Tag Archives: Dubai Tourism

Dubai’s tourism industry closed a successful decade at the end of 2019, welcoming an all-time high 16.73 million international overnight visitors, an impressive 5.1 per cent increase in tourism volumes, definitively surpassing the global tourism growth forecast by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) by over one per cent. With momentum firmly tracking against Dubai’s Tourism Vision 2022-25, latest data released by Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) reflects the sector’s exponential progress in a compressed time-frame relative to peers, culminating in Dubai being ranked the World’s Fourth Most Visited City for the fifth consecutive year by MasterCard’s Global Destination Cities Index 2019. Rapidly gaining traction on the ‘travel wish list’ for today’s global traveller, 2019 not only delivered record tourist arrivals and indicated strong desirability for future visits, but also reinforced tourism’s role as key economic growth driver. Contributing an impressive 11.5 per cent in GDP value, Dubai’s tourism sector was ranked one of ‘Top 10’ strongest economic share generators, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council’s Cities Report 2019. The Report also ranked Dubai the third largest city in capturing direct international tourism spending with a total of US $27.9 billion. His Excellency Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General, Dubai Tourism, said, “This past decade, and 2019 in particular, have delivered unmatched acceleration in Dubai’s stature as a ‘Destination of Choice’ for global travellers assuring advancement towards the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai to make it the #1 most visited, preferred and revisited global city. While the global economy remains in a state of flux, we can clearly …

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) announces an administrative order clarifying the law of Decree No. 41, introduced in 2013 to govern holiday home activity in Dubai. The order outlines regulations for operators, homeowners and authorised tenants, who wish to obtain a holiday home license, and has been produced in collaboration with the Supreme Legislation Committee to further diversify tourism in the emirate and boost competition through safe and transparent operations. The technical requirements, guidelines and processes will be mapped out in a detailed guide issued by Dubai Tourism, which will also provide an overview of the operations of a holiday home, how a license can be obtained and should be maintained, and the rights and liabilities of developers, operators and homeowners. Khalid Bin Touq, Executive Director, Tourism Activities and Classification Sector, Dubai Tourism commented, “Recognising this growing popularity for the Holiday Homes concept, Dubai Tourism is committed to enhancing the product offering, fuelling increased visitation, and making Dubai the world’s preferred destination in line with Dubai’s Tourism Vision 2022-25, as envisioned by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. As such, this new administrative resolution will reassure the industry that we are taking steps to regulate the operation of Holiday Homes, providing a comprehensive classification and verification process and ensuring global best practices are adopted to increase competitiveness, transparency, safety and standardisation of the sector.” He added, “We remain in continuous contact with the industry to ensure the processes and requirements are clear, and as the official governing entity for the Holiday Home sector, we encourage all operators and developers to share their …

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) has announced the launch of dedicated QR code plaques in 54 popular locations across the emirate, enabling visitors to discover more about the city’s iconic sites and landmarks by adding multimedia dimensions to self-guided tours. The quick response digital barcodes can be easily scanned by any smartphone, navigating users to dedicated microsites on the VisitDubai website for background information about each location. The multilingual microsites feature a range of content including images and interactive videos. The project works in line with Dubai’s ‘Smart City’ initiative to deliver an efficient, seamless and impactful city experience for residents and visitors through the provision of innovative digital services. The QR plaques help with the reduction of waste generated by printed tour guide books while enhancing the experience of tourists to the city by leveraging Dubai’s powerful tourism website, connecting users to popular points of interest. The QR codes can now be found across the city, including Gold Souk, Naif Souk, Textile Souk, Spice Souk, the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding (SMCCU), Ibn Battuta Mall, Dragon Mart, Ski Dubai, At The Top-Burj Khalifa, City Walk, Jumeirah Beach Residence, Marina Walk, Etihad Museum, Sunset Beach, Zabeel Park, Safa Park, Creek Park, Souk Madinat Jumeirah, Sheikh Saeed House, Kite Beach, Alserkal Avenue, the Jumeirah Mosque, to name a few. Commenting on the launch of the QR codes, Yousuf Lootah, Executive Director – Tourism Development & Investments said, “As the travel sector gains momentum, disruptive innovation remains at the forefront of enhancing international visitation to Dubai – and is a core element of Dubai Tourism’s ‘digital, mobile and social first’ agenda. As such, the launch of the …

