London, Baku, Beirut or Ras Al Khaimah? Thousands are packing their bags and getting ready to fly as the Eid holiday approaches. Others are opting to avoid the Eid rush and settle in closer to home with family or staycations in the Northern Emirates.
Beirut has become popular once again with Emiratis now that a travel ban to Lebanon has been lifted, said Moneb Al Nfouri, operations supervisor at the Dubai travel agency uTravel.
Expats have been free to travel there until now, with caution, but the ban lifting for UAE nationals has been seen as a significant gesture.
“Beirut is popular now for Eid - it’s such a short flight so people can stay there for three or four days," she said.
"The feedback from there is always good, the air ticket is not expense and hotels are not expensive.
"We have been told that now security is much better there than before, all the feedback is very positive and that’s from the travellers themselves.”
Baku - with its fascinating East-meets-West architecture - is another hot draw this season, said agents. The capital of Azerbaijan is less than three hours from Dubai
“People are looking for a three or four hour flight and people are always looking for a new destination to explore,” said Ruby Manlangit, travel consultant Premium Choice Travels. Their agency saw clients choose Azerbaijan, followed by Nepal, Thailand and the Balkans in recent days.
Travel website Skyscanner said it experienced an increase in searches and bookings to Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sofia in Bulgaria and Kiev in Ukraine.
Spokeswoman Sam Ayles suggested it could be due to Flydubai's partnership with Emirates, which offered codeshare flights to each of these cities since 2017.
“While neighbouring cities are still leading the booking numbers over Eid in terms of exit volume, it’s interesting to see which destinations that are increasing in popularity compared to previous years,” she said.
Despite the growing popularity of staycations, Eid got a boost this year thanks to the government announcement of a five-day public sector holiday.
Sidra Saboor, a resident of RAK, will take advantage of the long break to travel with her husband to Finland. The couple are planning to take advantage of Finland’s 18 hours of daylight and cool weather.
“Number one; it’s really hot here and where I’m from, back home in Karachi, it’s also extremely hot,” said Ms Saboor. “Unlike the UAE, we don’t have central AC. So even my parents and my husband’s parents said, ‘it’s too hot, don’t come here’.”
More than 80,000 passengers are expected to fly out of Terminal 3 with Emirates Airline on Friday, May 31. The carrier's most popular Eid destinations this year are Bangkok, Beirut, London, Amman and the Maldives.
Travellers have been urged to arrive at Dubai Airport at least three hours before their flight.
“Peak travel is expected to continue until Monday, June 3, with more than 309,000 Emirates passengers travelling from Dubai during this period of time,” Emirates said.
“With traffic congestion expected around Terminal 3, and road works continuing to cause traffic delays around main airport highways and roads during this time, Emirates urges customers to build in extra time for their journeys to avoid potential delays.”
Top destinations for Etihad Airways passengers are to Manila, Cairo, Amman, Bangkok and London.
Hoteliers in the UAE were also looking forward to reaping the rewards of Eid tourism and expect a high number of guests from Saudi Arabia.
“Occupancy levels are looking very strong for Eid,” said David Allan, general manager of the Radisson Blu Hotel, Dubai Waterfront, in Business Bay.
“We have a mix of guests on staycation from across the Emirates and other GCC nations.”
For others, Eid is about coming home. Next week, families and neighbours will travel across the Peninsula to visit relatives. One of the most important moments of the year is when families gather together the first morning after Ramadan for breakfast following Eid prayers.
“People travelling for Eid is a new habit and usually people don’t travel, they sit, they come to their families,” said Talal Al Qassimi, a banker from Ras Al Khaimah who lives in Dubai. He plans to be on the road to his family when Eid begins.
“Eid starts from the moment [the moon sighting committee] see the moon. The first joy of Eid is the Eid prayer and from there it’s breakfast," he said.
"The most important thing is breakfast. This is the big ceremony, like khalas, when we’re having breakfast this means Ramadan is over.”
