LIVE FROM ARABIAN TRAVEL MARKET 2013: DAY TWO

05:38pm: First time exhibitor at Arabian Travel Market, Miami and the Beaches Convention & Visitor Bureau, aims to inform the travel trade of its luxury lifestyle that could be attractive to the regional market.

05.18: Bin Majid has announced its plans to invest 150 million in the region, with two properties in Abu Dhai due to open and two hotels in the pipeline for Dubai.

04:36pm: There are more than 3,000 hotel rooms due for completion by the end of 2014 in Oman, according to figures released by the country’s Ministry of Tourism.

His Excellency Ahmed Al Mahrizi, Oman’s Minister of Tourism said the new developments would put the country’s tourism industry “on a new footing”.

03:42pm: Be sure to visit JA Resorts & Hotels at ATM.  Having recently introduced direct bookings via its various Facebook pages, the Dubai-based hospitality operator is taking the 2013 Arabian Travel Market as an opportunity to showcase its presence on Foursquare, the world’s largest location-based social network. Check into their stand via Foursquare on mobile devices and you will be able to unlock exclusive special offers, interact with other visitors and the JA team, and find out more about the operators current and upcoming ventures.

03:35pm:  IFA Hotels & Resorts, which is part-owned by Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, denied it is to sell the recently opened Fairmont hotel on Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah, but confirmed it is in talks to sell a minority stake. The 381-room hotel, which opened in January, is currently in talks with Middle East investors to sell a minority stake in the hotel, which has been valued at around $350m.

3.00pm: The Sri Lankan Tourism Council reveals one million tourists visited during 2012, generating revenues of over $1bn. This year they’re hoping that grows to 1.25 million visitors this year. Shangri-La and Hyatt Regency are both new hotels being built in the country and hope to increase the room number from where it currently stands at 14,000. In 2012, and more MENA specific, the biggest tourist numbers to Sri Lanka came from KSA and the UAE at 19,423 and 11,083 respectively. In terms of its airline, there has been a 26% increase in air links between Sri Lanka and MENA in 2012. The UAE is a key market with Sri Lanka Airways currently operating nine weekly flights into Dubai, seven to Sharjah and six to Abu Dhabi. In the nest 24-36 months, there are plans to add a further 10 aircrafts to its fleet.

02:45pm: Jumeirah Group has scrapped plans for a so-called ‘six-star’ property in the Scottish city of Glasgow, according to its CEO. The $200m Jumeirah Glasgow Hotel was originally set to open in 2011, and was billed as the jewel in the crown in a huge rejuvenation of the Scottish city. However, the project was plagued with delays which culminated in the hotel’s developer going into administration.

02:09pm: Flash Entertainment has just announced that Depeche Mode will close out the 2013 F1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix race weekend

1.30pm: Social Media whizz Ruth Haffenden of 4 Communications, London talks about why hoteliers should be taking notice of bloggers, at the Google Technology Theatre. Here are her five tips on making blogging work for you.

1. Do your research – make sure you read the blog and understand what sort of topics the blogger covers
2. Ask for stats – don’t be afraid to ask for user numbers, media traffic, FaceBook fans and so on.
3. It’s not all about the numbers – what are the demographics of the people they are reaching with their content. A blogger may only have 1000 readers, but those 1000 might be in your niche compared to another blogger with 100,000.
4. Clarify expectations – what do you hope to get out of this? In return, what can you offer them – if you’re a destination hotelier, perhaps a free stay, or a city tour might be appealing to them.
5. Encourage exploration – Bloggers know their stuff and they know what people are going to read. Give them the time to explore what they want to write about. For an effective blog post, point them in the right direction but don’t limit them as to what they should write about.

01:01pm: Travel comparison website Wego has revealed that Saudi Arabia accounts for its largest user base amongst the Gulf states.
Saudi Arabians and foreign residents living in the Kingdom are embracing the travel comparison site faster than even the rapid adoption of other communities in the region, with the volume currently tripling every two months, according to the metasearch company.

