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news & jobs at www.leisureopportunities.co.uk Football and fashion lure Gulf tourists


VisitBritain research reveals an increase in the number of Middle Eastern visitors By Martin Nash


The number of tourists coming to the UK from the Gulf region of the Middle East has jumped, according to a new report from tourism agency VisitBritain. Around 494,000 people


from the area made trips to the UK in 2009, an increase of 9 per cent on the year before. Tourists from Kuwait, Qatar,


Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates said they were particularly attracted to the UK by the opportunity to shop for fashion and luxury goods not available at home – plus the chance to watch an English Premier League club in action. Gulf tourism makes an impor-


tant contribution to the UK economy, with the average spend per person while they


Premier League football is one of the main appeals to Gulf visitors


are in the UK being £1,733, more than treble the £554 spent by the average tourist. The region was the source of 1.7 per cent of UK visitors in 2009, spending 5.2 per cent of the total foreign tourist spend. VisitBritain also found that while Gulf visitors currently


easyJet resolves brand dispute


have limited knowledge of Britain outside London, the idea of visiting other parts of the UK was "very appealing.'" When would-be Gulf region


tourists were asked where they would like to visit in the next three years, only Malaysia had a slight edge over Britain.


OpenTable nets toptable.com


OpenTable, the US-based provider of restaurant reservations, is to acquire its UK-based counterpart, toptable.com, for around US$55m (£34.4m). The acquisition is due to


The airline can still use the 'easy' brand for its ancillary activities By Pete Hayman


Budget airline easyJet has confirmed that it has resolved a long-running legal dispute with founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou over the use of the 'easy' brand. The revision of a licence


agreement will allow the airline to use the 'easy' name for its ancillary activities, which include tie-ups with car hire and hotel booking companies.


© Cybertrek 2010 In return for what the carrier


calls improved operational flexibility, Sir Stelios will receive 0.25 per cent of easyJet's revenue in "royalty" payments – fixed at £3.9m and £4.95m for the first two years. Sir Stelios has also agreed to


give up the right to appoint himself as easyJet chair and easyGroup's right to name a representative on the budget airline's board of directors.


be concluded during the fourth quarter of 2010, with the deal being financed using existing cash, equivalents and short-term investments. OpenTable president


and chief executive officer Jeff Jordan said: "This acquisition of toptable. com is designed to accelerate the growth of our business in the UK in a meaningful way. "We will be able to


provide a superior service to restaurants and diners in the United Kingdom."


IN BRIEF


Dublin to bid for World Design Capital status Dublin City Council has


revealed that it will be leading the city's bid to be awarded World Design Capital status in 2014. The council will spearhead a group of four local authorities in a bid to the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design, which designates cities on a bi-annual basis. It is hoped that a successful bid to become World Design Capital will help boost the Irish capital's economy, while recognising its role in creative and innovative thinking.


Virgin Active teams up with MTV Health club operator Virgin


Active has teamed up with Music Television UK and Ireland (MTV) to launch the new MTV Urban Workout at 71 Virgin Active clubs throughout the UK. The workout is based on the hit US show, Randy Jackson presents America's Best Dance Crew, and is a mixture of break dancing, hip-hop and free running. Using an exclusive soundtrack, the MTV Urban Workout aims to provide a full-body workout with emphasis on the core fitness, cardio exercise and upper body work normally associated with a hardcore gym workout.


New scheme to boost female participation A campaign has been launched in a bid to encourage women in the East of England region to adopt a more healthy lifestyle and take part in sport. Get Back Into is led by six county sports partnerships and Sport England, with a wide range of activities listed on a new website to encourage females to get back into exercise. It comes after Sport England research found that just 12.75 per cent of women in the region participate in sport three times a week.


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