The days before Eid are the busiest of the year for tailors, bakers, barbers and henna artists. For them, travel is out of the question.
“Travel? Never, never,” said Fatima Moinul Haque, whose mother owns the Abeer Beauty & Henna Saloon in Baniyas.
While others have flown to distant locales or driven to relatives in far flung towns, she will help her mother tidy the salon, serving the last customer around 4am and cleaning until 5am.
“Then I will rest. I mean, even the tailors take a rest on the first day of Eid.”
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
NBA FINALS SO FAR
(Toronto lead 3-2 in best-of-seven series)
Game 1 Raptors 118 Warriors 109
Game 2 Raptors 104 Warriors 109
Game 3 Warriors 109 Raptors 123
Game 4 Warriors 92 Raptors 105
Game 5 Raptors 105 Warriors 106
Game 6 Thursday, at Oakland
Game 7 Sunday, at Toronto (if needed)
UAE rugby in numbers
5 - Year sponsorship deal between Hesco and Jebel Ali Dragons
700 - Dubai Hurricanes had more than 700 playing members last season between their mini and youth, men's and women's teams
Dh600,000 - Dubai Exiles' budget for pitch and court hire next season, for their rugby, netball and cricket teams
Dh1.8m - Dubai Hurricanes' overall budget for next season
Dh2.8m - Dubai Exiles’ overall budget for next season
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
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%3Cul%3E%0A%3Cli%3EInform%20your%20doctor%20about%20your%20plans.%C2%A0%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EAsk%20about%20your%20treatment%20so%20you%20know%20how%20it%20works.%C2%A0%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EPay%20attention%20to%20your%20health%20if%20you%20travel%20to%20a%20hot%20destination.%C2%A0%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EPlan%20your%20trip%20well.%C2%A0%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3C%2Ful%3E%0A
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
match info
Southampton 0
Arsenal 2 (Nketiah 20', Willock 87')
Red card: Jack Stephens (Southampton)
Man of the match: Rob Holding (Arsenal)
HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
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%3Cp%3E-%20Congress%20is%20one%20of%20three%20branches%20of%20the%20US%20government%2C%20and%20the%20one%20that%20creates%20the%20nation's%20federal%20laws%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%20Congress%20is%20divided%20into%20two%20chambers%3A%20The%20House%20of%20Representatives%20and%20the%20Senate%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%C2%A0The%20House%20is%20made%20up%20of%20435%20members%20based%20on%20a%20state's%20population.%20House%20members%20are%20up%20for%20election%20every%20two%20years%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%20A%20bill%20must%20be%20approved%20by%20both%20the%20House%20and%20Senate%20before%20it%20goes%20to%20the%20president's%20desk%20for%20signature%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%20A%20political%20party%20needs%20218%20seats%20to%20be%20in%20control%20of%20the%20House%20of%20Representatives%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%20The%20Senate%20is%20comprised%20of%20100%20members%2C%20with%20each%20state%20receiving%20two%20senators.%20Senate%20members%20serve%20six-year%20terms%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%20A%20political%20party%20needs%2051%20seats%20to%20control%20the%20Senate.%20In%20the%20case%20of%20a%2050-50%20tie%2C%20the%20party%20of%20the%20president%20controls%20the%20Senate%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs: 2018 BMW X2 and X3
Price, as tested: Dh255,150 (X2); Dh383,250 (X3)
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged inline four-cylinder (X2); 3.0-litre twin-turbo inline six-cylinder (X3)
Power 192hp @ 5,000rpm (X2); 355hp @ 5,500rpm (X3)
Torque: 280Nm @ 1,350rpm (X2); 500Nm @ 1,520rpm (X3)
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic (X2); Eight-speed automatic (X3)
Fuel consumption, combined: 5.7L / 100km (X2); 8.3L / 100km (X3)
RESULTS
Manchester United 2
Anthony Martial 30'
Scott McTominay 90 6'
Manchester City 0
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
