HONG KONG: Empty hotel rooms, struggling shops and even disruption at Disneyland, months of protests in Hong Kong have taken a major toll on the city’s economy, with no end in sight. City leader Carrie Lam has warned that the international financial hub is facing an economic crisis worse than either the 2003 SARS outbreak that paralysed Hong Kong or the 2008 financial crisis. “The situation this time is more severe,” she said. “In other words, the economic recovery will take a very long time.” The private sector, in particular the tourism industry, has begun counting the cost of more…
Author: holidayweekly
JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has announced that first international flights from the new King Abdulaziz International Airport Terminal 1 in Jeddah has launchedon Friday, Aug 9. The first two destinations, operated by kingdom’s national carrier Saudi Arabian Airlines, were Abu Dhabi and Bahrain. Muscat International Airport in Oman was the third destination, which was added on August 10, a Saudi Press Agency report said. Saudi Arabian Airlines had previously transferred the operation and flights of 21 of its domestic destinations to Terminal 1 at the New King Abdulaziz International Airport.
WRITTEN BY Ch. FAISAL MEHMOOD As ‘we the people’ of Pakistan celebrated our Independence Day, we find our children and youth going about it with some merriment, some sadness because of burning issue of Kashmir but the senior citizens yet amongst us are stoic. Not able to smile, not wanting to cry, they are stoically pondering what Pakistan was to be and where it has arrived. The monumental efforts that went into defining and delivering the concept; the all-pervading unity that had gripped the community; the unprecedented sacrifices of human lives, properties, careers and dreams that went into its founding…
KARACHI: The two-day, 60th Children’s Literature Festival (CLF) culminated here last week at Arts Council, where children of all ages and backgrounds as well as adults could be seen participating with great enthusiasm. All locations of the venue being used for the festival had been renamed by CLF to commemorate authors, literati, artists, citizens, noble prize winners and grand geographies of Pakistan like Shah Abdul Latif Bithai Auditorium, Sohail Rana open air theatre, Hakim Said ki Baithak, Anita Ghulam Ali Auditorium, Fahmida Riaz ki Baithak, Dr Hamida Khuhro ki Baithak, Sadequain Gali, Bab-e-Hingol, Abdus Salam labs, Jamshed Nusserwanjee Mehta Courtyard,…
MOSCOW: The Kalashnikov Group of Companies has presented the UV-4 electric car for the taxi market at the 7th International Eurasian Taxi Forum (MEFT) staged in Moscow, the Kalashnikov Media Company says on its website. “The Kalashnikov Group of Companies has presented the UV-4 electric car for the taxi transportation market. The electric vehicle specimen was showed as part of the exhibition of the latest specimens of specialized taxi cars,” the company said. The electric vehicle has a smooth ride and low fire and explosion hazard in case of an accident, the company reports. “It is intended for enterprises, where…
PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet has approved a bill proposing the formation of integrated tourism zones across the province, where several crucial laws for the protection of forests, environment, wildlife and rivers will lose effect. While briefing reporters after the cabinet’s meeting, senior minister KP, Mohammad Atif Khan and spokesman for the government Ajmal Wazir said the cabinet had approved the proposed KP Tourism Act, 2019, which would be presented in the provincial assembly for consent. Besides other things, the bill also proposed to dissolve the Tourism Corporation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (TCKP) and directorate of culture, and form the KP Tourism…
HONG KONG: Cathay Pacific is giving customers more reasons to jet to Japan this winter with the addition of two extra seasonal routes – a new service to Niigata and the return of flights to Tokushima. Travellers looking to hit the slopes can look forward to a new twice-weekly service to Niigata starting October 30, opening up an exciting new region of Japan famed for its snowy winters. The route will be operated by Cathay Dragon on Wednesdays and Saturdays, subject to regulatory approval, using a two-class Airbus A330 aircraft, connecting Niigata with Bahrain via Hong Kong. Meanwhile, the popular…
MULTAN: Last week Mian Muhammad Idrees, CEO Sitara Group Of Industries (Pvt) Ltd was in Multan and preferred to stay at Ramada Multan. As is seen in the picture, upon Arrival he was warmly greeted in the main lobby by Mr. Umar Israr Front Office Manager, Ramada by Wyndham Multan.
MUSCAT: An Oman Air free stayover deal for transit passengers is boosting tourism in Oman, according to the company officials. The initiative, called Oman Air Holidays, began in May after the national airline noticed a significant number of travellers using Muscat International Airport as merely a transit stop, rather than staying to explore the Sultanate. Richard Bodin, Oman Air Holidays Senior Vice President, exclusively told Times of Oman: “[Oman Air Holidays] packages flights with other elements of travel, and that generally speaking, is hotels. We put that into one package, one price, and we offer that to the international market…
Travel technology group Amadeus saw double digit revenue growth and a 9.9% increase in adjusted profit to £667 million for the first six months of this year. It said the increase was due to the solid performances of its distribution and IT solutions businesses, the consolidation of TravelClick since its acquisition last October, and a positive foreign exchange impact. President and CEO Luis Maroto said: “The resilience of our businesses has allowed us to maintain a strong growth trend in the first half of the year despite a weaker travel industry. “Amadeus’ IT Solutions and Distribution businesses continue to grow,…