United Arab Emirates Travel Guide
6/09/2008 at 11:30 AM
Tags: Architecture, Dubai Travel, Zaha Hadid, Rem Koolhaas (all tags)
Come back and visit us again soon: This weekend's New York Times reported on "insta-cities" that are more dynamic than the Delta-Northwest merger. Dubai went from desert stopover to high-rise paradise in 10 years, while Shenzen, China has grown by 8 million people in 30 years, with all the unplanned, even haphazard growth patterns rapid development brings.
The coolest thing about these new cities is also their peril: That all things are, architecturally, possible. The Gray Lady discusses new projects by Zaha Hadid and Rem Koolhaas which, rather than adding to the existing cityscape, will foster the growth of neighborhoods in places where there were none.
Related Stories:
· The New, New City [NYT]
· Architecture Travel coverage [Jaunted]
· Dubai Travel coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: chant3]
by egw
5/07/2008 at 12:05 PM
Tags: Dubai Travel, Attractions, Big Things, Legoland, Wendy Perrin (all tags)
Oh, hell yes. Legoland is coming to Dubai. Now we finally have a reason to go!
Given that recent developments include bridges and a replica of a French city, it's about time for something more appealing to the kids--and those of us who act like kids. The new park, scheduled to open by 2011, will have just about everything you want:
Similar to the existing four Legoland Parks at Billund, Denmark; Germany; Windsor and California, Legoland Dubailand [will feature] more than 40 interactive...kid-powered rides, cool building challenges, spectacular Lego models, interactive attractions, family-friendly coasters and shows.
Now the only drama is figuring out how you'll get your kids to behave on the long-haul to Dubai. Lucikly, mom-travel expert Wendy Perrin has some tips on that.
Related Stories:
· New Legoland Park in Dubai [Press Release, via]
· On Holiday with Lego Blocks [Jaunted]
· Prepare for the New Lyon (Not in France) [Jaunted]
[Photo of Legoland Windsor: garybembridge]
by pbb
5/01/2008 at 9:15 AM
Tags: Emirates, Airlines, Airline Bankruptcy (all tags)
Airlines are failing around the world. From Hong Kong to the United States and as far off as South Africa, rising fuel costs and a glut of other excuses are sending airlines to the wall. But there's always gotta be someone who plays by different rules and that seems to be Emirates: they've just announced that their profit rose by 62 percent in the last year!
So how come Emirates is raking in the cash while everybody else is going broke? They just keep increasing their capacity for both passengers and cargo, and they're filling it up, too. That got them to a $1.36 billion profit for 2007.
Emirates is planning to keep getting bigger and bigger, with a total of 58 A380s on order. They're also thinking of selling off between 20 and 30 percent of the government-owned business to the public. If you're nervous about booking other airlines, Emirates seems like the one that's still going to be flying when your departure date actually comes 'round.
Related Stories:
· Emirates Air Year Profit Soars [Guardian]
· Airline Bankruptcy coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: mr_nhw]
by amandak
3/24/2008 at 11:30 AM
Tags: Low Cost Carriers, LCCs, Emirates, Dubai Travel, New Airlines, Middle East (all tags)
Even though the Middle East already has five low cost carriers in operation, the UAE has decided that it needs another one. In a slightly complicated-sounding business arrangement, Emirates is going to help the government set up a Dubai-based budget airline--which doesn't yet have a name--and one of Emirates' current VPs will then resign from Emirates to run the new, independent-from-Emirates airline.
The new airline will use some single-aisle aircraft (currently rare in the Gulf) and will fly to various destinations less than five hours away from Dubai. Exactly how low cost it'll be is also a bit unclear. All they've said is that "services should be priced on the living and economic conditions to suit their income."
It's all supposed to be up and running within the next year, so watch this space for more info. We're curious about a name: Dub-Air, perhaps, although that makes it sound like a Dubious Airline. We're guessing they'll choose something else.
Related Stories:
· Dubai Government to Launch Budget Airline [Gulf News]
· Emirates coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: woody1778a]
by amandak
2/20/2008 at 9:15 AM
Tags: Dubai Travel, Architecture, Bridges (all tags)
What do you see in this picture? That's right, only one bridge. A blossoming city like Dubai definitely needs a lot more than one. Or so think developers and even Sheikh Mohammed, who's given a new bridge his seal of approval.
