world travel awards middle east gala ceremony programme 2008

Middle East Gala Ceremony 2008

MiddleEastGala_V2 22/10/08 12:08 pm

WelcomePresident of the World Travel AwardsMiddle EastGala Ceremony 2008

It gives me a great honour towelcome you to the World TravelAwards: Middle East Ceremony2008, here at Atlantis, The Palm.

Now in our 15th year, the WorldTravel Awards is driven by anuncompromising quest forexcellence – seeking out thosetravel companies andorganisations that are doingmore than anyone else tofurther the customer experience.

Dubai epitomises that drive topush boundaries, so hosting ourMiddle East Ceremony here is aperfect match for the spirit andessence of the World TravelAwards.

This year, the booming emiratecontinues to innovate andinspire, culminating with theopening of the iconic Atlantis,The Palm – a supremeexpression of Dubai’s drive toredefine what is humanlypossible. At the other end of thespectrum, the brand newboutique hotel Desert Palmdemonstrates that Dubai canalso do beautiful on a smallscale.

Dubai’s diversification into thetwo Ts of trade and tourism isreflected in its continuinggrowth. Despite the globaldownturn, international visitorsrose 8.6 per cent in the first halfof this year, whilst hoteloccupancy levels are among thehighest in the world – 84.4 percent in 2007 and on course toincrease considerably in 2008.

The World Travel Awards tonightcelebrates those companies andindividuals that have helpedmake the Dubai tourism miraclea reality. We also pay tribute tothose across the Middle Eastwho have achieved a supremelevel excellence. The wholeregion has maintainedimpressive growth over the pastyear, thus proving that the coredynamics of quality, value formoney and innovation willalways make a world-class brandshine, irrespective of economicturbulence.

Congratulations to all those whoare receiving awards and also tothose who have made thisevening possible, in particularAtlantis, The Palm, and ourmedia partners BBC World andKhaleej Times.

Honouring and promotingexcellence and innovation intravel and travel is the reason weare gathered here this evening –so please enjoy yourselves withthis in mind, for we value yourincredible achievements andwhat you have done for ourindustry.

Thank you all for being here withus on this very special occasion,and we wish tonight’s winnersthe best of luck for the WorldTravel Awards Grand Final, Turksand Caicos this December.

Sincerely yours,

Graham E. CookePresident and FounderWorld Travel Awards

Dear friends,

WORLD TRAVEL AWARDS MIDDLE EAST GALA CEREMONY 2008 3


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World Travel Awards Middle East Gala Ceremony 2008


Date: 28th October 2008Venue: Atlantis, The PalmLocation: Dubai, United Arab Emirates

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Evening Program

Cocktail Reception: 19.00Gala Dinner & Show: 20.00Carriages: 23.00

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Travel industry'sequivalent tothe Oscar's....”Wall Street Journal

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Menu

Poached Duck Foie Gras Torchon, Fig and Prune Marmalade, Pan Brioche

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Oven Baked Black Cod Teriyaki, Eggplant and Salmon Caviar

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Intermezzo

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Noisettes of Australian Lamb, Zucchini and Artichoke Tart, Potato Gratin, Tomato and OliveJus

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Vanilla cream on chocolate Pain de Gene Top by Sesame Croquant, Almon and Milk IceCream

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Freshly brewed coffee, leaf tea, herbal infusion Pralines and cookies


12 WORLD TRAVEL AWARDS MIDDLE EAST GALA CEREMONY 2008

World Travel AwardsEntertainment Show

The Best of Broadway World Travel Awards is proud to present:

THE BEST OF BROADWAY direct fromShubert Alley, New York in the heart oftheaterland featuring spectacular excerptsand featuring cast members performing'live' from the smash hit shows; JerseyBoys, Hairspray, Mamma Mia, The Life,Chorus Line, Aida, Chicago and much morestarring the Broadway Dolls andUnexpected Boys.

Andrew KennedyHost

Andrew Kennedy was born in Bogota,Colombia, has lived in Colombia, PuertoRico, Venezuela, Hong Kong, United Statesand is completely fluent in Spanish.

He got into comedy in 1994 in NorwalkConnecticut, and quickly became aheadliner around the country. After beinginvited to perform as a "Master" at theMontreal Comedy Festival in 2002, hemade a deal with CBS television todevelop, produce and star in his ownsitcom called “Related by Marriage” whichwas shot at the Sony Studios, Los Angelesand based on his comedy.

He is a storyteller who weaves thecharacters from his life throughout hisentire performance. Each performance iselectric, inspiring and unique, with hismaterial growing and evolving as does hislife. His half-hour special is currently airingon Comedy Central and with that chapterof his career behind him, he isconcentrating on translating his entire actinto Spanish. He has already begunperforming completely in Spanish in theNew York City area and the reaction hasbeen amazing. A true Hispanic performer,Andrew's greatest accomplishments areyet to come.

Miss World 2007Miss Zi Lin Zhang Presenter

Zi Lin was born in Shi Jia Zhuang City inHei Bei Province, then moved to thecapital, Beijing. Beijing will be host city tothe 2008 Olympic Games.

