Attractions ranging between giants serving food, a four-day New Year’s Eve extravaganza and beach festivals that will bring Jamaica, Barbados and the Caribbean islands to Abu Dhabi, will mark the last month of this year.
The countless events that combine food, street action and family activities are part of Advantage Events Abu Dhabi incentive which allocated Dh10 million to help the private sector develop their activities, and boost attractions across the emirate to attract more visitors.
"To enable the industry to deliver, rather than delivering ourselves ... we are moving from being an operator to an enabler and regulator… we want to develop a bigger calendar of events, and to encourage the private sector to make this move," explained Sultan Al Dhaheri, acting executive director of for the Tourism Sector at the Department of Culture and Tourism.
Therefore, the incentive aims to develop Abu Dhabi events – from the capital to Al Ain, which will launch its annual Dar Al Zain Festival, to Madinat Zayed, in a sustainable manner.
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The department will work with the private sector to make sure their events keep on going for the next four years, "and next year I will offer new businesses the same opportunity," Mr Al Dhaheri said.
Already, there has been a 7 per cent increase in the number of hotel guests this year as compared to last year, “and we are expecting a huge growth in the fourth quarter with the opening of the Louvre, Formula 1 weekend and World Diabetes Congress,” he added.
Last year, hotels’ occupancy rate was more than 85 per cent during the Formula 1.
The recent chartered flight from Russia is also expected to boost the number of visitors from the federation. In general, the Tier 1 market of visitors are from the US, UK, KSA, India and China, in addition to the domestic market.
Following the success of previous events, such as the Mother of the National Festival which attracted more than 200,000 visitors, the department is expecting at least 50,000 people to visit the NYE Countdown Village which will be located at a yet to be confirmed location in the capital.
Events at the village will stretch from December 28 to 31 and will include “electrifying performances”, renowned artists, bands and DJs and a mix of family activities including a balloon park, and 15 minutes of fireworks, laser lights and a confetti shower extravaganza.
The Abu Dhabi Food Festival will include a mysterious twist on December 8, with a “Top Secret Long Table” at a location that has never hosted an event before. The 1,000 guests who can attend by invitation only will receive their invitation and be notified of the location just an hour ahead of the event.
“You can’t buy your way in. There will only be 1,000 very special guests who will be handpicked by 10 food masters,” said Alexandre Teodoresco, founder of Truckers.
“It is a dining experience, a long table and fascinating in the US, and it is completely unusual. When you see the images it is breathtaking, and a surprise guest will be coming.”
“It will not be open to the public because of the sensitivity of the location,” he added.
People can also learn the art of eating caviar as part of an event held by the foodie magazine Dining Nightlife Abu Dhabi.
“There is a technique, you put it on your hand and let the flavours come out; that is why we created caviar and art, because it is an art form in itself,” explained Leanne Smart, its editor in chief.
The Rub of Time: Bellow, Nabokov, Hitchens, Travolta, Trump and Other Pieces 1986-2016
Martin Amis,
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Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
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Expo details
Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia
The world fair will run for six months from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021.
It is expected to attract 25 million visits
Some 70 per cent visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE, the largest proportion of international visitors in the 167-year history of World Expos.
More than 30,000 volunteers are required for Expo 2020
The site covers a total of 4.38 sqkm, including a 2 sqkm gated area
It is located adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
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Booklava works on a subscription model. On signing up you receive a free book as part of a 30-day-trial period, after which you pay US$9.99 (Dh36.70) per month to gain access to a library of books and discounts of up to 30 per cent on selected titles. You can cancel your subscription at any time. For more details go to www.booklava.com
BeIN Sports currently has the rights to show
- Champions League
- English Premier League
- Spanish Primera Liga
- Italian, French and Scottish leagues
- Wimbledon and other tennis majors
- Formula One
- Rugby Union - Six Nations and European Cups
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
