ABU DHABI: The UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) and the National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Emergency Management Authority (NCEMA) have announced the suspension of all inbound flights for national and international carriers coming from India, as reported. The travel ban includes inbound transit passengers with exception of transit flights coming to the UAE and heading to India, stated the report, citing a GCAA statement. The GCAA indicated that it is required for those coming from India through other countries that the period of stay in those countries is not less than 14 days to be allowed to enter the…
Author: holidayweekly
RIYADH: Saudi Arabian Airlines has revealed that 20 countries, on which a travel ban was imposed in early February, will not be included in the decision to resume international flights from May 17, said a report. The Saudia sources said this in a statement on its Twitter account while replying to a query regarding if the travel suspension will be lifted for all countries, including the banned ones, reported Saudi Gazette. “Welcome, our dear guest, the suspension of all international flights will be lifted starting from 1 am on Monday, May 17. But this won’t be applicable to countries where…
DUBAI: Arabian Travel Market (ATM) has reconfirmed that the 2021 edition of its annual showcase will go ahead in person at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC). The event is currently scheduled to start on Sunday, May 16th, with final preparations currently being put in place. The show will strictly adhere to the health and safety guidelines set by the Dubai government and followed by the venue. Danielle Curtis, exhibition director, Middle East, Arabian Travel Market, said: “Dubai is one of the safest cities in the world to visit with a wide range of precautionary measures in place to ensure…
TOKYO: Tokyo’s Olympics chief said on Friday that Japan was committed to holding a safe Games this summer, as a surge in COVID-19 cases prompted an expansion of contagion controls and with fresh calls for the Games to again be postponed or cancelled. The government expanded quasi-emergency measures to 10 regions as the fourth wave of infections spread, casting more doubt on whether the Olympics can be held in Tokyo in fewer than 100 days. “We’re not thinking of cancelling the Olympics,” Tokyo 2020 President Seiko Hashimoto said, speaking on behalf of the organizing committee. “We will continue to do…
Carnival Corporation has reported a net loss of US$2 billion for the first quarter of 2021. The company was forced to halt all sailings in March last year as the Covid-19 pandemic spread around the world and has yet to return in many markets. However, Carnival said the cash burn rate in the first quarter was better than expected as the company identified and implemented opportunities to optimize its monthly spending. The group currently expects six of its nine brands to resume limited guest cruise operations by this summer. Aida resumed operations in March sailing in the Canary Islands, while…
HONG KONG: A new sea-to-air ferry transfer service from Shenzhen Shekou Port to the SkyPier in the airside of Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) will be offered from April 15 by Qatar Airways, which hopes to improve passenger movement in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA). Qatar Airways customers can purchase their ferry tickets from SkyLink or the port’s website. They will be provided with boarding passes and baggage check-through service to their final destinations at the Shenzhen Shekou terminal, where they will also clear their customs and immigration. Southern China travelers can soon enjoy a convenient sea-to-air service…
KARACHI: The European Union Aviation Safety Agency has indefinitely extended the suspension of Pakistan International Airlines flight operations to the EU until it has all the necessary information “available to decide on the way forward”, reported The News. PIA’s Third Country Operations Authorization (TCOA) was suspended by the EU in July 2020 for six months after controversial statements by Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan regarding the verification of degrees of Pakistani pilots working for the national flag carrier and other airlines. The EASA decision to suspend PIA flight operations to the EU had come in February 2021, after the International…
LONDON: Travelodge has announced the appointment of leisure travel veteran, Martin Robinson, as its new Chairman. He has spent most of his career within the sector and brings a wealth of brand building, strategic management, and leadership expertise. He spent 17-years at Center Parcs as chief executive of their European business and chairman of the UK. Robinson also spent ten years on the boards of Disneyland Paris and Regus and has chaired various other businesses, including Holmes Place Health Clubs and Wagamama. He currently chairs the UK business for Burger King, the second-largest fast-food chain in the world, and Parkdean…
LONDON: The World Travel & Tourism Council’s annual Economic Impact Report today reveals that the dramatic collapse of the UK’s Travel & Tourism sector has wiped out a staggering £148 billion from the UK economy. The annual EIR from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, shows the sector’s contribution to GDP, dropped by a precipitous 62.3%. Travel & Tourism GDP fell from £238 billion (10.1%) in 2019 before the pandemic struck, to just £90 billion (4.2%), a mere 12 months later, in 2020. The year of crippling travel restrictions, and…
GILGIT: First-ever direct flight from Lahore of the national flag carrier, Pakistan International Airline (PIA) landed at the Skardu Airport here on Wednesday, April 07. The PK-8453 flight took off from the Allama Iqbal International Airport on Wednesday morning with 153 passengers on board and landed at the Skardu Airport after one hour and 15 minutes. The PIA officials received and presented bouquets of flowers to the passengers at the airport. Later, a cake-cutting ceremony was also held to celebrate the occasion. Gilgit-Baltistan tourism minister Raja Nasir Ali Khan said the first PIA flight coming directly from Lahore also received…