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THE MENALAC AWARDS 2023
THE MENALAC AWARDS 2023 GALA NIGHT – Our Very Own Oscars
Welcome to the MENA Leisure Industry’s Biggest Night – THE MENALAC AWARDS GALA
This year the MENALAC AWARDS 2023, in its 5th edition, will be held at a glittering Oscar-style ceremony on March 15, 2023, at Address Skyview Hotel in Dubai. It will shine the light on the top attractions, suppliers, and service providers across 29 award categories, from Best Facilities & Attractions to Best Products to Best Campaigns to Best Designs to Best Technology to Best Personalities.
Top stakeholders and who’s who of the MENA Leisure & Attractions industry will gather under one roof in a spirit of unison to celebrate the regional industry to recognize and honor the winners. This celebration is a high-profile glitzy evening affair, where the crème de la crème and the who’s who of the Leisure & Entertainment Industry is in attendance. These include top decision-makers, founders, owners, CEO-level executives of the region's leading operations, and global suppliers who are expected to be part of this glamorous event where spirits run high.
The Gala fun evening for the fun industry includes:
- 7 pm – 8 pm: A welcome cocktail where attendees can network in an exciting and celebratory setting
- 8 pm – 11 pm: A dinner with the awards ceremony and stunning show performances
The event will be held at the very prestigious Address Skyview Hotel in Downtown Dubai, close to the Burj Khalifa - the tallest building in the world
Your participation and attendance are vital for the enhancement of our wonderful MENA Leisure Industry. We hope to see you there!
MENALAC AWARDS 2023
THE ONLY CREDIBLE LEISURE AND ENTERTAINMENT AWARDS CEREMONY FOR THE INDUSTRY BY THE INDUSTRY
Following on the tremendous success and reception across the industry of the first three editions, the 5th edition of the Annual MENALAC Awards Gala, the only industry awards that recognise excellence and achievements, setting benchmarking standards for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) leisure and attractions industry, will be held on March 15, 2023, during Dubai Entertainment and Amusement and Leisure (DEAL) Show, in Dubai, UAE. It will celebrate the industry and reward excellence, outstanding performance and achievements in various facets of the leisure and entertainment industry.
The 2023 edition of the awards will feature 29 award categories, up from 27 offered last year, reflecting an expansion of the industry awards.
Award Category Best Integrated Leisure Destination has been newly created to recognize a Resort, Mall, Shopping Centre, or Community within the MENA region that provides the best mix of dining, retail and entertainment experience. Award Category Best New Product for FEC is now split into 2 distinct award categories - Best New Product For Arcade, VR, Redemption & Novelty, and Best New Product (Ride & Attraction for FECs), with the aim of recognizing the distinct products that cater to the FEC segment.
Following the submission of the nomination, each nominee will undergo a strict and rigorous vetting and judging process to determine the award win in each category. Nomination submission will close on January 31st, 2023 – giving the participants over 2 months to prepare and submit the nominations.
The objective of the annual MENALAC Leisure Industry Awards is to raise the standard of the leisure attractions industry in the Middle East and set new benchmarks for the industry locally and globally.
The 2023 entries for awards will open on November 15, 2022. If your brand, company, park, waterpark, FEC, visitor attraction, edutainment centre, unique visitor attraction, sport and adventure based centre, cinema, excelled and/or surpassed current standards and reached outstanding performance during the past year (2022), please enter the awards by nominating to one or as many as you want of the 29 categories.
The Awards & Gala is presented by MENALAC, the only Regional Trade Association serving the MENA region leisure and entertainment industry.
ACCESS THE FULL BROCHURE & SUBMIT YOUR NOMINATION ENTRIES
The MENALAC AWARDS 2023 Brochure contains all the relevant information about the awards – awards timelines, categories, submission requiremhttps://www.menalac.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Awards-Gala-2023-Brochure-04JAN22-1.pdfents, eligibility requirements, jury names, past winners list and general guidelines for the awards. Page 9 summarizes all award categories on one page. The Brochure in turn will lead you to the MENALAC AWARDS 2023 Online Portal. Under every awards category in the brochure will be a NOMINATE NOW button and on clicking this button you will be directed to the online awards portal. You can create your login and password and start applying for the many award categories.
