating into one of the fastest rising sections of the market that looks set to keep booming.


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Get Ready for tomorrow’s new year. new world – hong kong countdown celebrations


Hong Kong tourismBe a part of the biggest countdown event ever in Hong Kong – the “New Year.New World Hong Kong Countdown Celebrations” – and cheer the arrival of 2014 with the crowd tomorrow evening (31 December)!


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Bombardier Secures Order for 10 Challenger 350 Business Jets


BombardierBombardier Aerospace announced today that it has received a firm order for 10 Challenger 350 business jets from an undisclosed customer. The transaction is valued at approximately $259 million US, based on the 2013 list price for typically equipped aircraft.


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Hawaiian Airlines Appoints Timothy Watkins to Director – Continuous Improvement


122759_hawaiian_airlinesHawaiian Airlines has appointed Timothy Watkins to the position of director – continuous improvement. In this role, he facilitates process improvement initiatives across the organization and works to promote a continuous improvement culture at Hawaiian Airlines.


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Starwood Hotels & Resorts Debuts Four Points by Sheraton Bijie in Guizhou Province


starwoodStarwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. along with King Yuan Da Real Estate Limited, today jointly announced the opening of Four Points by Sheraton Bijie. The entry of the Four Points by Sheraton brand marks the first international branded hotel in Bijie City and the first Four Points property in Guizhou Province.


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FAA Selects Unmanned Aircraft Systems Research and Test Sites


faaThe Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) today announced the selection of the six public entities that will develop unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) research and test sites around the country. These congressionally-mandated test sites will conduct critical research into the certification and operational requirements necessary to safely integrate UAS into the national airspace over the next several years.


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Monday 30 December 2013

Tampa Bay: Sights, Sounds and Tastes of Latin Culture Sizzle During February “Flavors of Ybor” Celebration


visit  tampa bayKnown as Tampa’s Latin Quarter for more than a century, Ybor City is always alive with an exotic blend of aromas, flavors, sights and sounds, but never more so than during the month-long celebration known as “Flavors of Ybor.” Throughout the month of February, visitors can explore and experience Tampa’s historic Ybor City through a dazzling line-up of events and happenings. To follow is a sampling of some of the major events and activities.


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Tourism Continues to Boost up Economy in November: Bank of Thailand


ThailandAccording to Bank of Thailand, the tourism sector continued to increase in November in spite of China’s new tourism law and Thailand’s political protest.

The central bank releasing the monthly economic and monetary conditions, disclosed that the tourism sector extended this month with 2.4 million foreign tourist arrivals, up 11.9 per cent on year. The tourist arrival from all regions accelerated despite Thailand’s political protests and the implementation of China’s new tourism law since October 2013.


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Four Seasons Resort Sharm El Sheikh Celebrates New Year’s Eve by the Shores of the Red Sea


THE RED SEANew laughs, new smiles, new loves – New Year’s 2014.  Escaping the cold and snow, at that special count down, Four Seasons Resort Sharm El Sheikh celebrates New Year’s Eve by the shores of the Red Sea, offering celebratory cocktails, dinner and dessert, and lavish entertainment.


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Julie Barrow Appointed Director of Sales & Marketing at Four Seasons Hotel Houston


Julie BarrowGuilherme Costa, general manager of Four Seasons Hotel Houston is pleased to announce the appointment of Julie Barrow as Director of Sales & Marketing.

With her background of more than twenty years of experience in the hospitality industry, Barrow will develop and implement dynamic and creative marketing strategies that support the success of Four Seasons Hotel Houston.


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Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica Staff Debut New Uniforms Inspired by Traditional Ox Cart Designs of Costa Rica


Four Seasons Resort Costa RicaTeam members working throughout the various departments of Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo are now proudly wearing new uniforms inspired by the traditional colourful ox cart designs of Costa Rica.  The 15 different designs feature colourful borders inspired by the patterns from traditional ox carts of Costa Rica and were made by San Jose, Costa Rica based boutique Eleganzza.


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Glasgow enjoys record Christmas trading period as shoppers flock to the style mile – Virgin Trains


Glasgow enjoysGlasgow is reporting a record Christmas trading period following an upsurge in festive shoppers and revellers visiting the city in recent weeks.

Year-on-year footfall in the city centre for the pre-Christmas shopping period, between November 25 and December 19, rose by more than 113,000 to 4.7 million people – more than the populations of Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle combined.


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Glasgow enjoys record Christmas trading period as shoppers flock to the style mile – Virgin Trains


Glasgow enjoysGlasgow is reporting a record Christmas trading period following an upsurge in festive shoppers and revellers visiting the city in recent weeks.

Year-on-year footfall in the city centre for the pre-Christmas shopping period, between November 25 and December 19, rose by more than 113,000 to 4.7 million people – more than the populations of Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle combined.


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AirAsia Indonesia Officiates New Headquarters in Jakarta


airasia-xAirAsia Indonesia today proudly opens doors to its new headquarter office building.

Located near Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Tangerang, the iconic building is home to more than 2.000 employees who were previously scattered in different offices throughout Jakarta.

The masterpiece building features a modern designed and equipped with facilities such as a gymnasium, music studio, employee lounge, mosque and a rooftop café.


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Commercial aviation: an economic factor for the past 100 years


LufthansaOn 1 January 1914, the St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line became the first scheduled passenger airline service. The twice-daily flight between St. Petersburg and Tampa, Florida, was piloted by Tony Jannus in a Benoist XIV flying boat, covering the 21-mile distance in 23 minutes.


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United States to Legalize Marijuana January 1 to Boost Tourism


images (1)Cannabis users in Colorado and Washington are counting down the hours before the western US states become the first to decriminalize leisure pot shops on January 1.


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Numbers of Hotel Rooms is Set to Built before FIFA 2022 in Qatar


download (1)According to recent reports, some 90,000 planned hotel rooms that is set to become ready before the FIFA 2022 will extensively build tourism capacity in Qatar. For the World Cup, nine new stadia will be built with capacities of at least 43,000 each and three existing stadia will be improved, Beltone Financial said in a report.


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New Mexico Hopes to Get Tourism Boost from Same-sex Marriage Ruling


downloadNew Mexico towns and cities are expecting a leap in tourism from same-sex couples who now can get marriage licenses in the state following a New Mexico Supreme Court ruling this month. Officials are planning a media blitz and gay and lesbian wedding expos in hopes of selling New Mexico as a wedding destination for couples who live in neighbouring states.


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