She attended the University of Science &Technology and attained a Degree inBusiness Administration, and is nowworking as a company secretary.

Her hobbies and sporting interests include:travel; reading; watching movies, writing,sports; 100 meters jump and hurdle, triplejump, swimming, both classical and folkdancing, and listing to folk music.



Jennifer FinniganPresenter

Jennifer Finnigan has starred on manyprimetime television shows includingNBC'S CROSSING JORDAN andCOMMITTED as well as the daytimedrama THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL,for which she won 3 consecutive Emmyawards. She most recently starred in thepopular and highly rated JerryBruckheimer legal drama CLOSE TO HOMEon CBS. She hails from Montreal, Canada.

Maeve QuinlanPresenter

Maeve Quinlan is one busy actress,currently starring in two series at the sametime. For over a decade she played‘Megan’ on the international mega-hit‘The Bold and the Beautiful’ beforeventuring off into feature films and primetime television. She currently playsConstance Tate-Duncan on the wildlypopular series 90210 on the CW as well asPaula Carlin on the hit television dramaSouth of Nowhere, currently in its fourthand final season. This month Maeve canbe also be seen on Lifetime in the moviePersonal Indiscretions and on Nov 3rd sheguest stars on the NBC drama LIFE. ThisJanuary she can be seen in the featurefilm Not Easily Broken. Additionally, she isthe creator, co-writer and ExecutiveProducer of the web series 3WAY and justfinished her first children’s book entitledBUFORD’S BATH.

Christopher Raphael

Christopher Raphael has now produced,written and directed over 14 World TravelAwards shows at numerous internationalvenues including Universal Studios, (LosAngeles), The Ritz Carlton (Montego Bay),Caesars Palace, (Las Vegas) and The Plaza(New York). Raphael won rave reviews forhis original production of “Nights OnBroadway” for Caesars Hotel & Casino in2002 and subsequently went on toproduce and direct an additional 2“Nights” due to their overwhelmingsuccess. He produced the SRO Diana Rosscomeback show at Caesars for their 25thAnniversary. He is currently working on amajor real estate launch for the MarbellaProject in Bay Islands, Roatan as well asthe Lingerie Miami event in Miami nextFebruary.

The Really Spectacular Company, Incwww.reallyspectacular.com



AboutWorld Travel Awards

In its fifteenth year, the WorldTravel Awards acknowledgesand celebrates thoseorganisations who have madethe greatest contribution tothe global tourism and traveltrade. It also recognises thosewho are driving the industryto greater heights andinnovation.

Attended by top executives ofwinning companies, the WorldTravel Awards ceremonies arehighly regarded andestablished as forums thatbring together all areas oftravel and tourism inrecognition and celebration oftheir achievements.

With votes being cast entirelyonline by 167,000 travelagencies and professionals inover 198countriesworldwide, it isa trulycomprehensiveand independent survey. In2007 the number of peoplevoting was up by 12 percentcompared to 2006.

For the tourism trade, winninga World Travel Award is morethan an award, it is a personaland reliable endorsementfrom thethousands ofprofessionals fromaround the globe.

This level of accountabilitymakes it one of the highestaccolades in the travelbusiness and is why the awardceremony is broadcast by BBCWorld (British BroadcastingCorporation) and othernetworks to over 254 millionhouseholds worldwide andattended by the industry'sglobal decision makers.

The World Travel Awards hascontinuously evolved,expanding the number of

awards as theindustry has grown.There are now over1,000 differentcategories - an

understandable numberseeing how the industry hasdiversified and given the factthat there were over 3,600

different nominees this year.

In response to increasingglobal concern over

environmental issuesand climatic change,the World TravelAwards introducedGreen Categories to

the award scheme in 2007 toreward those companies whoexcel in ecologically friendlypractices.

The prestigious awardsscheme is also evolving withthe new media age and isnow more accessible via theweb and social networkingsites. Video clips andinterviews from the pastceremonies are now availableon a YouTube channel thathas now been launched atwww.youtube.com/worldtravelawards.

To celebrate the 15th Birthdayof World Travel Awards, the2008 Grand Tour is biggerthan ever before, with moreexciting destinations and adazzling array of star studded

events. Kicking off inspectacular style in Durban,then onto Sydney, Shanghai,Orlando, Poprad and Rio deJaneiro before arriving inDubai here today for theMiddle East Gala Ceremonyand continuing to Turks &Caicos for our Grand Finale inDecember.

This year independent votingby the industry will again seekout those companies whoexcel in the world of traveland tourism. The industry isconstantly moving forwardand evolving and World TravelAwards continue to honourthe best that the world has to offer.

www.worldtravelawards.com

Driving theindustry togreater heightsand innovation”

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Highestaccolades inthe travelbusiness”

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World Travel AwardsCelebrating 15 Years of ExcellenceWorld Travel Awards is the most prestigious, comprehensiveand sought after awards programme in the global traveland tourism industry.

Established in 1993 toacknowledge and celebrateexcellence in all sectors of theindustry, World Travel Awardsare recognised as the hallmarkof excellence, with the winnerssetting the benchmark towhich all others aspire. TheWall Street Journal recentlyheralded the World TravelAwards as the "travel industry'sequivalent to the Oscars".