EVENT TIMELINES
01 DEC 2022 | Award Nominations to open online |
12 FEB 2023 | Final day for submission of award nominations |
13 FEB 2023 | Entries opened to Jury for judging |
26 Feb 2023 | Judging Round Closes |
27 FEB 2023 | All jury markings submitted to an external Auditor for scoring |
03 MAR 2023 | External Auditor to announce finalists |
15 MAR 2023 | Winners to be announced |
AWARDS CATEGORIES
29 AWARD CATEGORIES | AWARD TYPE | OPEN TO: |
---|---|---|
1. BEST THEME PARK | OPERATOR | THEME PARK OPERATORS |
2. BEST WATERPARK | OPERATOR | WATERPARK OPERATORS |
3. BEST FEC | OPERATOR | FEC OPERATORS |
4. MOST UNIQUE VISITOR ATTRACTION | OPERATOR | VISITOR ATTRACTION OPERATORS |
5. BEST EDUTAINMENT / PLAYSCAPE | OPERATOR | EDUTAINMENT/PLAYSCAPE OPERATORS |
6. BEST SPORT / ADVENTURE-BASED ENTERTAINMENT | OPERATOR | SPORT / ADVENTURE-BASED ENTERTAINMENT OPERATORS |
7. BEST NEW LEISURE/ ENTERTAINMENT CONCEPT | OPERATOR | NEW LEISURE/ENTERTAINMENT CONCEPT OPERATORS |
8. BEST CINEMA EXPERIENCE | OPERATOR | CINEMA OPERATORS |
9. BEST DAY OUT | OPERATOR | ATTRACTION, SEASONAL EVENT, LEISURE ACTIVITY OPERATORS |
10. BEST INTEGRATED LEISURE DESTINATION | OPERATOR | LARGE RESORT DEVELOPMENTS, MALLS & RETAIL DEVELOPMENTS, URBAN RESORTS, MIXED-USE DEVELOPMENTS & INTEGRATED COMMUNITIES |
11. MOST UNIQUE MARKETING CAMPAIGN | OPERATOR & M/S | OPERATOR & MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERS |
12. BEST CSR PROGRAM | OPERATOR & M/S | OPERATOR & MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERS |
13. BEST CUSTOMER LOYALTY PROGRAM | OPERATOR | OPERATORS |
14. BEST EMPLOYEES ENGAGEMENT INITIATIVE | OPERATOR | OPERATORS |
15. MOST INNOVATIVE APPLICATION OF TECHNOLOGY | OPERATOR & M/S | OPERATOR, MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERS AND TECHNOLOGY PROVIDER |
16. BEST DESIGN FOR A LEISURE & ENTERTAINMENT FACILITY | OPERATOR & M/S | DESIGN CONSULTANTS, INTERNATIONAL DESIGN & ARCHITECTURAL FIRMS, DEVELOPERS OR OPERATORS WHO WISH TO BE RECOGNISED FOR THE DESIGN OF THEIR FACILITY |
17. BEST NEW PRODUCT/ATTRACTION/INSTALLATION FOR AMUSEMENT PARKS & VISITOR ATTRACTIONS | M/S | MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERS & THEMEING CONTRACTORS |
18. BEST NEW PRODUCT/ATTRACTION/INSTALLATION FOR WATER PARKS & WATER RESORTS | M/S | WATERPARK RIDE & ATTRACTION MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERS |
19. BEST NEW PRODUCT - ARCADE, VR, REDEMPTION & NOVELTY | M/S | ARCADE, VR, REDEMPTION & NOVELTY MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERS |
20. BEST NEW PRODUCT (RIDE & ATTRACTION) FOR FECS | M/S | FEC RIDE & ATTRACTION MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERS |
21. MOST NEW UNIQUE CONCEPT ATTRACTION | M/S | MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERS |
22. SUPPLIER OF THE YEAR | M/S | MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERS/DISTRIBUTORS |
23. BEST INNOVATION IN HEALTH & SAFETY | OPERATOR | OPERATORS |
24. BEST INDIVIDUAL SAFETY ACHIEVEMENT | OPERATOR | OPERATORS |
25. BEST IMPACTFUL SUSTAINABILITY CAMPAIGN OF THE YEAR | OPERATOR & M/S | OPERATOR & MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERS |
26. BEST ESTABLISHMENT MANAGER; BELOW 250000 VISITOR/TRANSACTION | OPERATOR | OPERATORS |
