ArabWeeks

The “United for Wildlife Buckingham Palace Declaration (UFW)” which was on the agenda of the 73rd IATA Annual General Meeting held in Cancun, Mexico last June, has been signed by 41 airline companies so far.

The declaration, also signed by institutions such as ACI, AFRAA, AASA and London Heathrow Airport, is aiming to stop the illegal wildlife trade of tusk, rhino horn, tortoise shell etc. as well as increasing passenger, customer, client, and staff awareness about the nature, scale, and consequences of the illegal wildlife trade.

The declaration was approved today by Turkish Airlines at a signing ceremony held at the Turkish Airlines Istanbul Headquarters, attended by Bilal Ekşi, Turkish Airlines Deputy Chairman and CEO, and IATA Director General, Alexandre de Juniac.

“With this declaration, we as Turkish Airlines are not only underlining one of the most important environmental issues of our times, trafficking of wildlife, but we are also setting an example of responsibility. Today with this signature we hope that we are contributing to the level of awareness on the issue and smoothing the path for legal enforcement procedures against the traffickers.” quoted Mr. Bilal Ekşi, Turkish Airlines Deputy Chairman and CEO during the signing ceremony.

IATA Director General, Mr. Alexandre de Juniac said; “The illegal wildlife trade threatens to extinguish many of the world’s most iconic and special creatures. The global connectivity built by the aviation industry is being exploited by traffickers, but through coordinated action with our industry partners, and assisting the proper authorities, we can help to end this dreadful trade. We welcome Turkish Airlines’ commitment to join this fight, symbolized in its signature to the Buckingham Palace declaration.”

Airlines’ commitments expression and demonstration of agreement to tackle the illegal wildlife trade are as follows;

1. Adopt or encourage the adoption of a zero-tolerance policy regarding illegal wildlife trade.
2. Increase passenger, customer, client, and staff awareness about the nature, scale, and consequences of illegal wildlife trade.
3. Promote the Declaration and its Commitments across the entire transport sector and encourage all in the sector to sign up to the Declaration.
4. Develop mechanisms to enable the transport sector to receive timely information about the transport of suspected illegal wildlife and their products, including methods of transportation, key routes, ports and other locations.
5. Enhance data systems, including due diligence and risk assessment, to allow the transport sector and/or enforcement agencies to screen data and/or cargo, to identify potential shipments of suspected illegal wildlife and their products.
6. Identify and promote systems for staff and the public to report suspicions in relation to the transportation of illegal wildlife and their products.
7. Improve the training of staff within the transport sector to enable them to detect, identify and report suspected illegal wildlife trade, and acknowledge staff who champion this cause.
8. Develop a secure, harmonized system for passing information about suspected illegal wildlife trade from the transport sector to relevant customs and law enforcement authorities, where permitted by law.
9. Notify relevant law enforcement authorities of cargoes suspected of containing illegal wildlife and their products and, where able, refuse to accept or ship such cargoes.
10. Establish a cross-disciplinary team working with local customs and law enforcement authorities to develop a system of best practice for combatting illegal wildlife trade in key ports.
11. Support the development of mechanisms by the World Customs Organization and national customs authorities to aid the detection and prevention of trade in illegal wildlife and their products.

Dur Hospitality has revealed that Phase 4 of its luxury Darraq Residences development located in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter is proving hugely popular with prospective tenants, with the entire allocation of residential villas and apartments close to being assigned.

The remarkable achievement is a testament to the popularity of the luxury development, with phases 1 to 3 already fully occupied by tenants. Phase 4 is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2018.

Darraq Residences are tailor-made for businesspeople, diplomats, and senior executives seeking a modern lifestyle in a luxurious, safe and private environment for themselves and their families.

Commenting on the popularity of the development, Mr. Sultan Al Otaibi, Vice President of Property Management and Assets at Dur Hospitality, said: “With Darraq Residences, we took our vast experience managing and operating hotels and used it to create a premium luxury residential community that showcases the best aspects of our hospitality offerings.

“Darraq Residences set a new benchmark for the architectural design, luxury appointments and integrated, sustainable services. It is more than just a residential project; it is an integrated lifestyle development. It combines an unrivaled location in the heart of the Diplomatic Quarter and luxury accommodation options designed to appeal to clients seeking an extravagant, five-star lifestyle.”

Darraq Residences have been designed and developed according to the highest international standards and feature cutting-edge, integrated smart home technology, providing residents with the ability to monitor and remotely control various functions including interior lighting, air-conditioning, and home security networks.

Darraq Residences’ central location in the heart of the Diplomatic Quarter provides tenants easy access to the precinct’s premier amenities, including public utilities, gardens and parks, schools, meditation and health centres, restaurants and entertainment facilities.