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) held a strategic meeting with Hilton, as part of its continuing series of engagements with key industry partners to provide them an overview and outlook of Dubai’s tourism industry and explore ways of further increasing the level of stakeholder collaboration and leveraging all efforts that are underway to achieve the goals of Dubai’s Tourism Vision 2022-25. The meeting was held in the presence of His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Airports, President of the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Chairman and CEO of Emirates Group, and was attended by His Excellency Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General, Dubai Tourism as well as Christopher J. Nassetta, President and Chief Executive Officer for Hilton, Simon Vincent, President Europe, Middle East and Africa and Mr Rudi Jagersbacher, President Middle East, Africa and Turkey. The meeting highlighted the invaluable role that is being played by the hospitality sector, particularly by global partners such as Hilton in supporting Dubai’s endeavour to become the world’s No. 1 most visited, revisited and preferred city as envisioned by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. Hilton has been consistently present in Dubai for more than 40 years and is committed to the long-term growth and development of travel and tourism in the city. Hilton currently has 18 hotels in Dubai with a further 14 hotels in its development pipeline. During the meeting, Dubai Tourism shared new destination insights and highlighted the strong growth in tourism traffic to Dubai in the first three quarters of 2019, the key strategies that were implemented to drive sustained visitation …

Dubai welcomed 12.08 million international overnight visitors in the first nine months of 2019, according to the latest visitation figures released by Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism). The strong 4.3 per cent increase in volume growth compared to the same period last year was supported by highly participatory contributions from both traditional and emerging markets, that has continued to capture strong shares of the tourist wallet, further stimulating Dubai’s GDP impact, and the city’s remarkable consistency in transforming itself to respond to global competition. The positive performance, which drew over 1.23 million visitors to the city in September, an above-market average increase of 7.3 per cent over the same month in 2018, coincided with Dubai being ranked the fourth most visited city in the world for the fifth year in a row in Mastercard’s Global Destination Cities Index 2019, a clear indication that Dubai is continuously renewing its attractiveness to remain a leading global destination. Dubai Tourism’s multi-dimensional market-specific strategies and customised campaigns continued to yield tangible results particularly showcasing the city’s ability to reinvent itself and remain ‘top-of mind’ to both new and repeat audiences across regular strongholds – India, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom and Oman. Together with China that remained the world’s largest tourism volume driver, these five leading feeder countries surpassed the five million threshold for the first nine months of 2019. His Excellency Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General, Dubai Tourism, said, “With Dubai cementing its ranking as the fourth most visited city in the world, the positive growth achieved in the first three quarters this year is exemplary of the unfailing support and confidence of our leadership – His Highness …

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) has reported a stellar incline in tourism volumes from Nigeria, Africa’s largest source market for inbound traffic to Dubai, welcoming 113,000 overnight visitors in the first seven months of 2019. With impressive double-digit growth, inbound traffic from Nigeria to Dubai grew by 28 per cent year-on-year, cementing its position as the emirate’s 17th largest source market. Dubai’s diverse portfolio of attractions has experienced sustained interest amongst Nigerian travellers through ongoing strategic trade partnerships, bespoke integrated marketing campaigns, and always-on social media activations. Building on ongoing efforts to provide a platform to broadcast Dubai’s multifaceted comprehensive offerings to African tourists, Dubai Tourism, led by the CEO, Issam Kazim, showcased its support at the Akwaaba African Travel Market for the fourth consecutive year with a strong delegation of 21 Dubai-based partners, which included a team from Expo 2020 Dubai. Issam Kazim, CEO, Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DCTCM), said, “The immense hospitality and genuine welcome we received during our time in Nigeria paved the way for a hugely successful Akwaaba Travel Market 2019. Our continued presence at industry events such as these is testament to our globally diversified market strategy to engage with key strategic partners, cementing our positive relationship with the African travel trade ecosystem.”

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) has announced a partnership with Turner Asia Pacific, a WarnerMedia company, to launch a new digital campaign starring the popular Chinese emoticon ‘Tuzki’, as part of efforts to further increase tourist traffic to the emirate from China. Issam Kazim, CEO, Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DCTCM), said, “Through Tuzki, we aim to capture the imagination of Chinese netizens to participate in the campaign via social and digital touchpoints, further highlighting our ongoing efforts to work with relevant industry partners to deliver initiatives that will highlight Dubai as a ‘must-visit’ destination.”  In a clear indication of China’s rising prominence as one of Dubai’s fastest growing source markets, the first seven months of 2019 saw over 575,000 visitors arriving from China – a 12 per cent growth compared to the same period in 2018. Notable successes this year include the launch of the Dubai Mini Assistant, an enhancement of the city-experience Mini Program, one of the applications of the WeChat ecosystem, featuring 10 new mobile-based digital audio tours to highlight in-city accessibility, local historic sites and cultural landmarks for Chinese netizens. The Dubai College of Tourism also launched the Chinese Traveller Standards for tourist-facing staff across city touchpoints to enable them to deliver personalised, exceptional Dubai experiences to every Chinese guest. Chinese netizens will also be inspired to book a Dubai holiday during the National Day Golden Week from October 1-7, 2019.  “This digital rabbit is the perfect ambassador for Chinese tourists to Dubai and will show them that this remarkable place has a unique personality and welcomes them with a sense of fun,” said Clement Schwebig, Managing Director of China …

