Emirates, the award-winning international airline, is offering a range of good value holiday packages to Dubai to coincide with Emirates Airline International Festival of Literature (EAIFL).

Maltese travelers can benefit from attractive rates for the weekend of the EAIFL. Customers travelling to Dubai between the 26th February and 1st March 2009 can avail themselves of a selection of three holiday packages inclusive of flights, taxes, 3-night accommodation in a 3, 4 or 5 star hotel and airport-hotel-airport transfers in Dubai. The special rates start from €610 per person in a 3-star hotel; €666 per person in a 4-star hotel and €814 per person for those travelers who would like to stay in a 5-star hotel.

More than 60 of the world’s best-known writers and poets will be flying to Dubai to celebrate literature in all its forms and stimulate a wider debate on literature and communication in today’s technology-driven world. The EAIFL will take place at Dubai Festival City between 26th February and 1st March 2009 and it is the first event of its kind and scale in the Middle East.

The line-up of the English language authors include Chimamanda Adichie, Kate Adie, Margaret Atwood, Rachel Billington, Terry Brooks, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Anne Fine, Anthony Horowitz, Frank McCourt, Alexander Maitland, Robin Sharma and Wilbur Smith. The Festival will also feature a number of Arab writers and poets.

Emirates Manager for Malta and Cyprus Paul Fleri Soler said: “Emirates Airline International Festival of Literature is an addition to Dubai’s impressive calendar of events. With our special value packages we are offering an opportunity for book lovers to get close to some of the world’s acclaimed English Language and Arabic authors whose books have inspired many people.”

The activities will include lectures, talks, debates, seminars, workshops and readings and they will be spread across Festival City and adjacent boardwalks. The main events will be held at open areas around the Intercontinental and Crowne Plaza Hotels, while Fringe activities, such as talent searches, competitions and performances are scheduled to run alongside the festival, providing a range of options for visitors. Further details on the programme can be obtained on the festival’s website: www.eaifl.com

Emirates operates daily flights from Dubai to Malta with a stopover in Larnaca, Cyprus. For flight details and information on bookings and fares, please visit www.emirates.com or else contact Emirates Sales Office at Malta International Airport, tel no. 2557 7255.