Tag Archives: New York

Gulf Air announced its expansion in North America with the launch of its direct flights to New York (JFK) from 1st October 2025. This new service establishes a new and additional connection to a key global commercial and cultural hub. Gulf Air will operate three weekly flights to New York (JFK). These flights will be operated by Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft. Gulf Air will initially operate its flights from the current Terminal One at JFK. The airline intends to transition its operations to JFK’s New Terminal One in June 2026, offering passengers seamless and modern travel experience aligned with Gulf Air’s premium service standards. Gulf Air Group Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Goh stated: “We are excited to announce the launch of our direct flights to New York’s JFK and our return to the North American market. This service aligns with Gulf Air’s strategy of calibrated expansion and serving strategic markets, providing passengers with greater choice and convenience for travel, through Bahrain International Airport, between Bahrain and North America, and beyond, supporting the connectivity strategy of the Kingdom.” Passengers can book their flights to/from New York and stay updated on flight timings by downloading the Gulf Air mobile application, visiting Gulf Air’s website gulfair.com or through travel agents.

As part of Kuwait Airways’ efforts to enhance the travel experience and provide a variety of services to its valued passengers, the company announced the launch of its Elite Service at Terminal 4 (T4), offering a comprehensive suite of services to its passengers, excluding flights to New York. Kuwait Airways Chairman, Captain Abdulmohsen Salem Al-Fagaan, stated, “Kuwait Airways is pleased to launch one of its newest services, the Elite Service which includes a range of distinguished services to our valued passengers. The Elite Service begins with completing the passenger’s travel procedures, which include baggage weighing from home and issuing their boarding passes, followed by transportation to the airport and meet-and-assist services at T4 passenger terminal. Al-Fagaan added, “The Elite Service also includes facilitating the completion of passenger’s travel procedures at Terminal 4, access to the Elite Lounge until departure time, and transportation to the aircraft when a passenger bridge is not available. Upon return, passengers are welcomed at Terminal 4, assisted through arrival procedures, and transported home by limousine.” Al-Fagaan continued by saying, “Customers can book and request the Elite Service through the Kuwait Airways app or website between 72 and up to 48 hours prior to departure. Home check-in service will be completed 24 hours prior to the flight, after which the baggage will be delivered to Terminal 4 (T4) before departure.” Al-Fagaan emphasized that Kuwait Airways spares no effort in ensuring the comfort of its valued customers, highlighting the company’s commitment to providing exceptional services and entertainment options that enhance the travel experience. He noted that these efforts are especially timely with the onset of the 2025 summer travel season, aiming to make every journey enjoyable and engaging. Al-Fagaan concluded …

Skyscanner revealed that 33% of UAE travellers are looking for trips that are over 1-2 weeks long for the Eid Al Adha break. New York, Tokyo and Athens are the top trending destinations this Eid Al Adha 2024 for the residents of UAE. Findings reveal that 14 June 2024 is the most popular travel departure date during this period, and more than half of UAE travellers (53%) are searching for trips that are one week or less. At the same time, 33% of travellers are looking for trips that are over 1-2 weeks long, and 14% are looking to book holidays for up to a month*. Skyscanner unveils five destinations experiencing a surge in popularity among travellers from UAE. From the vibrant streets of New York to the pristine shores of Malé, these are the trending destinations witnessing the highest year-on-year spike in searches for June departures*. 5 Trending Destinations 1. New York (525%) 2. Tokyo (330%) 3. Athens (257%) 4. Dublin (212%) 5. Malé (205%) Skyscanner also revealed the most searched destinations by UAE travellers ahead of Eid Al Adha. Offering a glimpse into the travel preferences and trends shaping the region, the data sheds light on where UAE residents are looking to escape during this holiday season. 5 Most Searched Cities by UAE travellers 1. London 2. Athens 3. New York 4. Cairo 5. Manchester  

