Middle East | Entertainment Agency | Corporate Event Entertainment

Show for an award ceremony in Qatar

June 26, 2015· · tags: Award Ceremony, big show, challenge 22, Middle East, qatar, Qatar National Convention Center, Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy

We just had a unique and tailor made show in Qatar for an award ceremony. The winners of the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC)’s Challenge 22 innovation award were announced during an awards ceremony held at Qatar National Convention Center followed by a big show. The mission of Challenge 22 is to build a lasting legacy of innovation in the Middle-East by nurturing promising ideas. Challenge 22 is an annual innovation award launched in 2015 by the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC), along with its Strategic Partners on this programme, Silatech and Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF). Following a successful roadshow introducing the concept to the GCC, more than 300 applicants from all over the region submitted their ideas for consideration. Eighteen finalists presented their ideas to a jury before the winners were eventually chosen. For the occasion, our production company created a unique show showing Qatar and its links to soccer. Thanks to the Client who sent us a lovely word: “Ce fut un plaisir de travailler avec votre troupe. Nous avons grandement apprécié leur professionnalisme. Ils ont dû adapté rapidement leur performance selon les demandes du client, et tout […]
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Middle East: Record five-month performance for Abu Dhabi’s hotel sector

July 07, 2014· · tags: abu dhabi event, Entertainement Abu Dhabi, Luxury venues and hotel, Middle East

The number of guests checking into Abu Dhabi’s 155 hotels and hotel apartments reached a record high for the five months from January to May this year, with occupancy levels registering an eight percent rise over the same period in 2013 to touch 78 percent. In terms of number, the emirate’s hospitality sector welcomed 1,435,932 guests in the first five months of this year, statistics released by the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) show. The figure is a 30 percent increase over the corresponding period in 2013. The January-May guest tally translated into 4,375,395 guest nights, which was up 22 percent year-on-year Hotel revenues rose 14 percent to AED2.6billion (USD728.6 million) with food and beverage income climbing 12 percent to just over AED1 billion (USD277.6 million). “Overall, the performance makes for good reading though there are two areas of concern – the average length of stay and the average room rate, both of which have dipped on 2013,” said Jasem Al Darmaki, Deputy Director General, TCA Abu Dhabi. The average-length-of-stay slipped by six percent to just over three nights while the average room rate slid four percent to AED448 (USD122). […]
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Middle East in demand at AIBTM 2014

June 11, 2014· · tags: Middle East, middle east entertainment, Middle East Event

Middle Eastern destinations and suppliers will be in strong demand at the Americas Incentive, Business Travel & Meetings Exhibition (AIBTM) in Orlando, Florida, in June. The three-day show, one of the primary meetings events in the whole of the Americas, is set to confirm the upswing in the region’s meetings business, with 3,000 expected visitors and more than 18,000 prescheduled appointments – a 20 percent increase on last year. For the Middle East, the numbers represent the opportunity of securing an increasing share of business from North America. Post-show research in 2013 revealed that Hosted Buyers wanted a greater North African and Middle Eastern exhibitor presence at AIBTM 2014, with Egypt, the UAE, Jordan, Qatar and Morocco singled out as destinations of genuine interest. Of the buyers polled, 60 percent said they placed orders in excess of US$600,000 as a direct result of their participation at the 2013 show. In advance of AIBTM 2014, meetme spoke with Michael Lyons, Show Director, Reed Travel Exhibitions (RTE), to understand how Middle Eastern destinations can best position themselves to capitalise on this interest. What can you tell us about the growing popularity of the Middle East as a destination for meetings and […]
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Middle East: Dubai World Trade Centre welcomes two million visitors in 2013

May 15, 2014· · tags: dubai, Dubai World Trade Center, Middle East, middle east entertainment

Annual visitor numbers to Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) crossed the two-million mark for the first time in 2013 as 2.2 million people visited the various events and exhibitions at the facility. Exhibitors from more than 130 countries visited 373 events, which was 71 more events than 2012 – an increase of 23.5 percent. “The strong 2013 performance is a reflection of a more stable global economy, domestic market recovery in construction and real estate, as well as growing consumer confidence,” says Helal Saeed Almarri, CEO of Dubai World Trade Centre. “Our focus on developing stronger events within key sectors for Dubai’s economy – and growing the international attendance at events hosted in our venue – has allowed Dubai World Trade Centre to sustainably increase the value created for all stakeholders within the MICE sector – ultimately driving even greater GDP contribution.” The industrial sectors that DWTC focused on during the record-breaking year were healthcare, energy, finance and economics, food, logistics, retail, communications and technology. These were underpinned by association and rotational congresses in these sectors. Highprofile forums such as the ITU Telecoms World and Sibos, an important meeting for the international financial services sector, contributed to the record […]
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Middle East: Inside Abu Dhabi’s Big Development Plans

