Emirates has opened a new lounge and the UAE has been named a top global destination for winter tourism.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia has unveiled the final designs for its anticipated Dream of the Desert rail project, and Osaka, Japan has clamped down on public smoking ahead of hosting Expo 2025.
Here is a round-up of recent travel and tourism news – in case you missed it.
Saudi Arabia unveils designs of luxury desert train
Saudi Arabia Railways and Italian luxury hospital group Arsenale have revealed the final designs for the Dream of the Desert rail project, which aims to be the first five-star luxury train in the Middle East.
It consists of 14 carriages that house 34 luxury suites and one restaurant, with a menu that will be curated by local and international chefs.
Departing from Riyadh, the train will cross the Northern Railway network, allowing travellers to explore some of the kingdom’s heritage and natural sites. It will travel will travel approximately 1,250 kilometres from the Saudi capital to Al Qurayyat in the north of the country, close to the Jordanian border.
Reservations have not opened but the first journey is currently slated to take place in the third quarter of 2026.
Inspired by the desert landscape and traditional Saudi architecture, the interiors are sandy, with golds, beiges and darker tones, coupled with intricate Art Deco-inspired decorative details. Architectural elements and motifs from famous Saudi landmarks – including AlUla, Hegra and Hail – are also elegantly incorporated into the train’s design.
UAE becomes top global destination for winter tourism
The World Travel and Tourism Council has reported that the UAE received 29.2 million international tourists in 2024, ranking it first in the region and 18th in the world (up seven places from 2023) during the winter tourism season.
The report further projects that the number of international visitors will reach 45.5 million by 2033. As part of its Tourism Strategy 2031, the UAE aims to attract Dh100 billion worth of investment in tourism and welcome 40 million hotel guests.
With mild winter weather and diverse attractions, the UAE remains a popular destination. It recently launched its fifth “World’s Coolest Winter” campaign, highlighting the country’s cultural and natural experiences.
Emirates opens new lounge in Bangkok
Emirates has opened its new lounge at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport in the SAT-1 Terminal, offering an upgraded experience for premium travellers.
The $5 million refurbishment has transformed the space into the airline’s largest international lounge outside Dubai. Spanning 1,454 square metres, it can accommodate up to 250 guests.
First and business-class passengers, along with eligible Skywards members, can relax in the new lounge, which features shower spas, complimentary Wi-Fi and a diverse menu of local and international dishes as well as Thai desserts.
As part of its mission to enhance the travel experience, Emirates operates six daily flights from Bangkok and now has 41 airport lounges worldwide, including seven in Dubai and 34 across its global network.
Hilton Cairo Nile Maadi opens its doors
Hilton has opened its highly anticipated Hilton Cairo Nile Maadi, offering impressive views of the Nile. Located in Cairo’s Maadi district near the Museum of Civilisation, the hotel features 255 rooms and suites.
The hotel has four food and drink outlets that have local and international flavours. It also features a spa, fitness centre with views of the Nile, an outdoor swimming pool and a children's pool.
"We take a lot of pride in our newest hotel and look forward to welcoming visitors to experience everything the city has to offer," said hotel general manager Haitham Nassar.
Osaka bans public smoking ahead of Expo 2025
The Japanese city of Osaka has banned public smoking ahead of hosting this year’s Expo. Around 160 countries and regions will take part in Expo 2025, which is held in different countries every five years. It will run from April to October and is projected to welcome 28.2 million visitors.
The ban on public smoking began on January 27 and includes parks, plazas, roads and other public places. Vapes are also banned. Smoking was previously banned in six zones, including the area around Osaka station. This has been expanded to the whole city and now violators face a fine of 1,000 yen ($6.45).
