Emirates expands global collaborations to enhance travel experiences, ET TravelWorld

Global carrier Emirates has announced series of networkpartnerships to elevate travel experiences worldwide. Through a series of strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signings, Emirates aims to foster collaboration with key tourism entities and airlines, ultimately enhancing inbound tourism and connectivity.

Emirates has inked MoUs with the Greek National Tourism Organisation (GNTO) and Austrian National Tourist Office (ANTO) to bolster inbound tourism and collaboration. The airline has pledged to support Greece’s travel industry by enhancing traffic from top inbound markets, including the US, UAE, Australia, India, and China. Similarly, the partnership with ANTO aims to drive inbound visitors to Austria, leveraging Emirates’ extensive global network.

Last year, Emirates activated a codeshare agreement with the Greek air carrier, AEGEAN, allowing Emirates’ customers to seamlessly connect to eight popular domestic destinations operated by AEGEAN: Kerkyra, Chania, Iraklion, Mikonos, Thira, Rhodes, Thessaloniki and Alexandropoulos via Athens, using a single ticket and convenient baggage policy.

Emirates has recently resumed its A380 operations to Austria and is the only airline to serve Vienna International Airport with a scheduled double-decker service, offering 20% more seat capacity on flights between Vienna and Dubai. The airline will mark 20 years of operations to Austria this year, and currently serves Vienna with a Boeing 777-300ER daily service in addition to the daily A380 flight.

Expansion with ITA Airways and Icelandair
Emirates has expanded its existing interline with ITA Airways into a full codeshare partnership, amplifying travel options between Dubai, Italy, and beyond. Additionally, collaborations with Icelandair and travel technology specialists W2 and AirBlackBox (ABB) aim to deepen commercial cooperation and optimise air and rail ticket connections for travellers.

Furthermore, a partnership with Tourism Ireland seeks to amplify inbound tourism to Ireland through Emirates’ global network. Joint advertising campaigns will target strategic markets, including Australia, the UAE, and New Zealand, leveraging Emirates’ extensive reach.

Since the inaugural Dublin-Dubai flight in January 2012, Emirates has carried more than 3 million passengers on what has grown to become one of the airline’s most successful routes. The airline currently serves the Irish capital with a double daily flight, utilising its wide-body Boeing 777-300ER aircraft – carrying up to 1,440 customers each day on the Dublin-Dubai route.

Renewed partnership with TUI Cruises
Emirates reaffirms its commitment to seamless travel experiences with the renewal of its partnership with TUI Cruises. The collaboration ensures enhanced transportation solutions between Dubai International and Port Rashid, offering dedicated flight options aligned with cruise schedules and optimised ground services.

The airline will explore enhanced transportation solutions between Dubai International (DXB) and Port Rashid, leverage insights to improve services on the ground, and provide dedicated support teams for cruise passengers. Currently, the port’s Hamdan bin Mohammed Cruise Terminal, the world’s largest single covered cruise terminal facility, is capable of handling 14,000 passengers a day.

Emirates transported nearly 400,000 cruise passengers to Dubai. The city welcomed over 166 ships during the last cruise season. The city is expecting an increase of 23 per cent more cruise passengers for the upcoming season.