Airline, airport, hotel, destination, visa, and Muslim travel updates from Irhal.
The airline marks Philadelphia as its 14th destination in North America NEW YORK, NY, USA – Qatar Airways has reconnected Doha and Philadelphia with the launch of a daily non-stop flight between Hamad International Airport (DOH) and Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), its 14th destination in North America, which resumed on 1 August 2026.
Read full storyThis summer, Central Shopping Centers invites international visitors to experience the best of shopping, dining, and leisure with Summer Holiday 2026, running from 20 July – 30 September 2026. Created exclusively for international tourists, the campaign offers shopping privileges across Thailand’s five world-class shopping malls: centralwOrld, Central Park…
Read full storyThe Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and the Jordan Tourism Board, in cooperation with tourism associations, have launched the integrated digital platform "Ahlan Jordan" as part of measures to support the tourism sector and address the impact of regional circumstances on travel activity.
Read full storyflydubai, the Dubai-based carrier, has increased its daily operations between Dubai and Naples and is set to boost its flights to Milan-Bergamo to a double-daily operation from 31 July, enhancing passenger connectivity to Italy.
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – July 28, 2026: The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi has announced that Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, a museum of modern and contemporary art, will open its doors on 11 December 2026 at Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi.
Warner Bros. World™ Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, the region's largest indoor theme park, is inviting guests to place themselves in the hands of one of DC's most iconic Super-Villains, as Kryptonite Collider officially opens.
Malaysia Retains No. 1 Position in Global Muslim Travel Index 2025, Offering GCC Travellers a Summer of Festivals, Culture and Discovery.
The Dubai-based carrier announces the start of daily flights to Aleppo from 20 July, reaffirming its connectivity to opening underserved markets Aleppo becomes the carrier’s second destination in Syria alongside Damascus
What if the most valuable thing you brought home from a trip wasn’t an object, but a story? Northern Thailand is home to dozens of ethnic communities who have carried their identities across mountains and borders for centuries – and many of them welcome curious, respectful visitors.
The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) today launched the search for the 7 Contemporary Wonders of the World, a global initiative designed to identify and celebrate the landmarks and buildings created since 1801 that have had the greatest impact on Travel & Tourism, local communities and economic development, and continue to redefine the future of destin…
Luxury travel today is no longer measured by how much you can see in a few days, but by how deeply you can experience a destination. At Le Méridien Phuket Mai Khao Beach Resort, guests are invited to embrace this philosophy through Long Stay Beach Escape, an exclusive package designed for travelers who wish to enjoy more of Phuket's culture, wellness, and f…
Read full storyTwo hotels, three ways to stay, and one summer campaign inviting guests to choose their own scene across Paramount Hotel Midtown and Paramount Hotel Dubai
Read full storySharjah Museums Offer an Integrated Summer Experience Blending Culture, Science, and Discovery for All Community Members
Read full storyNew five-day programme empowers young people to build confidence, resilience and lifelong skills while embracing active lifestyles
Read full storyAcross Five Museums with Interactive Museum Programmes Enriching Children’s Knowledge
Read full storyOceans of Lights Festival returns to SeaWorld Yas Island, Abu Dhabi in its third edition to offer a summer program full of activities and new experiences
Read full storyJuly 2026, Yerevan, Armenia: Armenia has extended its temporary visa-free entry arrangement, keeping the country within easy reach for eligible travellers from across the Gulf for a further year. The arrangement now runs until 1 July 2027.
Read full storyJuly 2026, Yerevan, Armenia: The competent Armenian authorities announced the extension of the temporary decision exempting eligible travelers from GCC countries from prior visa entry for an additional year, making the decision effective until July 1, 2027. This decision aims to facilitate travel procedures and tourism movement and exchange between Armenia and the Arab Gulf region, allowing travelers…
Read full storySet within Khalid Lagoon, the island shows how Sharjah brings art, nature and design into everyday public life.
Read full storyBlending cultural discovery with elevated wellness and leisure experiences, World of Hyatt summer destinations offer GCC travelers seasonal getaways across the GCC, Africa and Europe.
Read full storyAbu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – June 30, 2026: Yas Waterworld Yas Island, Abu Dhabi has officially been awarded the Guinness World Records™ title for the most waterslides in a waterpark, featuring a record-breaking collection of 55 slides.