NEOM opened its first U.S. office in New York City which will serve as a base for NEOM’s business across the United States. NEOM’s latest international office at 50 Hudson Yards in Manhattan follows the launch of its London office in November 2023. Honored guest, HRH Ambassador Reema Bandar Al Saud, Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to the United States, attended the official opening at the invitation of Nadhmi Al-Nasr, CEO of NEOM, who hosted the occasion, and addressed the distinguished guests and strategic partners in attendance. The New York City office will further strengthen existing relationships between NEOM and U.S. entities and present an opportunity to explore new partnerships and sources of investment from the United States. Close collaboration with innovative and world-leading U.S. industries, corporations, and investors, will accelerate NEOM’s efforts to address global challenges by redefining livability, business, and conservation. HRH Ambassador Reema Bandar Al Saud, said: “We are delighted for NEOM to open an office in New York. The potential impact of NEOM extends far beyond Saudi borders. By serving as a catalyst for innovation, sustainable development, and economic diversification, NEOM has the power to inspire similar initiatives around the world – driving positive change and serving as a blueprint for the cities of tomorrow.” Nadhmi Al-Nasr, CEO of NEOM, said: “In order to continue to achieve the vision of NEOM, it is imperative that we work alongside global partners that can accelerate our efforts. We chose New York City as our second international NEOM office due to its position as a global capital for business and finance. NEOM has already established many investments and partnerships with U.S. entities, and through this office, we intend to build our relationships …

Effective 30 October 2023, Qatar Airways will increase frequency to New York (JFK) from two to three daily flights. Offering new connections between New York and more than 80 destinations in the Middle-East, Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia, the new flights will conveniently arrive early morning and depart late evening from New York (JFK). Customers from across the U.S. will also benefit from the enhanced connectivity between JetBlue and Qatar Airways via New York. With 3 flights per day scheduled in the morning, afternoon and evening, seamless connections from Detroit, Raleigh-Durham, Orlando or Tampa, to Doha, Kathmandu, Bangkok or Johannesburg have never been easier. Members of both Loyalty Programs – Qatar Airways Privilege Club and JetBlue TrueBlue – can earn miles from each other’s expansive codeshare flights. Qatar Airways’ strategic partnership with American Airlines also continues to expand with American Airlines launching flights from its Philadelphia hub to Doha, starting 28 October 2023. American Airlines’ new Philadelphia – Doha services will provide customers with seamless travel options and benefits by connecting to more than 90 cities across North America, Caribbean and Central America, and to more than 80 cities across Africa, the Middle-East, South Asia and Southeast Asia. Alaska Airlines and Qatar Airways will also offer customers from the West Coast improved connectivity with significant codeshare expansion and distribution enablement. During the coming weeks, guests will be able to book to more destinations beyond Doha on Alaska Airlines’ website. Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker said: “We continue to offer seamless connectivity to our passengers from the U.S. market and beyond with the support of our strategic partners. Our unwavering commitment to our longstanding …

United Airlines has launched a new nonstop daily service between its New York/Newark hub and Dubai International (DXB). United is the only U.S. airline to offer non-stop flights between Dubai and the United States, flying to more destinations in the Middle East than any other U.S. airline. The new service marks United’s return to Dubai, which the airline previously served up until 2016. The launch of the new service is part of United’s historic commercial agreement with Emirates, announced in 2022, enhancing each airline’s network and giving customers easier access to hundreds of destinations within the United States and around the world. Customers from the U.S. flying to Dubai can travel onwards with Emirates or its sister airline flydubai to more than 100 different cities, providing more options to connect across the Middle East than ever before, whilst customers flying from Dubai to New York can take advantage of onward connections with United to over 80 destinations across the Americas. The agreement between United and Emirates also provides loyalty programme members of both airlines additional opportunities for more rewards: United MileagePlusSM members flying on United’s Newark/New York to Dubai flight can earn and redeem miles when connecting beyond to select Emirates destinations in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia, whilst Emirates Skywards members will be able to earn miles when they travel on United operated flights. Customers booked to fly in United PolarisSM can also take advantage of access to Emirates lounges when travelling on, or connecting to and from, United’s new Dubai service. “At United, we’re committed to expanding and enhancing our network to give our customers the best access to destinations around the world – all while …