27. BEST ESTABLISHMENT MANAGER; ABOVE 250000 VISITOR/TRANSACTION | OPERATOR | OPERATORS |
28. LEISURE AND ENTERTAINMENT PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR | OPERATOR & M/S | OPERATOR & MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERS |
29. MENALAC HALL OF FAME |
AWARDS WINNERS LIST
AWARD CATEGORIES | AWARD TYPE | AWARD WINNER |
---|---|---|
1. BEST THEME PARK | OPERATOR | FERRARI WORLD, ABU DHABI |
2. BEST WATERPARK | OPERATOR | ATLANTIS AQUAVENTURE |
3. BEST FEC | OPERATOR | MAGIC PLANET, AL ZAHIA |
4. MOST UNIQUE VISITOR ATTRACTION | OPERATOR | SKYVIEW OBSERVATORY |
5. BEST EDUTAINMENT / PLAYSCAPE | OPERATOR | KIDZANIA, DUBAI |
6. BEST SPORT / ADVENTURE-BASED ENTERTAINMENT | OPERATOR | SKI DUBAI |
7. BEST NEW LEISURE/ ENTERTAINMENT CONCEPT | OPERATOR | AYA |
8. BEST CINEMA EXPERIENCE | OPERATOR | REEL CINEMAS |
9. BEST DAY OUT | OPERATOR | WARNER BROS. WORLD ABU DHABI |
10. BEST INTEGRATED LEISURE DESTINATION | OPERATOR | YAS ISLAND, ABU DHABI |
11. MOST UNIQUE MARKETING CAMPAIGN | OPERATOR & M/S | AYA HAS LANDED IN DUBAI - THE METEOR SHOWER CAMPAIGN - HYPERSPACE |
12. BEST CSR PROGRAM | OPERATOR & M/S | ONE GOOD HEART - FUN CITY PAKISTAN |
13. BEST CUSTOMER LOYALTY PROGRAM | OPERATOR | AMC DAERA LOYALTY PROGRAM - AMC CINEMAS |
14. BEST EMPLOYEES ENGAGEMENT INITIATIVE | OPERATOR | EXTRAORDINARY COLLEAGUE ENGAGEMENT - ATLANTIS AQUAVENTURE |
15. MOST INNOVATIVE APPLICATION OF TECHNOLOGY | OPERATOR & M/S | MOBILE WALLET BY MAGIC PLANET- MAF LEISURE, ENTERTAINMENT & CINEMAS |
16. BEST DESIGN FOR A LEISURE & ENTERTAINMENT FACILITY | OPERATOR & M/S | SNOW OMAN |
17. BEST NEW PRODUCT/ATTRACTION/INSTALLATION FOR AMUSEMENT PARKS & VISITOR ATTRACTIONS | M/S | BIG WAVEZ - by ZAMPERLA FOR CITY WALK, JEDDAH |
18. BEST NEW PRODUCT/ATTRACTION/INSTALLATION FOR WATER PARKS & WATER RESORTS | M/S | WIBIT PEAKZ - by WIBIT |
19. BEST NEW PRODUCT - ARCADE, VR, REDEMPTION & NOVELTY | M/S | BLITZ - by HOLOGATE for XREALITY PAVILION, KSA |
20. BEST NEW PRODUCT (RIDE & ATTRACTION) FOR FECS | M/S | NEBULAZ - by ZAMPERLA for YABEELA BAHRAIN |
21. MOST NEW UNIQUE CONCEPT ATTRACTION | M/S | ICON TOWER VERTICAL WATER PARK - WHITEWATER |
22. SUPPLIER OF THE YEAR | M/S | AMUSEMENT SERVICES INTERNATIONAL LLC |
23. BEST INNOVATION IN HEALTH & SAFETY | OPERATOR | MAJID AL FUTTAIM ENTERTAINMENT - HEALTH & SAFETY |
24. BEST INDIVIDUAL SAFETY ACHIEVEMENT | OPERATOR | AJITH AJAYAN - EMAAR ENTERTAINMENT |
25. BEST IMPACTFUL SUSTAINABILITY CAMPAIGN OF THE YEAR | OPERATOR & M/S | DARE TODAY, CHANGE TOMORROW - MAF LEISURE, ENTERTAINMENT & CINEMAS |
26. BEST ESTABLISHMENT MANAGER; BELOW 250000 VISITOR/TRANSACTION | OPERATOR | HAKAM AL AHMAD - AL HOKAIR GROUP |
27. BEST ESTABLISHMENT MANAGER; ABOVE 250000 VISITOR/TRANSACTION | OPERATOR | MOKHTAR MUSLEH - DUBAI AQUARIUM & UNDERWATER ZOO |
28. LEISURE AND ENTERTAINMENT PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR | OPERATOR & M/S | ZEINA DAGHER - EMAAR ENTERTAINMENT |
29. MENALAC HALL OF FAME | ALBERTO ZAMPERLA |
Sponsorship opportunities
We have a diverse range of sponsorship opportunities available; a member of the sponsorship team will work with you to create a bespoke package to suit your businesses objectives.