The Middle East Tourism

Efforts to galvanise business tourism by investing in infrastructure look to be paying off for Abu Dhabi, with figures showing that the number of events taking place in the emirate is on the rise.

Recent strong performance of the retail sector looks to indicate that Dubai’s tourism sector could be entering a period of sustained growth, despite the regional impact of the Arab Spring. Traditionally, these two sectors have been closely linked, with millions of tourists coming to the emirate each year to experience what has become known as the “shopping capital of the Middle East”.

As part of a long-term strategy to diversify the economy by capitalising on the emirate’s natural beauty, Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) is moving forward with ambitious plans to rebrand itself as a tourism destination. By 2021, RAK expects around 20% of its GDP will be generated by tourism-related activities.

Sharjah’s push to increase the role its tourism sector plays appears to be paying dividends, with hotels reporting higher occupancy rates and airlines adding the emirate as a destination.

Qatar’s tourism sector will be one of the big winners of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, with an accelerated building programme of hotels, hospitality facilities and entertainment centres aimed at making sure fans will enjoy their stay, though care has to be taken to ensure that once the World Cup is over, visitors keep coming through the turnstiles.

Already the world’s 7th most-popular tourist destination, Turkey has continued to grow in 2011, as economic expansion and political stability raise its profile in the region. The country saw a 10.76% increase in visitors between January to September 2011 compared to the same nine-month period in 2010.