12:46pm: Relaxing visa requirements will increase passenger traffic and make Dubai a more attractive destination, according to CEO flydubai, Ghaith Al Ghaith.
“Easing visa processes has supported the growth of the aviation sector throughout the UAE, over the past few years, by allowing 32 nationalities to benefit from receiving a visa on arrival,” he asserted.
“This approach has been possible due to the continued efforts of the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs. Further simplification of the visa processes will contribute to substantially increased global passenger traffic and will make Dubai an even more attractive destination for both leisure and business travellers in support of the Government’s Tourism Vision for 2020.”

11:52am: Egypt’s Minister of Tourism, HE Hisham Zaazou has revealed that the Egyptian Government is attempting to attract Arab Families with special offers in a bid to boost tourism figures.
Speaking on the side lines of ATM at Raffles Dubai, Zaazou also explained that live camera streams had been set up in popular tourist destinations to show how calm they are.

11.30am: The Ritz-Carlton group made a few very exciting announcements this morning. By the end of 2014 it will add two further hotels to its portfolio – both in Morocco; the first in Rabat near the Salam Golf Course which will comprise 120 guest rooms and 15 villas. The second will be in Marrakech, 20km from the city and set within a polo field. It will boast 60 suites and 20 hotel villas. A further upcoming project is its hotel in Tunis whose biggest feature is the destination spa with 22 treatment rooms and a tennis court. It’s got a pretty busy year ahead with two launches in China, in Kazakhstan, Bangalore and Arouba. Its project in Cairo, whose construction has been affected by the political troubles in the city is set to be complete by Q1 2014. It was definitely worth sticking around for this conference – there were even pretty little Ritz-Carlton cakes at the end. Score!

11:19am: The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company has unveiled plans to open its first property in Rabat, the capital city of the Kingdom of Morocco, which will become the third property in the brand’s North Africa portfolio.

Owned by Sienna Investment Group, construction is already underway and The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company expects the resort to open in December 2014.

11:05am: Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide has revealed that Grand Hills Hotel & Spa in Broumana – an upscale mountain resort town near Beirut, Lebanon – will join its iconic Luxury Collection portfolio in 2015.
Owned by Mouawad Village Broumana Sal., Grand Hills, a Luxury Collection Resort will mark the brand’s entry into Lebanon following a complete renovation.

10.45am: Sabre Travel has launched its Custom Offers programme allowing travel suppliers to merchandise their customer offers and allowing shoppers to shop more efficiently. It works based on a “trip-centric model,” explained the UAE reps. “The hotel supplier can identify a customer via their choices, allowing the hotelier to tailor the product and messaging accordingly – is te customer loyal? How valuable is this customer to me? They can then present their rates and offers based on that customer’s needs,” explained CEO Daniel Naoumovitch. Basically there’s a three-way benefit: Custom Offers allows the hotelier to drive a new level of campaign when offering rates and target a particular customer; for the humble travel agent, it allows a new level of personalised service – essential for appealing to today’s customer; and for the traveler – it gives them the chance to use the status they have in a loyalty programme or through frequently visiting a particular destination. “It allows all three parties to improve the travel experience,” said Naoumovitch.

8.45am: There's plenty in store for today, with the UNWTO&ATM Ministerial Forum taking place along with a host of interesting seminars and a session on the website that is always a hot topic at ATM, TripAdvisor.
 

8am: The Hotelier team gathers for a quick debrief ahead of day two at ATM. With a stack of headlines yesterday — from Rezidor, Hilton Worldwide, Anantara, Starwood, Shaza and more announcing new hotels — there's plenty to discuss. There's also the parties of course, with staff writer Parinaaz attending The Address event at Calabar, editor Louise catching up with investors at Wyndham's Ramada Plaza party, staff writer David watching synchronised swimmers at Jumeirah Creekside and HotelierMiddleEast.com editor Jackie closing AHIC with IFA Hotel Investments bash at Fairmont The Palm.

13.07: Speaking at the UNWTO Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz says Saudi Arabia will emulate Dubai to become a hub for travel and expects huge growth in Medina and Makkah.