As people in the UAE enjoy the longest public holiday of the year, attention is already turning ahead to the next break.
Workers in the public and private sectors won’t have to wait too long, as the UAE has already announced holidays for the entire year. Check the dates and plan your next vacation now.
If it is an international break, it could be made through Dubai International Airport – named the most luxurious in the world.
In real estate news, analysts have identified trends pushing Dubai property sales and revealed how the UAE’s removal from the FATF grey list has led to a surge in investments.
Elsewhere in the region, Qatar has announced major changes to real estate laws and revealed an extension to the Lusail Tram.
Catch up on the 10 of the biggest news stories of the week, as selected by Arabian Business editors.
Dubai International Airport named ‘most luxurious’ in the world, Qatar’s Hamad International Airport takes 3rd place
In an analysis of more than 1,800 global airports it was ranked as the best in the world for luxury experiences. With its zen gardens, luxury hotels, swimming pool, cinema and boutique dining Dubai took the top spot.
Qatar’s Hamad International Airport was ranked third in a strong showing for the Middle East.
UAE holidays 2024: Save dates and plan rest of your vacations now
The UAE is in the midst of an extended holiday for Eid Al Fitr.
With public and private sector workers enjoying a nine-day break from work, when factoring in weekends, it is the longest holiday of the year. However, it is far from the final public holiday in the UAE this year and there are many more dates to look forward to.
The UAE has previously announced holiday dates for occasions such as Eid Al Adha, the Islamic New Year and National Day. Plan your holidays now.
Qatar announces major changes to real estate laws
The Ministry of Justice affirmed that Law No. (5) of 2024 on real estate registration, which Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani issued, represents a qualitative leap in public services and introduces electronic registration for the first time.
The Ministry shed light on the Qatar law aimed at enhancing real estate registration services in a first-of-its-kind step since the issuance of law No. (14) of 1964, in line with the comprehensive development of the country in various real estate fields, and reinforces the future directions of the real estate sector, including facilitating citizens’ access to real estate registration services, according to the latest technological methods, and considering the best experiences and practices adopted in this sector.
Etihad set to launch new flights to Saudi Arabia, India, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt and Jordan as weekly flights hit 855
The airline is set to expand its footprint by launching flights to one of Saudia Arabia’s most captivating regions.
Beginning June 24, Etihad will link Abu Dhabi’s Zayed International Airport directly with Al Qassim’s Prince Naif Bin Abdulaziz International Airport (ELQ) with four weekly flights.
Dubai real estate trends: Best areas for villa and apartment investments revealed; off-plan v ready property sales increases, rental yield hits 7.3%
Investors and homeowners are seeing property increase in value and yields are up year-on-year according to property expert haus & haus Real Estate. The firm has published its Dubai Market Reports for Q1, revealing a raft of important findings that will help guide those considering making a move in the months ahead.
Findings include a 25 per cent increase in the value of secondary sales in the first three months of the year, a 7 per cent hike in the rental value of properties and the best-performing areas for villa and apartment property prices.
Dubai Police arrests 494 scammers for fraud against bank customers
Dubai Police has cracked down on fraud committed using cell phones and targeting bank customers.
The General Department of Criminal Investigation has revealed it has arrested 494 people who were involved in 406 phone fraud cases over the past year. The most common form of these fraudsters was to call, email or SMS customers and say they needed to update their banking information. The culprits even used social media handles to contact the victims and access their bank account details.
Dubai Police seized significant amounts of money, mobile phones, laptops, and SIM cards used to execute these scams.
Abu Dhabi bans buses on major road from April 15
Abu Dhabi will ban buses from travelling on a major road in the city, starting on Monday, April 15.
The Integrated Transport Centre (ITC) of the Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT) in Abu Dhabi, in collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Police GHQ and under the auspices of the Joint Committee for Traffic Safety, has announced prohibiting the traffic movement of buses, of all types and sizes (light and heavy buses alike), on Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street from Sheikh Zayed Bridge to Sheikh Zayed Tunnel (formerly known as Al Qurm Street).
The decision will be applicable to either direction of the road, 24 hours a day.
Dubai real estate: How UAE ‘FATF grey list’ boost is driving investments and affordable property is set to boom
With sales between January and March surpassing Q4 2023’s record-breaking volumes, the market is going from strength-to-strength said the property specialist. Looking at property value, Allsopp & Allsopp analysts said 30 per cent of all properties sold were under AED1m ($272,000), with 80 per cent of sales being under the AED3m ($817,000) mark.
Allsopp & Allsopp said a preference for more affordable properties goes hand-in-hand with the increase in finance buyers vs cash buyers. As expected, coming off the FATF “grey list” drove investments up in the city.
Qatar announces Lusail Tram expansion
The MOT will operate the Pink Line service and all the Orange Line stations.
Ten new Orange Line stations are coming to service:
- Naifa
- Fox Hills – South
- Downtown Lusail
- Al Khayl Street
- Fox Hills – North
- Crescent Park – North
- Rawdat Lusail
- Erkiyah
- Lusail Stadium
- Al Yasmeen
Abu Dhabi real estate: decline in off-plan sales sees residential market fall to $1.6bn in Q1
Despite the growth of secondary sales, the residential market as seen a double-digit decline as off-plan sales fell in the opening three months of the year
Property Finder analysts identified fewer than 2,145 residential transactions in the first quarter of the year, a notable decrease on the previous year.
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