According to a recent report released by Dubai tourism, the hotel sector has recorded one of the highest in the world with occupancy at 76 per cent with establishments delivering a combined 15.71 million occupied room nights during the first six months of the year, a five per cent increase over the same period in 2018. Another noteworthy fact is that the emirate has now reached an inventory of 118,345 within 714 establishments at the end of June 2019, representing a six per cent increase, which showcased continued strong investor confidence in Dubai’s tourism demand. In the Middle East, Dubai continues to be the much favoured destination recording the largest traffic from all over the world. Brands such as Rove have revolutionised the market in Dubai. Luxury five-star and four-star hotels commanded 34 and 25 per cent of the emirate’s total inventory, respectively.  Meanwhile properties in the one to three-star categories represented a share of 20 per cent. Increasing demand for diversified accommodation options was met with a combined 21 per cent of hotel apartment establishments across the deluxe/superior and standard categories.

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) announced it will provide Dubai hotels with an individual Hotel Emission Analysis Report, offering an overview of each establishment’s emission performance in comparison to its peers using results from the Carbon Calculator software. Providing hotels with recommendations for improvement by referring them to the ‘12 Steps Towards Sustainability’ manual, which was launched by Dubai Tourism last year, the Hotel Emission Analysis Report has been launched in line with the UAE’s 2021 National Agenda to promote sustainable growth, reinforcing Dubai’s position as the smartest city in the world and role model in energy efficiency. In 2017, Dubai Sustainable Tourism (DST), an initiative under Dubai Tourism, launched the Carbon Calculator software, a tool developed to measure the carbon footprint of Dubai’s hospitality sector. The emirate’s hotel establishments were mandated to record and submit their emission sources, across electricity, district cooling, water and waste, allowing the findings to be collated for valuable industry insights. Yousuf Lootah, Executive Director – Tourism Development & Investments, Dubai Tourism, commented, “In line with the vision of His Highness, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister, and Ruler of Dubai, to transform the emirate into one of the world’s leading sustainable tourism destinations, the Hotel Emission Analysis Report has been developed as a targeted manual to guide hotels on the sustainability performance of their properties. Furthermore, it will provide a cohesive understanding of where they stand comparatively amongst their industry peers on an annual basis, identifying where improvements can be made to facilitate further resource management, in turn reducing the industry’s collective carbon footprint.”  

Dubai’s Department of Tourism & Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) has provided a positive outlook of the industry to leading stakeholders and partners at its first biannual city briefing event, highlighting the sector’s performance across key markets, and sharing first-hand insights into major developments, marketing initiatives and future growth strategies. Led by His Excellency Helal Saeed Almarri, Director-General of Dubai Tourism, the city briefing held at the InterContinental Dubai Festival City last week comes within the framework of regular industry engagements initiated by the Department to further enhance collaboration with its stakeholders. The event was attended by nearly 1,000 managers and key executives representing all industry segments, from hospitality to tour operators, tourism attractions to destination management companies, as well as top officials from Dubai Police and Expo 2020 Dubai. Addressing the gathering of industry professionals and senior government officials, HE Helal Saeed Almarri, said, “Maintaining a robust industry is at the core of our cross-sector efforts, and as we look ahead, we are confident that our continued cooperation with both public and private sector partners will ensure that Dubai remains a must-visit destination.” Major General Khalil Ibrahim Al Mansour, Assistant to the Commander-in-chief for Criminal Investigation Affairs at Dubai Police, said, “Dubai Police is pleased to be a part of this event as it gives us an opportunity to exchange ideas and views with leading players in Dubai’s tourism industry, and secure their support towards further enhancing the safety and security of visitors.” Sanjive Khosla, Deputy Chief – Sales and Marketing at Expo 2020 Dubai, said, “With fewer than 500 days until Expo 2020 opens, our preparations are well on track.  We will be welcoming millions of tourists from around the …