May 07, 2014· · tags: Abu Dhabi, global meetings destinations, Middle East, TCA Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, is beginning to make its mark as a genuine global meetings centre. In 2012, Abu Dhabi was named among the top 100 busiest global meetings destinations by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), marking both the first time the city had entered the top 100 and a meteoric climb of 134 places in the global city rankings from 234th the previous year. With 22 association meetings that year, Abu Dhabi was able to move above the likes of Cologne and even Las Vegas and settle alongside Atlanta, Brasilia and Perth. The clearly stated ambitions from Abu Dhabi’s Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) to develop a world-class environment for meetings, conferences and exhibitions were beginning to pay off, with Jasem Al Darmaki, TCA Abu Dhabi’s Deputy Director General, stating that the rise was an “endorsement of Abu Dhabi’s credentials as a recognised destination for the industry”. The improved ICCA rankings were down to key events such as the World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC), which attracted more than 10,000 delegates and the 18th World Routes Development Congress, which was staged at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC). In […]
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MICE Activity Pushes Riyadh Hotel Occupancy

May 05, 2014· · tags: Middle East, Riyadh, Riyadh entertainment, Riyadh events, Saudi Arabia

Riyadh hotels have seen demand climbing during the first three months of the year, with occupancies increasing 6.3 percentage points over the same period last year, according to the latest HotStats survey of full-service, four and five star hotels by TRI Hospitality Consulting Middle East. “Riyadh hoteliers enjoyed a boost in demand during March, which helped drive an increase in first quarter occupancy levels to 66.7 percent,” said Peter Goddard, managing director of TRI Hospitality Consulting. “The corporate and conference markets continue to provide hotels with a solid base of demand driven by government spending on key infrastructure projects in the capital including the Riyadh Metro. Read More
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Middle East: Marriott expansion targets MENA

February 26, 2014· · tags: dubai events, Dubai venues, Dubai’s Expo 2020, Mariott venues, Mena, Middle East, W Marriott Marquis Dubai

In the wake of Dubai’s Expo 2020 win, meetme spoke to Neal Jones, Marriott International’s new Chief Sales and Marketing Officer for the Middle East and Africa to discuss how meetings and incentives fit into the group’s ongoing strategy. “International growth outside of the US is a core focus for the company,” said Jones. “In the Middle East, we are looking to grow from 25,000 to 70,000 rooms by 2020, which includes going from 2,500 to 10,000 rooms in Dubai. It’s a lofty aspiration, but the good news is that we are already on track to achieving this goal.” Read More
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Middle East: OCEC to boost Oman’s meetings impact

February 10, 2014· · tags: Middle East, Middle East Event, muscat entertainment, oman, Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre

The opening of the Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre (OCEC) will significantly boost the meetings sector’s contribution to the sultanate’s inbound tourism figures, an industry report has claimed. The meetings sector accounted for eight percent of inbound tourism to Oman in 2011 and is expected to grow to between 12 and 15 percent in 2014 according to a study of the sultanate’s hotel industry conducted by Colliers International in November 2013. Read More
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Middle East: International Sailing Federation set to dock in UAE capital

January 30, 2014· · tags: International Sailing Federation, Middle East, UAE, UAE entertainment, UAE events

Abu Dhabi, capital of the UAE, is pitching to host the International Sailing Federation’s (ISAF’s) annual Presidential Election meeting in 2016. The plans were presented in collaboration with Abu Dhabi Sailing & Yacht Club and Abu Dhabi Sports Council at the 2013 ISAF Annual Conference in Muscat, Oman in November. If successful, the event would provide the ideal platform for promoting the emirate’s sailing credentials, according to the Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi). “We are acutely aware that maritime sports attractions are an indispensable component of a waterfront tourism offering,” said Ahmed Thani Al Romaithi, Chairman of Abu Dhabi Sailing and Yacht Club. “We look forward to being able to demonstrate these to an international audience during the Volvo Ocean Race and, hopefully, to ISAF members during their 2016 conference.” Abu Dhabi is set to host its second stopover of the Volvo Ocean Race between December 2014 and January 2015. Source: http://www.internationalmeetingsreview.com
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Middle East: Excitement builds ahead of GIBTM 2014 as business booms

January 21, 2014· · tags: Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority, Business, dubai events, Entertainement Abu Dhabi, Gulf Incentives, Middle East, travel and meetings

The Gulf Incentives, Business, Travel and Meetings (GIBTM) exhibition is returning to Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) from March 24 to 26, 2014 with an expanded remit and enhanced calendar of business networking opportunities. According to Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi), host of the recent International Association of Professional Congress Organisers (IAPCO) council meeting, the meetings and incentives sector is an increasingly important economic contributor that currently generates US$653 million (AED2.4 billion) each year for the emirate. This figure is set to grow by seven percent annually to reach US$1.39 billion (AED5.1 billion) by 2020. The region is also in line to reap the economic benefits of a share of an estimated US$5.6 billion (AED20.6 billion) worth of global business, with IAPCO’s extended member base responsible for organising more than 6,500 meetings each year and accommodating some 2.5 million delegates. Read More
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