Author: holidayweekly

MADRID: UNWTO has launched the first in a series of tourism investment guidelines focused on a specific country, representing a comprehensive tool for parties interested in foreign direct investment (FDI) opportunities. Developed alongside the Ministry of Tourism of the Dominican Republic and the National Export and Investment Center (PRODOMINICANA), the new guide provides key insights for investors, with the aim of boosting FDI in the Caribbean destination. Launched against the backdrop of the FITUR tourism trade fair in Madrid, the Investment Guidelines aims to attract promote and retain investment in sustainable tourism initiatives in the Dominican Republic, including those that…

ISLAMABAD: Aga Khan Cultural Service Pakistan (AKCS-P) and Tourism Promotion Services (Pakistan) Limited Owner and Operator of Serena Hotels held an event at Islamabad Serena Hotel to distribute the profits earned from the operations of Serena Shigar Fort and Serena Khaplu Palace with the communities of Shigar and Khaplu, and the Support Fund to Women Enterprise CIQAM from the revenue of Serena Altit Fort Residence for their partnership at Serena Altit Fort Residence. The Ambassador of the Royal Norwegian Embassy H.E. Per Albert ILsaas was the Chief Guest. Chairman Aga Khan Cultural Service Pakistan, Mr Akbar Ali Pesnani and Chief…

WASHINGTON: Major US airlines have warned of an impending “catastrophic” aviation crisis when AT&T and Verizon deploy new 5G service on Wednesday, January 19. They said the switch-on of 5G mobile phone services will cause “major disruption” to flights. The airlines warned the new C-Band 5G service could render a significant number of widebody aircraft unusable, “could potentially strand tens of thousands of Americans overseas” and cause “chaos” for US flights. The warning was issued in a letter sent to US aviation authorities, said a report.  The chief executives of American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines were joined…

MUSCAT: Oman Air, the national airline of Oman, has been granted ‘Airline Retailing Maturity status’ under IATA’s ARM Index Programme. The certification recognises that Oman Air uses Shop/Order capabilities compliant with the standard Enhanced and Simplified Distribution message schema, version 18.2 and the ARM index Capabilities Verification Guidance. Commenting on the certification, Umesh Chhiber, Senior Vice President Revenue Management, Pricing and Distribution at Oman Air, said: “Receiving this status is a proud moment for Oman Air as we now join the first few airlines to have attained the ARM Index certification. Airline retailing has been one of the biggest industry…

GEORGIA: Microsoft is investing $50 million in a LanzaJet facility in Georgia that will produce jet fuel from ethanol next year, LanzaJet said. The airline industry is considered one of the hardest to decarbonize. Renewable aviation fuel accounted for less than 0.1% of current global jet fuel demand of about 330 million tonnes in 2019, investment bank Jefferies said last year. Governments and investors are trying to boost incentives to produce lower-carbon emitting jet fuel. LanzaJet, based in Chicago, said it has nearly completed on-site engineering at its Freedom Pines Biorefinery, with plans to start producing 10 million gallons of…

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister of Pakistan,  Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi called on Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Zurab Pololikashvili in Madrid, Spain on Wednesday, January 12,  and congratulated him on his re-election for the next four-year term, i.e. 2022-2025. Commending the productive role of UNWTO, the UN special agency, in promoting tourism and preserving the heritage, he hoped to benefit from the expertise and specialized knowledge of the UNWTO team in the development and digital transformation of Pakistan’s tourism sector. Highlighting the diverse tourism potential of Pakistan including its historic and archeological sites as well as religious relics, the…

KARACHI: Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Saturday, January 15, banned serving the inflight meal in line with the directives of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) to stem the spread of Omicron, a new variant of coronavirus, from January 17. “Amid rising Omicron cases across the country, the NCOC bans serving meals/snacks onboard domestic flights and public transport effective from January 17,” the authority said on its Twitter handle. The National Command and Operation Centre in a meeting on Saturday discussed the epidemic curve chart data and disease prevalence in wake of rising disease trends in the country,…

PARIS: The French government’s official spokesman, Gabriel Attal, said after a weekly cabinet meeting on Wednesday that Paris would ease travel restrictions from the UK to France in the next few days. “I confirm that a further easing of the restrictions with the UK will be announced in the coming days,” Gabriel Attal told reporters. “Work is continuing. I hope that the announcement can be made by the end of the week.” Vaccinated travellers will no longer need a compelling reason to enter France, and will not have to self-isolate when they arrive. France dramatically tightened restrictions on travel from…

Pieter Elbers, the chief executive of KLM, the Dutch arm of Air France-KLM, will not serve a third term, the company said on Thursday. Elbers, 51, is a 30-year veteran of the company who oversaw restructurings at KLM before and during the coronavirus pandemic. The company said he will step down as of May 1, 2023. KLM has been part of the Air France-KLM group since 2004, but relations between the Dutch subsidiary and its French-dominated parent have been strained in recent years by KLM’s relatively stronger financial performance. “The Air France-KLM Board of Directors has approved that the Supervisory…

LAHORE: The Punjab Foods Authority (PFA) has launched a `Star Rating Programme` in accordance with international standards to motivate and support the restaurant industry and provide good quality and service to customers. PFA Director General Rafaqat Ali Nissoana said this pilot project would help determine the standards of the hotels and restaurants in Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad, Gujranwala and Rawalpindi. He said the project would create a competitive environment among the food businesses for better services and each restaurant was marked with a star to show its ranking. He said the programme would act as an evaluating/measuring tool to reward the…