Fourth Oasis Class for Royal Caribbean
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd has agreed with STX France to move forward on the order of a fourth Oasis-class ship for delivery in 2018. "The Oasis Class was a revolution in maritime design when it was launched in 2009. Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas continue to be in a class by themselves, both in terms of guest satisfaction and financial returns," said Richard D. Fain, chairman and chief executive officer, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Oasis III will be about 20 per cent more energy efficient than Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas, which already are the most energy efficient cruise ships in the world. The fourth Oasis-class ship will further build on that efficiency.Royal Caribbean International triumphed at the World Travel Awards again, scooping the award for the Middle East’s Leading Cruise Line for the fifth consecutive year. Royal Caribbean Arabia honoured 13 travel industry partners from the Middle East early May for their outstanding contribution to generating cruise sales in 2013. The award ceremony was attended by travel trade and media at a special ceremony held at the Emirates Towers, Dubai.IFA and Tijaria launch $50m club IFA Hotels & Resorts (IFA HR) has joined forces with Kuwait-based Tijaria to launch their first-ever vacation club business. The announcement was made on the opening day of the 2014 Arabian Hotel Investment Conference. The $50 million joint venture, Aria Vacation Club, will provide its members with ‘unparalleled vacation experiences that generate a lifetime of cherished memories’. To deliver on this mission, Aria aims to partner with third-party developers who can bring high-quality inventory into the club quickly. The points-based Aria Vacation Club is expected to begin formal operation in 18 months’ time, when its flagship Dubai property – Kingdom of Sheba – opens on the crescent of the Palm Jumeirah.
Chic offers Ramadan services In celebration of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr, five of the nine Chic Outlet Shopping Villages in Europe – Bicester Village near London, La Vallée Village near Paris, Maasmechelen Village near Brussels, Ingolstadt Village near Munich, and Wertheim Village near Frankfurt – will offer a series of special events and services for guests visiting from the Middle East. These services include additional discounts, access to a special luxury lounge, free shuttle services, hands-free shopping, Arabic maps, prayer areas and other conveniences with the Middle Eastern traveller in mind.
Luxury wellness exhibition this JuneRoyal India Wellness initiated by Dubai-based HNI-Luxury consultants GLOBUZZ, will hold a three-day exhibition from June 11 to 13 at Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Dubai. At least 25 luxury wellness service and retail therapy providers will offer free access to therapy introductions, consultations, product experience lounges and seminars on luxury wellness, clinical and holistic healing from eminent consultants, therapists and medical authorities.The numbers are staggering: according to the Global Wellness Institute, luxury wellness tourism is already a $439 billion market (or more than one in seven of all tourist dollars) and is set to grow to $678.5 billion by 2017. UAE is one of the top spenders from the GCC to vouch for holistic treatments in India. Statistics show UAE residents spent an estimated $6.6 billion per year on international holiday trips of which $4.0 billion is spent on medical and luxury wellness tourism. Six million visitors from UAE are stated to fly to India for luxury wellness tourism and India’s total wellness market is valued at $18 billion in the next four years.
Four Seasons’ first fully branded jetFour Seasons continues to reimagine luxury hospitality with the introduction of the Four Seasons Jet, the industry’s first fully branded private jet experience.With Four Seasons on the fuselage and the iconic Four Seasons logo on the tail, the completely retrofitted Boeing 757 will begin February 2015. The Four Seasons Jet will transport 52 guests on bespoke journeys such as a trip around nine destinations in the world over 24 days, with accommodation in premium Four Seasons properties.