Tag Archives: lifestyle
Mastercard study highlights strength of Dubai tourism
Dubai continues to attract more and more visitors and it is expected to become one of the world's top tourism destinations in the next few years.According to Mastercard's latest Global Destination Cities Index, there was a significant upturn in the number of people taking a holiday in the emirate in 2011 and 2012 and experts believe this trend will continue this year. Only Bangkok can rival Dubai when it comes to visitor growth.The purpose of the study is to rank cities all around the world based on their tourism potential and a number of factors are taken into account, such as international arrivals and the amount of money being spent by holidaymakers. The credit card firm also made predictions for the future.Bangkok was rated as the number one global destination, narrowly beating London, while Paris, Singapore, New York, Istanbul and Dubai were also ranked highly.Importantly, Mastercard included Dubai in its “cities to watch” category.”If all top ten destination cities maintain their current rates of growth in the next few years, then by 2016 Istanbul will surpass Singapore, New York and Paris in terms of international visitor arrivals; and Dubai will similarly surpass Singapore and New York in 2016 and Paris in 2017,” the report stated.With so many phenomenal hotels, shopping centres and other amenities – not to mention the beautiful beaches and desert climate – it is no surprise to see Dubai featuring at the top end of such a prestigious list.Dubai International Airport is now the second busiest on the planet and recent figures highlighted just how quickly the aviation facility is growing.Indeed, Dubai Airports confirmed that nearly 5.5 million passengers flew into the airport in April alone, which was an 18.7 per cent improvement when compared to the corresponding month in 2012.Dubai is also attracting more and more cruise passengers, with major international liners making the city an integral part of their itinerary. Continue reading
Dubai to host biennial public transport meet
Dubai to host biennial public transport meet Staff Reporter (news@khaleejtimes.com) / 30 May 2013 Dubai has unveiled its vision for public transport during a major transport conference in Switzerland this week, including plans for a new public transport exhibition to be held in the emirate from 2014, and a new generation of youth leaders spreading the public transport message Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), attended the 60 th International Association of Public Transport (UITP) Congress and Exhibition in Geneva this week. The biennial event, which concluded on Wednesday, is an international meeting point for public transport specialists to share the latest technologies in rail and tunnel networks, interior designs of rail carriages, entertainment systems, public buses and marine transit modes. The event saw the participation of 150 delegates from 30 countries including the UAE. The RTA showcased Dubai’s public transport systems and the growth of the sector in the emirate, highlighting the Dubai Metro, public buses, taxis and a wide array of marine transport, along with RTA initiatives, such as the Wojhati, Awselni and Sharekni programmes, encouraging more people to use public transport. Al Tayer was accompanied by RTA board member Mohammed Obaid Al Mulla, acting CEO of the public Transport Agency Dr Yousef Al Ali, advisor of Dubai Taxi Corporation-cum-head of the Higher Committee of the Mena Centre for Transport Excellence Abdul Aziz Malik, former CEO of Public Transport Agency Eisa Al Dosari, and a host of RTA directors and engineers. “The RTA’s participation in this international centerpiece culminates the successful hosting of the previous edition of the UITP Congress and Exhibition held in Dubai (in) April 2011, ” Al Tayer said. This success led the UITP to agree to hold the new biennial congress and exhibition in Dubai, starting from 2014, he added. Al Tayer and UITP secretary-general Alain Flausch also officially launched the Youth For Public Transport Foundation (Y4PT), a non-profit seeking organisation affiliated to the UITP and sponsored by the RTA. With a head office in Belgium, the 40-member foundation, including 19 from the UAE, will act as ambassadors to encourage the use of public transport systems. Continue reading