Read full storyExperience the Colours of Malaysia at Citrawarna 2026 This Summer
Read full storyGermany is an ideal destination for friends traveling together, thanks to its creative neighborhoods, vibrant markets, street food culture, and stunning natural retreats
Read full storyFollowing the launch of its first collaboration in 2025, the Jacquemus brand returns this summer to the Monte Carlo Beach Club with a new design that reimagines the coastal atmosphere with a contemporary spirit. The design evokes the spirit of 1950s beach clubs, where elegance meets the calm Mediterranean lifestyle.
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Dubai, UAE - Kenya Airways has selected the GEnx-1B engine to power its nine firm Boeing 787 Dreamliners with an option for four additional aircraft. Speaking at a press briefing in Nairobi, Kenya Airways Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Dr. Titus Naikuni said the airline had settled on the GEnx-1B engine as GE had designed the engines to provide a base thrust of 70,000 lbs. to power the…
Following the plans announced earlier this year, the Gran Meliá Rome Villa Agrippina opened on Sunday as the newest and most appealing luxury hotel in the Eternal City. Featuring an exclusive offer of architecture, culture, local art, spacious gardens and wellness facilities and of course, a rich cuisine, the hotel Gran Meliá Rome Villa Agrippina offered its first guests a warm spring-time welcome. In…
In partnership with Maserati and Bahrain Airport services, Mövenpick Hotel Bahrain Presents two extraordinary nights this spring, the world’s greatest Grand Opera Gala on the 8th and 9th April 2012. The evening includes selections from La Triviata, Lucrezia Borgia, and other masterpieces that have triumphed time and time again and now resolve into an exquisite harmony. This is your chance to not only hear…
From 4 to 7 April 2012, Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa, Sultanate of Oman is participating for the first time in the Middle East’s leading bridal and fashion show event, The Bride Show Dubai, at the Dubai International Exhibition Centre. Combining romantic settings and elegant banqueting venues with a range of packages, Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa, Sultanate of Oman offers the…
Mumtaz Mahal, the award-winning Indian specialty restaurant at Arabian Courtyard Hotel & Spa invites you to a nine-day Punjabi food festival starting Thursday, 12th April to Friday, 20th April, marking the Baisakhi Festival. Celebrated in North India, particularly in Punjab and Haryana, the Baisakhi Festival is notable for its great deal of feasting. The Punjabis, being energetic people are fond of eating and…
Individual investors are being offered a unique opportunity to gain exposure to Dubai’s booming hotel industry via a “rental pool” program for luxury serviced apartments, announced today by DAMAC Suites and SPA, a subsidiary of regional developer DAMAC Properties. The “rental pool” arrangement will be applied to apartments within DAMAC Properties’ first luxury serviced apartment development Burjside Boulevard,…
Floral print pioneer and perfumer Laura Ashley is to open a boutique hotel to showcase its wares, it revealed last week. The brand, well known for its flowery curtains and clothes, confirmed last week that it has purchased a 49-room hotel in the British county of Hertfordshire, where it will build a branded getaway experience. All of the bedclothes, sofas, wallpaper and curtains will be matching fabrics…
ISTANBUL - W Istanbul unveils its latest nightlife and culinary experience as it continues to be the leading contemporary lifestyle hotel in the cosmopolitan Turkish city. Featuring a constantly evolving nightlife scene, new culinary experiences and innovative fashion and design collaborations, W Istanbul was the first W hotel to open in Europe, introducing the W brand’s unique and distinctive New York-inspired…
As African hotels continue to boom, Virgin has announced that it is to become the latest name to move into the continent. Virgin Limited Edition, Richard Branson’s luxury travel brand, is set to open a 12-tented camp in the Masai Maara Game Reserve next year. The Mahali Mzuri camp will hold double-occupancy tents, meaning a maximum of 24 people at one time, with fully inclusive services set to include…
After Chanel’s Spring/Summer 2012 Haute Couture show was staged on a Chanel-branded airplane, air travel has never seemed so glamorous, and now airline Virgin Atlantic is launching its first ever lipcolor inspired by the cabin crew’s uniform. The company has teamed up with beauty brand bareMinerals for the shade Upper Class Red, which will be sold at the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse Spa at Heathrow, Gatwick and…
The new St Regis Doha hotel has welcomed its first guests, as Qatar’s capital embraces an increasingly ambitious future when it comes to tourism. The new hotel, which offers 336 rooms with views of the Arabian Gulf, is just one of several ambitious hotel projects on the way for Doha, although it’s easily among the most luxurious — guests are offered butler service for the duration of their stay. The…