World Travel Awards is proud ofits impartial nature and thecomprehensive process of itsvoting programme. Votes arecast by an audience of 167,000travel agents and tourismprofessionals from 198participating countries. Votedfor by industry peers, this levelof accountability makeswinning an award the greatestform of recognition in thetravel business.

Attended by the industry’s keydecision makers and figureheads, World Travel Awardsbrings together all corners ofthe globe and all areas of traveland tourism to celebrate bothindividual success and thecollective achievements of theindustry.


World Travel AwardsGrand Tour

Africa Awards Ceremony Durban, South Africa12th May

Australasia AwardsCeremonySydney, Australia10th June

Asia & Indian OceanAwards CeremonyShanghai, China19th June

North & Central AmericaAwards CeremonyOrlando, USA6th September

Europe & Green AwardsCeremonyPoprad, Slovakia15th October

South America AwardsCeremony Rio de Janeiro, Brazil21st October

Middle East AwardsCeremonyDubai, UAE 28th October

World & Caribbean GalaCeremony Turks & Caicos Islands2nd December

The World Travel Awards attracts an unprecedented amount of both trade and consumer media coverage spearheaded by BBC World - our global media partner - whose coverage spans a global audience of over 274 million.

In recognition of "15 Years of Excellence", World Travel Awards has expanded its portfolio by adding a Grand Tour of Regional Awards to recognise winners in their own territory.

Dubai is our seventh stopafter we visited Africa,Australasia, Asia, NorthAmerica, Europe and SouthAmerica and we will shortly bemoving on to Turks & Caicosfor our exciting Grand Final inDecember.

www.worldtravelawards.com



Welcome to AquaCityResort, Slovakia. The world's leading green resort,saving you money by being greenAquaCity is virtually self-powered, using freely availablegeothermal water and the sun's energy, saving around27 tonnes of carbon emissions each day and millionsof euros in energy costs each year. By using greentechnology to heat and power the resort, these costsavings are ploughed back into first class hotel andleisure facilities to offer a fun and affordable waterpark,spa and holiday destination. But it's not just about green energy.AquaCity is a fun and relaxing placefor a day trip, a holiday, businessevent, party or celebration. With 14indoor and outdoor geothermal pools,a fabulous spa centre with inhalationrooms, saunas and relaxation areas,two award winning hotels, a restaurant,bar areas, meeting rooms and kids' play areas,AquaCity offers affordable luxury, at the same time asminimising the impact on the planet

How to get thereAquaCity is located in the north east of Slovakia,immediately south of the High Tatras Mountains.

Three times weekly flights from London Luton toPoprad with Sky Europe

The world’s leading green resortEurope’s number one eco

Poprad - (8min)Kosice - Poprad 125kms (1hr 50min)Krakow - Poprad 160kms (2hr 20min)Budapest - Poprad 330kms (5hr)Bratislava - Poprad 340kms (4hr 30min)Vienna - Poprad 390kms (5hr)

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www.aquacityresort.com


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ERTIFI

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D

LIV

E EARTH

Award winning AquaCityAquaCity is the world’s leading green resort, winner of the World’s first greenTravel Award, nominated as the British Guild of Travel Writer’s top overseasdestination and accredited to the highest standards of environmentalmanagement. It was the first destination in Europe to be given Green Herostatus and has achieved both Green Apple and Live Earth accreditations.

s leading green resortE o -holiday destination

AQUAPARK Poprad s.r.o., Sportová 1397/1, 058 01 Poprad, Slovak Republic

Tel: +421 52 7851 111 Web: www.aquacityresort.com Email: [email protected]

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Thank you to our partners

We wish to express oursincere gratitude to ourpartners and supportersNatuzzi, TTN, Trade Arabia,BBC World News,World.Mobi and BreakingTravel News for theircommitment and supportwhich made the event sucha success.



month. BreakingTravelNews.com

World’s No 1Online & Hard Copy


World Travel AwardsTeam

President & Founder Graham E. Cooke

Senior Vice President David Falcon

Executive Vice President &Event Director Manon Han

Directors, Global Business Rupert DanielsSion Rapson

PR Director Jane Larcombe

Financial Director Xiaolan Tang

Commercial Director Christopher Frost

Head of BusinessDevelopment Max Miller

Marketing Manager, South AmericaAntonio Castro Neves

Sales Executive Prakash Lathia

PR Executive Cristina Onodi

Event ManagerSusan Mundy

Event Organising Executive Shannon Hopkins

Sponsorship & Event ManagerJames Wall

Marketing ManagerKate Brewer

Editors Anton Strack Alex Lewis

Official Photographers Mark Hakanson Gareth Morris

E-Commerce Managers Kelly Footit Hayden Pitout

Web Team Ben Roberts George Cooke Joe McCannTom Fogarty

Creative Director Mike Gibas

Designers Adam Williams Mark Askam Jackie Maddocks Lena Whitaker

World Travel Awards 12-16 Laystall Street London EC1R 4PF United Kingdom T +44 (0)20 7925 0000F +44 (0)20 7925 [email protected]

Copyright © World Travel Awards 2008



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