Come 2012, Dubai will be the proud home of the world's largest arch bridge. It will be built to some rather impressive statistics: one mile in length, 670 feet in height, and twelve lanes wide, it'll carry some 4,000 vehicles per hour and will cost a mere $817 million to build.
Work on the mega-bridge is due to start next month but it'll be four years until we can cross it. By which time some other Dubai developer will probably have trumped it with the world's biggest, most colorful and least useful bridge. Just a prediction.
Related Stories:
· Dubai to Build World's Largest Arch Bridge [io9]
· The Incredible Morphing Skyscraper [Jaunted]
· Dubai Travel Stories [Jaunted]
[Photo: Mathias M]
by amandak
1/22/2008 at 9:15 AM
Tags: Dubai Travel, Attractions, Big Things (all tags)
In the tradition of nations like Japan and Vietnam, who love to recreate famous sights so their citizens don't need to leave home to see the world, a Dubai entrepreneur has decided that he loves the French city of Lyon so much he simply has to recreate it in his homeland.
The exact location of the new Lyon hasn't been decided yet, but it's likely to be an almost 1,000-acre project with a price tag of $740 million. It will include a French university, French-style houses and offices, subsidiaries of Lyon museums and even a soccer center run by the Olympique Lyonnais team.
The funny thing is there's absolutely no secret about the plan and the actual city of Lyon is closely involved--they even launched the project in the real Lyon itself. Cloning cities and sightseeing hot spots might just be the way to save the earth: If we don't need to travel anywhere we'll sure save a heap in carbon emissions, right?
Related Stories:
· Dubai's French Ciy Project Launched in Lyon [AFP]
· Japanese: The Great Reinventors [Jaunted]
· All the World in Vietnam [Jaunted]
[Photo: pomihs]
by amandak
12/27/2007 at 9:15 AM
Tags: Shopping, Dubai Travel (all tags)
Getting all your Christmas shopping done then splurging again at the post-Christmas sales not enough for your bad case of the shopping bug? Then it's time you booked a flight to the Dubai Shopping Festival which this time 'round takes place from January 24 to February 24, 2008.
The Dubai Shopping Festival is basically the ultimate in tourism marketing, in which retailers offer prizes to shoppers as well as huge discounts, a scheme which recently has been bringing at least an extra 3 million people to Dubai each time the event is held.
The colorful website that comes along with the shop-fest makes all kinds of odd claims--it even has a "fake" poll to hook visitors into taking a Desert Safari between shopping stints--and it's also full of interesting statistics about how much money the Dubai Shopping Festival rakes in a year. Dubai is still one of those odd destinations that we're not quite convinced by, but it does at least seem a popular destination for shopaholics wanting to escape a northern winter.
Related Stories:
· Dubai Shopping Festival [Official Site]
· Dubai Travel coverage [Jaunted]
by amandak
11/26/2007 at 9:30 AM
Tags: Air Arabia, Low Cost Carriers, LCCs, Middle East (all tags)
You might remember Middle East LCC Air Arabia as the one who used to use South Park characters in their advertising. On the other hand, you might know Air Arabia because of the incredibly long name of its founding father, His Highness Dr. Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohamed Al Qassimi (ruler of Sharjah) who agreed to set the whole thing up in early 2003.
These days, Air Arabia is going from strength to strength, but it's using candy to do so. Flights now head over most parts of the Middle East, including Oman, Yemen and Saudi Arabia and then further afield to India, Turkey and Bangladesh. The current wacky advertising features "bite-size holidays", which mean some candies resembling M&Ms are getting a big workout.
The candies must be doing OK for them, because with 34 additional planes on order, Air Arabia only looks like getting bigger. That's definitely sweet.
Related Stories:
· Air Arabia [Official Site]
· Air Arabia Already Adept at Aeronautics [Jaunted]
· South Park Goes to the Middle East [Jaunted]
[Photo: Air Arabia]
by amandak
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