Singapore is proving increasingly popular with Middle East (ME) visitors seeking high quality healthcare. According to new figures on the number of medical tourists arriving from the region, Singapore saw an average annual increase of 20% from 2006 to 2008.

The figures collated by Singapore Tourism Board (STB) show approximately 1,000 healthcare tourists from ME countries arrived in Singapore in 2008, around the same number as US medical care travellers - putting both destinations amongst the top markets for overall number of healthcare tourists visiting the Garden City.

The World Heritage Committee approved the registration of Al Turaif Quarter, in the Al Dirr\'iya historical city near Riyadh, onto the World Heritage List of UNESCO. The approval was made during the 34th session on Thursday, July 29, in Brasilia, Brazil.

;His Royal Highness Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdul Aziz, president of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) said, \"Al Turaif Quarter in the Dirr\'iya site is the second Saudi historic site to be recorded in the World Heritage List after the registration of the archeological site of Madain Saleh in 2008\"

The Haj is the annual pilgrimage to Makkah, Saudi Arabia. It is currently the largest annual pilgrimage in the world, and is the fifth pillar of Islam, a religious duty that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by every able-bodied Muslim who can afford to do so.

Being the third largest Muslim populated country, India\'s share is large in number of Hajj pilgrims. Hajj travel is organized by the central Hajj committee of India under the aegis of the central government and by private tour operators according to government allocations.

ITB Berlin was packed with more exhibitors than any of the previous years with more than 11,000 companies exhibiting their services and products. This has been a very encouraging sign for the industry which was battered with bad news in 2009. Most of the exhibitors had invested quite a bit in getting their stands look very exciting.

Fazal Bahardeen, the CEO of Crescentrating addressed the plenary session of

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Japan may be a great tourist destination for many travelers, but for Muslims, getting by in the Land of the Rising Sun can be difficult.

The main reason is its lack of halal-friendliness. Japan is largely a Buddhist country and its tourist industry caters largely to domestic travelers.

As a result, many Muslims avoid Japan when it comes to making vacation plans. Even when it comes to food imported into Muslim countries to cater to the Japanese diaspora, the locals are cautious.