His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, recently held talks with President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov of Turkmenistan on improving bilateral ties between the two countries.

The leaders also discussed the memorandum of understanding signed in Abu Dhabi between the UAE and Turkmenistan, which is expected to significantly contribute towards opening new channels of economic, trade and industrial cooperation for benefit and common interest of both their peoples.



During the talks at Za’abeel Palace, HH Sheikh Mohammed said that he welcomed all steps taken to energise cooperation with Turkmenistan, which reflect the directives of UAE President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan to boost bilateral relations in a bid to achieve their countries shared aspirations.



The talks were also...

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The Dubai Department of Tourism of Commerce Marketing (DTCM) has received a Spanish award which recognized Dubai as the best luxury destination.

The award – El Club del Buen Turismo – was presented to Mr. Abdullah Suwaidan, DTCM Deputy Director of Overseas Promotions and Inward Missions, by Mr. Manuel Matellan, Manager of El Club del Buen Turismo, at the Dubai Stand in Fitur-2010 exhibition held in Madrid recently.

Dubai participated in the 30th edition of FITUR, the Spanish International Travel and Tourism Fair, from January 20 to 24. Dubai Stand had 15 co-participants, including Emirates Airlines, an increase of three compared with the previous edition.  



He presented a Dubai souvenir to His Highness King Juan Carlos I of Spain and his wife when they visited the Dubai Stand at the fair. 



Spain is a promising market for Dubai tourism industry and Emirates, the international airline of the United Arab Emirates, is to start flights to Madrid, providing the only scheduled passenger service between Dubai and Spain.

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The Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) utilised its ninth successive year participation in the East Mediterranean International Travel and Tourism Exhibition (EMITT-2010) in Istanbul to promote and market the emirate as a leisure and business destination in the East Mediterranean markets which are emerging as a promising market for Dubai’s tourism industry.

The EMITT was held in the Turkish city from February 11 to 14.



Ali Abdul Wahab, Head of Region, East & West Europe at Overseas Promotions and Inward Missions Department at DTCM, represented the DTCM at the four-day show.



Among the VIPs who visited the Dubai Stand was Ertugrul Gunay, Turkey’s Minister for Culture and Tourism. The Dubai Stand attracted nine co-participations from the emirate’s tourism industry. The show is among the world’s top ten tourism fairs.

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For the fourth successive year, the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) and its 18 co-participants showcased Dubai’s attractions and tourism product offerings at the South Asia’s biggest travel and tourism exhibition held in the Indian capital city. Held from January 28 to 30 at the Pragati Maidan in New Delhi, the 17th edition of South Asia Travel and Tourism Expo (SATTE-2010) saw increasing its size of stand to 144 square metres compared with 121 square metres last year and the number of co-participants to 18 from 14.

SATTE is considered the biggest and finest travel exhibition of India and South Asia. The exhibition is the first of its kind, featuring buyer-seller meet in this region.



Talal Al Suwaidi, Head of Region-India, Middle East & Southern / Eastern Africa at DTCM’s Overseas Promotions and Inward Missions Department, said, “We are pleased to...

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Dubai Convention Bureau (DCB), operating under Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM), has launched its newly designed website.

The new website has been upgraded with more client-friendly features including a searchable database, downloadable marketing tools, and references to make doing business in Dubai easy.



The website not only looks fresh and modern, but is also more user friendly with many added features.



Users will now be able to access an interactive venue search with printable mapping tool, download sample itineraries, order marketing tools and take advantage of a new planner’s toolkit



It exciting new features includes an interactive venue search including a mapping tool, sample itineraries, enhanced planner’s toolkit and easier method to submit RFP.



In 2009, DCB generated 62 congress leads with an...

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The Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM), in cooperation with the leading German magazine for tourism and business travel targeting travel agents and tour operators, fvw International, organised a five-day tourism workshop and familiarization tour of the emirate for a select group of representatives from Germany’s leading tour operators, travel agencies and media.

Opening the workshop Madinat Dar Al Masyaf Hotel, Mr. Ibrahim Yaqoot, DTCM Executive Director Corporate Support, said: “Our aim behind conducting this workshop is to drive more visitors to Dubai from Germany and to increase Dubai's awareness in this crucial European market. This workshop confirms Dubai’s popularity in the German market and its strong confidence in the emirate’s tourism industry.”   



Mr. Hamad bin Mejren, DTCM Executive Director Business Tourism, gave a presentation on the cruise...

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Under the patronage of HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council, the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) is organizing the Dubai International Exhibition of the Arabic Calligraphy Art in collaboration with the Research Centre for Islamic History, Art and Culture (IRCICA) of Istanbul. The exhibition begins on February 24 and runs till February 28.

The exhibition will host 48 calligraphers from within and outside the United Arab Emirates, who will come from various Arab and Islamic countries, including the UAE, Iran, Jordan, Iraq, Syria, Spain, Egypt, Palestine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sudan and Saudi Arabia. This year, the Turkish pavilion will be the guest of honor and will feature more than 17 distinguished artists and calligraphers.



After the success of the Dubai International...

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Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has transported in 2009 over 16 million passengers on marine transport modes.

RTA Marine Agency said 16,894,461 persons used various marine transport means, including waterbus, motorized Abra and oaring Abra, last year.



The Agency lifted 532,062 passengers in 128,092 trips on board the waterbus last year.



Motorized Abras transported 16,345,303 passengers in 817,265 trips, while oaring Abras ferried 16,689 passengers in 15,104 trips.



Through a comprehensive plan for projects, Marine Agency managed in 2009 to develop marine public transport services introducing oaring Abra services in various areas of Dubai Emirate in coordination with the concerned entities.



The comprehensive plan program is part of the RTA’s drive towards adopting maritime developmental projects that aim to mitigate traffic...

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Latest figures from the region’s leading venue operator and events organiser, the Dubai World Trade Centre, or DWTC, have revealed a 12 per cent increase in visitor volumes for exhibitions, conventions and conferences at its venues in 2009.

Exhibitor numbers also topped 2008 figures by 2.5 per cent with a total of 31,197 exhibiting companies. The company’s year-end results demonstrate the continued growth of the region’s events industry, as well as an increase in business confidence, with many leading shows across a range of sectors reporting growth in exhibitor and visitor numbers in 2009.



Despite global economic uncertainties, the DWTC venues — Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre, or DICEC, and Airport Expo Dubai — welcomed approximately 1,240,000 visitors across exhibitions, meetings, and conferences last year.





“The 12 per cent...

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His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, attended the 4th Dubai International Racing Carnival on 11th February, where he watched the event’s first Classic, the 1000 Guineas race for fillies.    

Dubai Crown Prince His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Land Department H.H Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Maktoum, a number of senior officials, horse owners and a large crowd of racing enthusiasts also attended the race.