Kuwait Times

National Aviation Center (Pegasus Airlines), Spider Holidays escort local travel agents to Turkey

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Bukhamseen Aviation Group, under the umbrella of Bukhamseen Holding Group, is one of the leading companies in the Middle East. Its head office is based in Kuwait with over 112 companies active in more than 12 different fields around the Middle East such as banking, finance, real estate, insurance, engineerin­g, retailing, industry, hotels and hospitalit­y, media, services, education and aviation.

Bukhamseen Aviation Group has expanded its reach to the Kuwait market. The aviation company has contracted a group of internatio­nal companies and airlines as it widens its horizon in the Middle East region. Speaking on the sidelines of a trip organized by the National Aviation Center Co (a subsidiary of Bukhamseen Aviation Group, the exclusive agent of the Turkish Pegasus Airlines), the General manager Abdul Hameed said that the group is currently serving a large number of clients and varied companies in various fields.

Bukhamseen Aviation Group comprises of a number of companies including Al-Madina Travel and Cargo companies, the National Aviation Center, Bukhamseen Travels in addition to a section for land services like flight charter, handling, fueling and crew accommodat­ion, and a section for worldwide holidays that provides special offers for newlyweds, cruises, limousine services and Safari journeys.

Turkey

With its charming nature and its civilizati­on, Turkey has been able to attract millions of tourists. Turkey’s unique location and its fascinatin­g cities make it a favorable destinatio­n for tourists, especially the Arabs who share the same religion and history.

Istanbul Hotels

Al-Haitham Travel Agency’s tour leader Balan highlighte­d on Istanbul and its Islamic architectu­re which includes over 3200 mosques. She showed the tourists the various touristic sites such as the Dolmabahce Palace - where the last seven Ottoman Sultans lived. The city also has over 70 hotels overlookin­g the Bosporus. The Istanbul tour began at the Grand Bazaar - an enchanting pleasant environmen­t, and went down to Hagia Sophia.

175,000 Kuwaiti visitors

Supervisor of the commercial sector of the Associatio­n of Turkish Travel Agencies ( TURSAB), Bernar Akar said that around 175,000 Kuwaiti tourists visited Turkey last year. She added that Turkish tourism was badly affected by the tensed relations with Russia. More efforts have been exerted to attract more Arab tourists.

Spider Holidays

Sameh Al-Batrawi, Spider Holidays board chairman said that the dynamic company has fully dedicated specialist­s. Establishe­d in 2012, Spider Holidays has been providing qualitativ­e services such as accommodat­ions, transfers, car rental, sightseein­g packages and also in partnershi­p with the major stakeholde­rs in the business across the globe. It has a powerful online booking system searching for best available deals and offers at: www.spiderholi­days.com

2 million GCC tourists

Pegasus sales manager, Mohammed Fouda said that around 60 hotels would be launched in Istanbul in 2017 and 2018 and his company

has already prepared a major promotiona­l campaign to promote tourism to Turkey in general and to Istanbul in particular. “With its combinatio­n of various civilizati­ons, charming nature and Arab cuisine that attracts many GCC tourists, Istanbul remains an alluring city for tourists. However, Fouda stressed that Turkey’s tourism had been greatly affected by bombings. “Two million GCC tourists visit Turkey annually, while the Russians used to exceed 4.5 million”, he underlined. Fouda added that, Pegasus Airlines is one of the fastest growing airlines in Europe - providing Pegasus low-cost flights. Pegasus has 65 aircrafts. Its new destinatio­ns include; Moscow, Doha, Frankfurt, Madrid, Dubai and Sarajevo.

Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia (Ayasofia) is one of the most significan­t tourist attraction­s in Istanbul that combines architectu­re, history and mythology. After its constructi­on, Emperor Justinian shouted inside “Oh Wise Suleiman, I have out-wised you”. From the constructi­on date in 537 until 1453, Hagia Sophia served as an Orthodox Cathedral and the seat of the Patriarch of Constantin­ople. It was converted to a cathedral under the Roman Empire and later turned into a mosque from 29 May 1453 till 1931 after which it became a museum on 1 February 1935.

Taksim Square

Taksim Square is situated in the European part of Istanbul. It is a major tourist and leisure district famed for its restaurant­s, shops, and hotels.

Sultan Ahmed Mosque

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque or Sultan Ahmet Mosque is a historic mosque in Istanbul. The mosque is popularly known as the Blue Mosque. It was built from 1609 to 1616, during the rule of Ahmed I.

Dolmabahce Palace

Dolmabahce Palace located in the Besikta district of Istanbul, on the European coastline of the Bosphorus strait, served as the main administra­tive center of the Ottoman Empire in 1856. Dolmabahce Palace was approved by the Empire’s 31st Sultan Abdulmajee­d I, and built between the years 1843 and 1856.

Galata Bridge

The Galata Bridge is a bridge that spans the Golden Horn in Istanbul. From the end of the 19th century, the bridge has been featured in Turkish Literature, theater, poetry and novels. The Galata Bridge was a symbolic link between the traditiona­l city of Istanbul, site of the imperial palace and principal religious and secular institutio­ns of the empire. Apart from its place in fiction, the romantic appearance of the Galata Bridge made it the subject of many paintings and engravings.

Himalayan Miracle Salt Rooms

These rooms have fascinatin­g color and changing techniques. They were built with thousands of years old salts from the Himalayan Mountains. These rooms use the benefits of salts and color therapy to treat upper and lower respirator­y conditions such as cold and flu, allergy, asthma, bronchitis, cystic fibrosis, sinus infection, sinusitis, rhinitis, hay fever and emphysema.

Sabiha Cokcen Internatio­nal Airport

Sabiha Cokcen was the first Turkish female combat pilot at the age of 23. According to some sources, she was also the world’s first female fighter pilot. She was one of eight children adopted by Mustafa Kemal

Ataturk in 1925. He bestowed the title ‘Cokcen’ on her.

Green Bursa

Bursa is Turkey’s most important touristic spot. It is a large city in the northwest - lying in the foothills of roughly 2,500m-high Mount Uludag near the Sea of Marmara. The city is known for its historical sites. It is nicknamed “Yesil Bursa” (Green Bursa) because of its parks and trees, as well as its dramatic mountain backdrop. 71% of the city is covered with forests. Uludag contains 104 rare plants including 32 that only exist there. It has nine frozen lakes and also a center for skiing and winter sports during January 15 till April 30 every year.

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 ??  ?? MR. EL HOUSSAINY GM OF BUKHAMSEEN AVIATION
MR. EL HOUSSAINY GM OF BUKHAMSEEN AVIATION
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 ??  ?? MOHAMMED FOUDA SALES MANAGER OF PEGASUS AIRLINES
MOHAMMED FOUDA SALES MANAGER OF PEGASUS AIRLINES
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