The UAE’s flagship carrier launched its new daily service to Hangzhou on  Wednesday, marking yet another milestone in its growing network across China. The move comes hot on the heels of its recent route launch to Shenzhen, making Hangzhou the second new mainland destination in just under a month.

Flight EK310 touched down at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport to a warm welcome – complete with a traditional water cannon salute and greetings from local officials and dignitaries. Passengers on the inaugural flight didn’t leave empty-handed either. They were treated to souvenir keychains, flight certificates, and Chinese tea tasting sets to mark the occasion.

The new route is operated on a Boeing 777-300ER, with flight EK310 departing Dubai at 9:40am and reaching Hangzhou by 10:00pm. The return leg, EK311, takes off from Hangzhou at 12:10am, landing back in Dubai by 4:55am, making it a convenient overnight hop for business and leisure travellers.

With this addition, Emirates now flies 49 times a week to five major Chinese cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and now Hangzhou.

Thanks to seamless connectivity through Dubai, travellers from over 40 European cities, 21 in Africa, and others in the Middle East and South America can now easily access one of China’s key tech and business hubs. The route also enables convenient two-way travel between Hangzhou and global cities like Istanbul, Cairo, Johannesburg, and Barcelona.

Best of all? UAE and GCC nationals can visit China visa-free for up to 30 days, making spontaneous business trips or leisure breaks even easier.

Worshippers in Dubai will soon see a new parking system rolled out around 59 mosques across the city, and while the move introduces 24-hour paid parking, there’s good news too: It remains free during prayer times.

Starting in August, Parkin Company, Dubai’s largest public parking provider, will manage around 2,100 parking spaces in partnership with the Islamic Affairs & Charitable Activities Department (IACAD). The spaces, located around mosques, will be free to use for one hour during each prayer, helping ensure convenient access for worshippers.

Outside of those times, however, the same parking spots will operate as regular paid zones – either Zone M (standard) or Zone MP (premium), and will be chargeable 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Here’s a quick breakdown:

• Zone M (Standard): Dh2 for 30 minutes, Dh4 for an hour.
• Zone MP (Premium):
  • Off-peak: Dh2 (30 min), Dh4 (1 hour)
  • Peak: Dh3 (30 min), Dh6 (1 hour)

Of the 59 mosques involved, 41 will be in Zone M, while 18 fall under the premium MP category.

“We’re looking forward to seeing how this collaboration improves the worshipper experience,” said Eng. Mohamed Abdulla Al Ali, CEO of Parkin.

For now, this initiative is focused on the current 59 mosques, but both Parkin and IACAD say there’s potential to expand the programme in future.

Parkin already manages around 209,000 paid parking spaces across Dubai, including developer-owned areas and barrierless systems at malls like City Centre Deira and Mirdif. This partnership adds to their growing footprint and introduces a structured approach to mosque parking that balances convenience with efficiency.

Drivers in the UAE can expect mostly unchanged petrol prices in August, while diesel costs have risen.

The UAE’s Fuel Price Committee has announced the official petrol and diesel rates for August, with petrol prices remaining nearly unchanged from July, while diesel prices see a notable increase.

From August 1, fuel prices across the country will be as follows:

• Super 98: Dh2.69 per litre (down from Dh2.70 in July)
• Special 95: Dh2.57 per litre (down from Dh2.58)
• E-Plus 91: Dh2.50 per litre (down from Dh2.51)
• Diesel: Dh2.78 per litre (up from Dh2.63)

While petrol prices have dipped by just one fils, the 15-fils hike in diesel could impact logistics and goods transport.

Fuel prices in the UAE are revised monthly under global oil market trends. Since the deregulation of fuel prices in 2015, the country has followed a dynamic pricing model aligned with international benchmarks.

Despite slight monthly fluctuations, the UAE continues to offer some of the lowest fuel prices globally, averaging Dh2.58 per litre, helping residents manage daily transportation costs while keeping inflation in check.