NYC & Company, New York City’s official destination marketing organization and convention and visitors bureau, released a new Arabic-language version of the organization’s acclaimed Halal Travel Guide. NYC & Company, the first US tourism organization to create a dedicated resource for Muslim travelers, launched the translated guide during a Middle East Sales Mission engaging travel agents and tour operators across the region. Led by NYC & Company’s Makiko Matsuda Healy, Managing Director, Tourism Market Development and five New York City tourism partners, the sales mission will take place from October 23-28 in Doha, Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Dubai. This comes as New York City’s tourism rebound continues with an expected 56.7 million visitors in 2022, roughly 85 percent of record 2019 visitation of 66.6 million. This year, international visitation is expected to triple to 8.3 million, including approximately 140,000 visitors from the Middle East. “As tourism recovery accelerates and we continue to welcome global travelers to New York City, our goal is to provide trip planning resources which authentically reflect our diverse communities across all five boroughs–as well as those of our visitors,” said Fred Dixon, President and CEO of NYC & Company. “A major commitment to Muslim travelers was the launch of our Halal Travel Guide earlier this year–a first for any US destination. We’re pleased to now launch the new Arabic-language edition of our guide to halal travel in New York City, and we greatly look forward to welcoming visitors for their next vacation or business trip.” First launched in English earlier this year, the evergreen Halal Travel Guide spotlights and encourages visitation to the rich abundance of halal restaurants, Muslim history, and tourism sites across New York …

Emirates announced plans to debut its newly retrofitted A380s featuring its latest Premium Economy cabins to five new cities from December – New York JFK, San Francisco, Melbourne, Auckland and Singapore. The airline will also add more Premium Economy seats on services to London Heathrow and Sydney, as its newly enhanced aircraft sporting refreshed cabins roll into scheduled service. The airline aims to offer customers more opportunities to experience its highly acclaimed Premium Economy product, and its latest deployment plans will also see 85 A380s back in the sky by December, well-timed to serve the year-end travel demand. Emirates’ enhanced A380s with Premium Economy to New York JFK, San Francisco, Melbourne, Auckland and Singapore will operate as follows: To New York JFK, Emirates will operate with its newly retrofitted A380 on EK203 and EK 204, starting from 1 December. To Auckland, Emirates will debut its Premium Economy cabin on EK 448 and EK 449, starting 15 January 2023. From 1 February 2023, Melbourne will become the second Australian destination to be served with the signature Emirates A380 featuring Premium Economy. Services will be deployed on EK 406 and EK 407. San Francisco will become the second US destination to be served by the retrofitted A380 with refreshed interiors on EK 225 and EK 226, starting on 15 February 2023. Emirates’ enhanced A380 with Premium Economy will land in Singapore for the first time on 1 March 2023, operating as EK 354 and EK 355. Emirates will also update its schedules to London Heathrow, Sydney and New York JFK with its retrofitted A380 aircraft operating on the following services: From 15 December 2022, Sydney will become the first city in the …

Emirates has introduced an additional Airbus A380 service to Johannesburg (OR Tambo International Airport), replacing the previous Boeing 777 aircraft on the route. EK762 (JNB-DXB) and EK761 (DXB-JNB) are now served by the flagship A380 aircraft. The Emirates Airbus A380 aircraft serving the Dubai-Johannesburg route will offer a total of 519 seats in a three-class configuration, with 429 spacious seats in Economy Class, 76 fully flat-bed seats in Business Class and 14 First-Class Private Suites. Upcoming festive season travel between the two global transit hubs is expected to be especially strong, building on over 700,000 customers who flew with the airline before November. With Emirates, customers from Johannesburg can enjoy a seamless A380 experience to their most popular destinations via Dubai, including London, Moscow, New York and Bangkok. All four daily Emirates flights between Johannesburg and Dubai operate as codeshare flights with partner South African Airways. The deployment of the double-decker aircraft on routes to and from South Africa gives even more regional travellers the chance to experience the aircraft’s industry-leading comforts. These include private suites and Shower Spas in its First-Class cabin, while Business-Class customers can enjoy the popular on-board lounge and lie-flat beds.

Royal Jordanian (RJ) is set to implement additional security measures for US-bound flights from January 18. The measures- which include security interviews with every passenger at check-in or boarding gates- are applicable on all international airlines operating direct flights to the US, and include all nationalities flying to the US, with no exception. While they were required in October 26, 2017, the US authorities granted all airlines the option of delaying the implementation process for a limited period of time. RJ passengers are still required to be at the airport three hours prior to their scheduled US-bound flights, to avoid delays and allow more time for the implementation of new security procedures. RJ currently operates 11 weekly flights to the US, namely, five to Chicago, four to New York and two to Detroit, with a connection in Montreal.