AME Info, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, tourism and hospitality briefs
Aug 27, 2012 (Menafn - AME Info - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) --BAHRAIN READY TO SLASH CRUISE SHIP PRICES: Khalifa Bin Salman Port, Bahrain's largest port is set to drastically reduce passenger fees for each cruise ship in a bid to lure back operators when the new season opens in November, Gulf Daily News has reported. APM Terminals, which operates the port, will lose nearly BD70,000 (184,512) this season after cutting back the passenger handling fee from BD3 per person to BD2 for the confirmed 33 liners docking at the port. "We all have to contribute towards getting cruise liners back to Bahrain and we have decided to make this contribution," company chief executive Marco Neelsen said.
QATAR HOTELS SUFFER DROP IN YIELDS: Hotels in Qatar suffered shrinking volumes and average earnings in the first half of this year, according to Ernst &Young. Doha's hotel rooms' yield plummeted 8 percent to 166 as occupancy declined 5 percent (to 62 percent) and average room rates by 2 percent (to 263) year-to-date in June this year. However, in June alone, Doha hotel rooms' yield dropped more than 9 percent to 116 on the back of a 4 percent plunge in occupancy and 2 percent in average room rate to 230.
BEST WESTERN SET TO DEBUT IN OMAN: US-based Best Western International, Inc. has announced the Best Western Premier Muscat is set to open in October this year. The opening of the hotel will mark the debut of the Best Western Premier in the Middle East. The 10-story Best Western Premier Muscat will offer 203 guestrooms and suites, food and beverage outlets, four function rooms, business meetings or private dinners and events, a fitness centre, sauna and indoor swimming pool.
JORDAN TOURISM REVENUES CONTINUE TO RISE : Jordan's tourism ministry has said the kingdom's tourism sector saw its revenues jump 17 percent in the first seven months to nearly JD1.5bn from JD1.25bn by the end of July last year, Jordan Times has reported. The rise was attributed to the increase in the number of visitors from Libya and Yemen who came to Jordan for treatment. Visitor numbers fell 6 percent, however, with 3,785,055 tourists coming to the kingdom in the first seven months of this year compared to 4,031,404 in the same period last year, the ministry said.
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