Arabian Travel Market 2013 – Day 1 Roundup

HH Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum opened the 20th Arabian Travel Market in Dubai on Monday, the region’s biggest tourism and hospitality event, with the world’s leading airlines, hotels and destinations in attendance.

Spanning 22,000 sq metres of floor space and with over 2,500 exhibitors, the big talking points on day one came from three well-attended press conferences.

Emirates president Tim Clark told reporters that the Dubai carrier’s partnership with Qantas Airways was not a reaction to competition movements, namely Etihad’s deal with Virgin Australia, but the collaboration was made purely for mutual gains.

Speaking alongside Alan Joyce, CEO of the Australian carrier, Clark said the partnership is a ‘win-win’ for both airlines.

Earlier in the day, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al Maktoum, chairman and CEO of Emirates, said the airline had a sibling-like relationship with Dubai and that the two have “grown together hand in hand over the last 20 years”.

Reporters also heard that Emirates plans to fly to 180 destinations by the year 2020. The airline currently flies to over 120 locations worldwide after adding 15 new destinations last year.

Elsewhere at Dubai’s International Convention and Exhibition Centre, Qatar Airways chief Akbar al Baker announced new routes for the carrier across three continents.

Ethiopia, the Philippines and Philadelphia in the United States will become the latest destinations connecting to Doha, while the airline’s frequency on its routes to Pakistan will increase by 60 per cent.

On the hospitality front, Anantara Hotels and Resorts announced it expects its global portfolio to encompass 50 properties by 2015.

Its continued growth over the next two years will include new locations in Dubai and Qatar as well as five in Abu Dhabi, where it currently has its Qasr Al Sarab resort.