MANAMA — Under the aegis of the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Zayed Bin Rashid Al Zayani, the fourth edition of the Bahrain Shopping Festival ‘Shop Bahrain’ was launched on Thursday from the heart of the ‘Festival City’ located at Bahrain Bay.

The inauguration was held in the presence of the Chief Executive Officer of Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA), Shaikh Khaled Bin Humood Al Khalifa, ‘Shop Bahrain’ organizing committee, representatives from the BTEA, Shop Bahrain’s partners alongside members of the media, as well as local and regional social media influencers.

The fourth edition of the Festival is organized by the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA) in cooperation with partners from the public and private sectors such as Tamkeen, VIVA Bahrain, YK Al Moayyed and Gulf Air.

On this occasion, Al Zayani said: “We are delighted to launch the new edition of ‘Shop Bahrain’ that aims to showcase the Kingdom’s three main sectors: tourism, retail, and food. Furthermore, the Festival also aims to promote the Kingdom as an accessible family destination, offering fun-filled activities and promotions that suit the entire family regionally.”

CEO of BTEA Shaikh Khaled added: “We are keen to host the fourth edition of ‘Shop Bahrain’ as part of BTEA’s calendar of events for 2018. Hosting this event comes in-line with BTEA’s long-term strategy ‘Ours.Yours’ that contributes to the Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030. Moreover, the largest family event here comes as part of BTEA’s on-going efforts towards strengthening the tourism sector, supporting the kingdom’s sustainable development plans, as well as uplifting its position among the neighboring countries.”

The ‘Festival City’ is considered one of the main events of ‘Shop Bahrain’ and will continue for two weeks until Jan. 27.

The family-oriented event features a wide range of exciting activities, live performances, and carnival games, win valuable prizes, shop at the outdoor market, and indulge in delicious food. The Festival City also features a lineup of daily live performances including live musical bands for the visitors to enjoy.

‘Shop Bahrain’ also offers a fun-filled schedule of entertaining activities for the family and a chance to win valuable prizes. The 30-day celebration will run until Feb. 10th.

The Festival organizers also held a GCC roadshow in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait in order to promote the Festival and increase the number of tourists coming to Bahrain. The organizing team embarked on roadshow in Riyadh and Kuwait, introducing Shop Bahrain’s lineup of activities as a mean to encourage tourism in Bahrain.

Commenting on the launch, ‘Shop Bahrain’ Director, Yousef Alkhan said: “We are excited for the return of the ‘Festival City’ the largest and most successful event during ‘Shop Bahrain’ offering a unique family-fun experience as it includes numerous fun-filled activities that are suitable for the Bahraini and GCC families. We also expect a great influx of visitors as the Festival coincides with the local and GCC vacations.”

‘Shop Bahrain’ will feature the return of the ‘Taste Tour’ that will include more than 40 participating restaurants. Participants will be able to sample dishes, and they will also have the opportunity to win a Nissan Patrol as part of the ‘Taste Tour’ raffle draw.

Shop Bahrain will also include a fun-filled schedule of entertaining activities at the participating shopping malls and hotels. Shoppers will be enrolled in the Festival’s loyalty system when purchasing directly from any participating outlet and partner allowing them to win a wide range of prizes including one of the 20 cars and over 80,000 instant valuable prizes. — SG