Tourism
NoozzView; Oman pushing out the tourist boat
A major week long exhibition which ran until July 25th in the balmy Omani southern city of Salalah, site of the Sultan’s summer place, entitled the “Travel, Property and Investment Show,” is symptomatic of the very individualistic tourist drive now being conducted by the Gulf state as part of its bid to diversify the economy away from the energy front.
At the heart of the campaign is the goal of developing the sultanate as an upmarket destination with a focus on culture and adventure, as opposed to the more commercial and mass market approach being adopted by its immediate neighbours (and competitors) Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
N. Emirates: Tourism ready for take off
The northern emirate of Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) is looking to the example set by neighbouring Dubai and is aiming to become a major tourist destination, according to the government organisation tasked with promoting the sector.
Tourism in RAK has been growing at an impressive rate in recent years. Between 2001 and 2005 the sector enjoyed a compound annual growth rate of 45.3 percent, with the number of hotel nights rising from around 35,000 to half a million last year. An impressive figure given that there were only six hotels at that time. Occupancy rates averaged around 85 percent, reaching as high as 88 percent in 2006.
Tourism authority to offer 8 land plots for investment
A senior official at the Egyptian Authority for Tourism Promotion has unveiled that the authority is set to offer plots of land located in attractive areas for tourism investments.
The official pointed out that eight plots of land would be located on beaches in the Marsa Alam region and they could attract foreign investors in the industry. ""Through such projects, the authority plans to add 6,000 hotel rooms in Egyptian destinations with total investments estimated at E£1.5 billion,"" he added. ""The authority has already allocated fourteen land plots to investments in constructing 7,700 with total investments of E£1.7 billion.""
Qatar Entertainment City signs deal with United
Qatar Entertainment City, Abu Dhabi Investment House's unique mega mixed-use development in Qatar, has signed a development agreement with United Real Estate Company, Kuwait, to develop the first of five districts in Qatar Entertainment City.
The US$3 billion development, also commercially known as Tarfeeh City, covers one million square metres of land, including one kilometre of prime beach-front, and is the anchor development for Lusail, the 35 square kilometre northern expansion of the Qatari capital, Doha.
Marriott aims for Bahrain business travel
Marriott International has entered the Bahrain business travel market with the completion of the BD43 million upscale Marriott Executive Apartments, due to open its doors on October 1st.
Bahrain’s Gulf Touristic Projects is the owner while the serviced apartment arm of Marriott International, Marriott Executive Apartments will manage the property. The Kingdom is the third destination in the Middle East region for Marriott Executive Apartments after two projects in Dubai - the 172-unit Dubai Marriott Executive Apartments and 43-unit Marriott Executive Apartments Dubai Green Community. Currently, the serviced apartment arm of Marriott International operates 16 properties in Europe and Asia besides the two in the Middle East.
NoozzVIEW; Qatar takes to the greens
The trend for the world’s top golfers to become involved in imaginative and ambitious schemes in the sun-parched Middle East has increased with news that Qatari cash is being invested in developing a signature 18-hole golf course.
The course will be the centrepiece of a spectacular US$660 million luxury resort project on the romantic North African coast close to the historic Moroccan resort of Tangier.