RESULTS
Bantamweight:
Zia Mashwani (PAK) bt Chris Corton (PHI)
Super lightweight:
Flavio Serafin (BRA) bt Mohammad Al Khatib (JOR)
Super lightweight:
Dwight Brooks (USA) bt Alex Nacfur (BRA)
Bantamweight:
Tariq Ismail (CAN) bt Jalal Al Daaja (JOR)
Featherweight:
Abdullatip Magomedov (RUS) bt Sulaiman Al Modhyan (KUW)
Middleweight:
Mohammad Fakhreddine (LEB) bt Christofer Silva (BRA)
Middleweight:
Rustam Chsiev (RUS) bt Tarek Suleiman (SYR)
Welterweight:
Khamzat Chimaev (SWE) bt Mzwandile Hlongwa (RSA)
Lightweight:
Alex Martinez (CAN) bt Anas Siraj Mounir (MAR)
Welterweight:
Jarrah Al Selawi (JOR) bt Abdoul Abdouraguimov (FRA)
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Your rights as an employee
The government has taken an increasingly tough line against companies that fail to pay employees on time. Three years ago, the Cabinet passed a decree allowing the government to halt the granting of work permits to companies with wage backlogs.
The new measures passed by the Cabinet in 2016 were an update to the Wage Protection System, which is in place to track whether a company pays its employees on time or not.
If wages are 10 days late, the new measures kick in and the company is alerted it is in breach of labour rules. If wages remain unpaid for a total of 16 days, the authorities can cancel work permits, effectively shutting off operations. Fines of up to Dh5,000 per unpaid employee follow after 60 days.
Despite those measures, late payments remain an issue, particularly in the construction sector. Smaller contractors, such as electrical, plumbing and fit-out businesses, often blame the bigger companies that hire them for wages being late.
The authorities have urged employees to report their companies at the labour ministry or Tawafuq service centres — there are 15 in Abu Dhabi.
TOUCH RULES
Touch is derived from rugby league. Teams consist of up to 14 players with a maximum of six on the field at any time.
Teams can make as many substitutions as they want during the 40 minute matches.
Similar to rugby league, the attacking team has six attempts - or touches - before possession changes over.
A touch is any contact between the player with the ball and a defender, and must be with minimum force.
After a touch the player performs a “roll-ball” - similar to the play-the-ball in league - stepping over or rolling the ball between the feet.
At the roll-ball, the defenders have to retreat a minimum of five metres.
A touchdown is scored when an attacking player places the ball on or over the score-line.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, last-16, second leg (first-leg scores in brackets):
PSG (2) v Manchester United (0)
Midnight (Thursday), BeIN Sports
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
Who is Mohammed Al Halbousi?
The new speaker of Iraq’s parliament Mohammed Al Halbousi is the youngest person ever to serve in the role.
The 37-year-old was born in Al Garmah in Anbar and studied civil engineering in Baghdad before going into business. His development company Al Hadeed undertook reconstruction contracts rebuilding parts of Fallujah’s infrastructure.
He entered parliament in 2014 and served as a member of the human rights and finance committees until 2017. In August last year he was appointed governor of Anbar, a role in which he has struggled to secure funding to provide services in the war-damaged province and to secure the withdrawal of Shia militias. He relinquished the post when he was sworn in as a member of parliament on September 3.
He is a member of the Al Hal Sunni-based political party and the Sunni-led Coalition of Iraqi Forces, which is Iraq’s largest Sunni alliance with 37 seats from the May 12 election.
He maintains good relations with former Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki’s State of Law Coaliton, Hadi Al Amiri’s Badr Organisation and Iranian officials.
Crops that could be introduced to the UAE
1: Quinoa
2. Bathua
3. Amaranth
4. Pearl and finger millet
5. Sorghum
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
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The 12 Syrian entities delisted by UK
Ministry of Interior
Ministry of Defence
General Intelligence Directorate
Air Force Intelligence Agency
Political Security Directorate
Syrian National Security Bureau
Military Intelligence Directorate
Army Supply Bureau
General Organisation of Radio and TV
Al Watan newspaper
Cham Press TV
Sama TV
Qosty Byogaani
Starring: Hani Razmzi, Maya Nasir and Hassan Hosny
Four stars
Best Foreign Language Film nominees
Capernaum (Lebanon)
Cold War (Poland)
Never Look Away (Germany)
Roma (Mexico)
Shoplifters (Japan)
Empire of Enchantment: The Story of Indian Magic
John Zubrzycki, Hurst Publishers
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
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The Kites
Romain Gary
Penguin Modern Classics