This fall, Sheraton will unveil the 3,863-room Sheraton Macao Hotel, which will be the largest Sheraton — and Starwood — hotel in the world. Located on the Cotai Strip, the new hotel will boast three restaurants with poolside cafes, two outdoor swimming pools and 140,000 square feet of meeting space. Sands Cotai Central also features a Conrad and Holiday Inn. The Conrad Macao features over 600 rooms and…
For a new film festival in Thailand called Film on the Rocks Yao Noi, an outdoor cinema was constructed in the most unlikely of places: right on top of the water. The amazing venue is called the Archipelago Cinema and is tucked away inside a bay surrounded by towering island rocks and lush jungle plants. For the final night of the Film Festival earlier this month, guests were taken by boat to savor a…
Dubai, UAE - Mall of the Emirates rounded off its successful ‘It’s a women’s world this March at MOE’ campaign by awarding a female shopper with a luxurious Grand Prize. Mrs Eman Al Bahsh, resident of Dubai and regular shopper at Mall of the Emirates was the lucky winner of all-expenses paid 5 days, 4 nights trip for two, to the sunny Maldives. “One of the pleasures coming out of our campaigns is being…
SWISS, Swiss International Air Lines, announces its participation to the 2012 Arabian Travel Market, exhibiting for the first time its newly-rebranded look in the Middle East. The annual travel exhibition runs from April 30 to May 3, 2012 at the Dubai International Exhibition Centre. The new logo shows a SWISS tailfin with its Swiss-cross design, reflecting the livery of the company’s aircraft and enabling…
The 350sq m, two-bedroom luxury pad located on the fourth floor of Sydney’s Park Hyatt features floor-to-ceiling glass with uninterrupted views of Sydney Harbour. It’s also equipped with the latest technology – its $9000 toilet plays music, has an in-built seat warmer and massager and deodorises while its user looks out at the Harbour Bridge and Luna Park. There’s also a sauna/steam room, a lounge…
A new museum dedicated to Enzo Ferrari, the legend behind the prancing horse, opened in Modena March 10. Formerly Ferrari’s house, the new Museo Casa Enzo Ferrari museum is something of a sister project to the established Museo Ferrari at Maranello and is likely to attract motor racing fans from all over the world. Among the first installations is an exhibit telling the story of Enzo’s time as both a driver…
Hong Kong Airlines has launched its all business-class service between HK and London, another stage in the revival of a type of travel many thought would die out. The new all-premium plane touched down at London Gatwick March 8, adding a new type of service to a route already well-served by the likes of Cathay Pacific, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Qantas and Air New Zealand. While it’s a competitive…
In recognition of its partnership with Boeing on advanced materials such as the carbon fiber used in the 787 Dreamliner, Lamborghini has unveiled a one-of-a-kind Aventador LP 700-4 with a swoopy, blue and white Dreamliner-esque color scheme
Hong Kong is now the most expensive place to take office space, according to the latest figures from Knight Frank. Hong Kong’s prime office space, which includes the city’s bustling Central district, was renting for as much as a monthly HK$1,046 (US$135) per square meter last year, a growth of 28%. By contrast, growth in London’s spiffy West End – formerly the world’s most expensive – slowed last year after…
Business and first class passengers on Lufthansa flights from the US to Germany will are now able to enjoy meals provided by luxury hotel chain Mandarin Oriental. The menu features dishes especially created by award-winning chefs at Mandain Oriental properties in San Francisco, New York and Miami. The new partnership is part of Lufthansa’s Star Chefs Program, which the airline began 12 years ago and will…
Shangri-La’s Villingili Resort and Spa in Addu Atoll is due to open the first full-sized golf course in the Maldives on 27 March. The nine-hole course sits on 7.5 hectares of previously undeveloped land. Designed for recreational golfers, most of the holes are par three and average 123 yards. Amid concerns about the course’s environmental impact on the island’s ecosystem, a spokesperson from the resort said…
Hotel prices in London could triple this summer during the Olympic Games, as thousands of competitors, officials and spectators flood the city during the event. The average cost of a London hotel room during the games will be £213 (€256) a night, 102 percent up on the same period the year before. There is a possibility that hoteliers may be holding back some rooms, releasing them slowly in the run up to the…
InterContinental Hotels (IHG), the world’s largest hotel chain, has announced the launch of a long-awaited new brand for the Chinese market. The new chain will be called Hualuxe Hotels and Resorts and is expected to divide its efforts between operating in cities and popular resorts within China — although IHG said that the brand will open in other major cities outside of the country. While Hualuxe is…