This year, the theme is “Unrivaled Experiences Made Together”.  Marriott has done a lot to be a greener company over the past years. All Marriott hotels around the globe have been hosting their own customer appreciation events and going out in their communities to thank their loyal customers.

The Sales and Marketing team of the Riyadh Marriott Hotel, Marriott Executive Apartments and Courtyard Riyadh Diplomatic Quarter participated in appreciation calls  for their clients followed up by visits to a significant number of them along with breakfast treats. The visits were highlights of the week and appreciated by all.

“Global Customer Appreciation Week is always very special for us. It gives us the opportunity to personally thank our customers, and get engaged with them together in lot of activities.” said Mr. Muin Serhan, Cluster General Manager of Riyadh Marriott Hotel, Marriott Executive Apartments Riyadh, Riyadh Marriott Hotel Diplomatic Quarter, Courtyard by Marriott Diplomatic Quarter and Marriott Executive Apartments Riyadh Diplomatic Quarter.

In addition to the major events, the team also organized numerous activities for the whole week. Some of these events included a Customer Appreciation reception at Marriott Convention Center in Riyadh Marriott Hotel. During this event customers interacted with the entire Sales & Marketing team as well as other members of the management teams. Also a valued awards was raffled off during the event for a various Marriott hotels in the region

“Our aim is to strengthen our relationships with our clients as they are the reason for Marriott’s success. This week provides us the opportunity to thank our guests personally by devoting the entire week towards this goal” said

Mr. Moataz Eltabei, Cluster Director of Sales and Marketing for five Marriott hotels in Riyadh.

The week culminated on Wednesday Nov. 8th with activities planned at each hotel specifically for local nonprofit organizations catering to those in the community as a key core value for the company.

The Rezidor Hotel Group, one of the fastest growing hotel companies in the world and a member of Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, is pleased to announce two new hotel signings in Saudi Arabia. An agreement has been signed with one of the leading Saudi property development companies, Gulf Real Estate Company, to operate Park Inn by Radisson Hotel & Apartments, Riyadh Olaya North and Park Inn by Radisson Hotel & Apartments, Dammam West Avenue. The hotels will increase Rezidor’s portfolio in Saudi Arabia to 38 hotels in operation and under development. Both hotels are expected to open in Q4 2019.

Elie Younes, Executive Vice President & Chief Development Officer of The Rezidor Hotel Group says: “We continue to grow the Park Inn by Radisson brand in the mid-market segment across Saudi Arabia, and mark the signing of the Group’s 14th Park Inn by Radisson property in the Kingdom. We also see a significant market opportunity for internationally branded serviced apartments, in line with the growth in domestic leisure tourism and completion of major infrastructure projects. We are thankful to our owners Gulf Real Estate Company for their trust in our brands and their commitment to developing tourism in the Kingdom.”

Nasir Albadah, Managing Director, Gulf Real Estate Company, says: “We are pleased to enter into an agreement for our two hotel projects with The Rezidor Hotel Group, one of the world’s leading hotel operators. We are confident that both hotel projects will benefit greatly from Rezidor’s international expertise and sound understanding of the local market. The Park Inn by Radisson brand is the perfect fit for both the commercial hub of Riyadh and the business travelers and tourists visiting the city of Dammam.”

Park Inn by Radisson Hotel & Apartments, Riyadh Olaya North

Located within the North Business Corridor District of Riyadh and the new King Abdullah Financial District that is under development, the property has excellent accessibility, with a location between the major intersections of Olaya Street and King Fahd Road – just 20km from King Khalid International Airport.

Park Inn by Radisson Hotel & Apartments, Riyadh Olaya North will have total of 200 rooms, 100 guest rooms and 100 serviced apartments. Facilities include an international all-day dining restaurant, and business lounge. The meeting and events space includes two boardrooms, a conference center and a business center. The leisure facilities will include a male gym, female gym, spa and a kids’ club.

Park Inn by Radisson Hotel & Apartments, Dammam West Avenue

The property will support Rezidor’s growth in Dammam, further strengthening the brand’s presence in the Eastern Province. Located in the Al Faisaliyah District of Dammam, along King Abdullah highway, the site is part of the Gulf Real Estate Company’s master plan development of West Avenue Square, a mixed-use project comprised of a commercial center, hospitality and lifestyle developments. The site location has excellent accessibility to King Fahd Road, the road leading to King Fahd International Airport, which is just 22km away.

Park Inn by Radisson Hotel & Apartments, Dammam West Avenue will have total of 200 rooms, 100 guest rooms and 100 serviced apartments. The leisure facilities will include a gym and outdoor swimming pool, female gym, spa and a kid’s club. There will be a range of meeting rooms including a conference room, while for dining there will be an international all-day dining restaurant and business lounge.