PARK INN BY RADISSON

Park Inn by Radisson Alkhobar was recently awarded the "Best Mid-market Hotel in Saudi Arabia" at the first Saudi Excellence in Tourism Awards. The awards are held with the support of Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) Chairman Prince Sultan bin Salman. The Alkhobar property fought off tough competition from 16 other nominees in its category to receive the top honor. The public decided the nominees for each category through an online vote before a panel of eight leading national and international experts connected with tourism, hospitality, marketing and commerce, and the winners were based on a range of criteria. Hotel GM Frank said: “This award is testament to all of our hard work here at Park Inn Alkhobar; it’s a great honor to be recognized by our industry colleagues and of course, our customers. This achievement will substantiate our presence in the Kingdom and will further position Park Inn by Radisson as a pioneer in mid-market hotel brands in Saudi Arabia. We are committed to continuing our work in helping to grow and diversify the tourism industry in this country.” The Saudi Excellence in Tourism Awards recognizes organizations and individuals within the travel trade that have made a significant contribution to the Kingdom’s growing tourism industry. The awards are supported by Alef Publishing & Media, publisher of Saudi Voyager magazine that has been the main driving force behind the awards under the support of the SCTA. Park Inn Alkhobar is part of the Rezidor Hotel Group, which also manages five other properties in the Kingdom under the group’s up-scale brand Radisson Blu.
 
QATAR AIRWAYS

Qatar Airways has taken another key step to expand operations in Eastern Europe by increasing capacity on its recently introduced Doha-Budapest route to daily nonstop scheduled services. Effective Sept. 14, the route will be upgraded with three additional flights from the current four-flights-a-week. And the service, currently operating via Bucharest, will be de-linked from the Romanian capital. The latest move is part of an expansion in Eastern Europe where the Doha-based airline recently announced it is boosting online operations by launching four weekly flights to Bulgaria’s capital city of Sofia, also from Sept. 14. The Sofia route will be operated via Bucharest. The Doha-based carrier began flights to Hungary’s capital city of Budapest in January, and the “exceptional response from the traveling public has prompted the decision to upgrade the route within months of the launch,” said Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al-Baker. “We have seen very strong inbound and outbound demand for our Hungarian service since our launch just over two months ago. Forecasts look extremely positive, so we couldn’t really hold back but to increase capacity pending aircraft availability to daily nonstop from September offering more choice and greater convenience to our valued customers.” He said the Budapest route had created new connections between the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific for passenger traffic in and out of Hungary via the airline’s Doha hub.
 
 
EMIRATES

Two of South America’s most iconic cities will soon have a faster link to Dubai and over 100 destinations worldwide when Emirates commences its daily nonstop service to Rio de Janeiro and extension to Buenos Aires from Jan. 3, 2012. “Both Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro are rightly renowned as world-class leisure destinations as well as important business and trading centers. Our research has shown that there is a high demand for these cities from across our network,” said Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, chairman and chief executive, Emirates Airline & Group. “Brazil has been part of the Emirates network since 2007 when we began flights from Dubai to Sao Paulo. With the country playing host to both the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Olympics, Brazil will be further catapulted into the world’s spotlight, and we will be in a prime position to transport sports enthusiasts to these renowned events. Meanwhile, our first service to Argentina is a much-anticipated addition to our network which will open important new markets for us,” he added. The Dubai-Rio de Janeiro-Buenos Aires service will be operated by a Boeing 777-300ER aircraft offering eight First Class Private Suites, 42 lie-flat seats in Business and 304 seats in Economy. “The arrival of Emirates will be an important bridge between Rio de Janeiro and the East, generating many new trade and tourism opportunities,” said Sergio Cabral Filho, governor of the State of Rio de Janeiro.
 
 
GULF AIR

Gulf Air has started its scheduled direct flights to Geneva — its first destination in Switzerland. Its CEO Samer Majali told the guests on arrival in Geneva: “I am delighted to see Gulf Air flying again to Switzerland; it further demonstrates our commitment to connect Bahrain to the region and the rest of the world including some of the world’s leading financial markets, to support Bahrain’s financial services and trade sector.” He said: “I am sure our new direct route linking Geneva with Bahrain and onward through our extensive Middle East network will open up excellent opportunities for business and leisure travelers throughout the region and in Switzerland. 2011 has been a busy year for Gulf Air, with five new routes opening up since January — Milan, Basra, Isfahan, Addis Ababa and Kabul,” he added. Chargé d’affaires of the permanent mission of Bahrain to the UN Mona Abbas Radhi said, “Switzerland has always been one of the favorite destinations for thousands of Bahrainis and GCC nationals. By launching direct services to Geneva, Bahrain’s national carrier Gulf Air has made it much easier not only for the Arabs, but also for expatriates and Swiss nationals wanting to visit Geneva for business, leisure or winter sports.” Geneva has had a special relation with the Gulf area for decades, said Robert Deillon, CEO of Geneva International Airport. The Bahrain-Geneva route is served three-times-a-week with a Boeing 737-700 extended range aircraft.